AUSTIN — Mount Pleasant Republican Thomas Ratliff narrowly beat veteran State Board of Education member Don McLeroy in the GOP primary for the board seat that represents Collin County and much of Northeast Texas.

The fiercely contested race pitted McLeroy, a dentist from College Station and member of the board’s social conservative bloc, against Ratliff, a legislative consultant and son of former Lt. Gov. Bill Ratliff.

In an upset, long-time Republican board member Geraldine Miller of Dallas lost to Dallas high school educator George Clayton. Miller outspent Clayton in the race and had been favored to win another term.

With critical board decisions looming in the future about such volatile issues as coverage of evolution in new science textbooks and which political figures are included in new history books, Ratliff and McLeroy offered sharply different views about how they would make those decisions.

McLeroy, one of the most outspoken social conservatives on the panel, ran firmly on his record as he faced his toughest opponent since he was first elected to the board in 1998.

Ratliff who began running for the board in the middle of last year, garnered the support of mainstream public education groups who have been increasingly at odds with McLeroy and his allies on the board.

“I want to take politics out of our public schools,” Ratliff said during his campaign. He told gatherings across the district that Texans are tired of political posturing on the board as the social conservative bloc — led by McLeroy — tries to impose its views in history, science and other areas of the curriculum.

“Our kids don’t go to red schools. They don’t go to blue schools. They go to local schools,” he said, also criticizing attempts by some board members to inject their religious beliefs into what children are taught.

McLeroy was unapologetic about the actions of the social conservatives over the last three years when they held seven of the 15 seats on the board.

Frequently — but not always — they were able to gain a majority by picking up an eighth vote from one of the other three Republicans on the board or one of the five Democrats.

“While my opponent says these last few years have been distractions, I look at them as being incredible accomplishments that will help our children,” he told voters.

No Democrat has filed in the race, so the winner of the GOP primary is expected to cruise to election in November over Libertarian Jeff McGee.