Courtland district candidate Carol Medawar raised the most. Also in this issue: Livingston district candidate Megan Jackson explains why she did not respond to the ACLU of Virginia’s questionnaire.
by Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
The latest campaign finance reports were due at the end of October, and according to the Virginia Public Access Project, Spotsylvania School Board candidates have raised and spent tens of thousands of dollars this election cycle.
The candidate who raised the most was Carol Medawar, who is running to represent the Courtland District on the School Board. She’s raised $20,459 this year and is ending her campaign with just over $1,200 in hand.
Medawar received 31 individual donations over $100 and 93 under $100, according to VPAP.
Her opponent, David Ross, who currently sits on the Board of Supervisors, has not raised or spent any money on his campaign for School Board, VPAP shows.
Megan Jackson, one of two candidates running to unseat incumbent Livingston District representative Kirk Twigg, comes in second in terms of funds raised – $18,461 from 143 individual donors.
Jackson’s campaign ended the most recent cycle with $2,800 in hand.
Twigg has raised a total of $13,900 and has $88 in hand. His campaign received 44 individual donations.
Alex Carlson, the third Livingston candidate, raised about $2,000 and only spent about $400 of that amount.
Chancellor District candidate Belen Rodas raised a total of $17,019 and has an ending balance of $4,879, according to VPAP. Her campaign received 80 individual donations.
Rodas’s opponent, Jordan Lynch, raised about $10,000 from 23 individual donations and has an ending balance of $1,645.
In the Salem District, challenger Chris Harris has outraised incumbent Lorita Daniels, according to VPAP. Harris has raised $17,865 from 28 individual donors and has an ending balance of about $1,600.
Daniels has raised about $15,000 from 99 individual donors and is ending the campaign cycle with about $5,000 in hand.
The totals raised by candidates this cycle and during the last School Board election are up significantly over those raised in 2019.
Rich Lieberman, who ran unsuccessfully for the Lee Hill district seat against incumbent Lisa Phelps, raised about $16,000 in 2021. April Gillespie, who beat incumbent Erin Grampp for the Berkeley seat, raised just under $22,000 that year.
In 2019, Twigg raised about $5,000 and his opponent, Erin Sherwood, raised $700. Rabih Abuismail raised about $6,500 for his 2019 campaign, when he beat incumbent Courtland representative James Meyer – who raised just $628 for his campaign.
Megan Jackson on the ACLU of Virginia Questionnaire
Last week, the Advance wrote about a questionnaire the ACLU of Virginia sent to some Spotsylvania School Board candidates, and reached out to those candidates who did not respond.
Over the weekend, Jackson sent the following explanation, which also went to the ACLU of Virginia, explaining why she did not respond to the questionnaire:
I apologize for the delayed response, but truly appreciate you reaching out with the ACLU Questionnaire. I know it’s already past the deadline, but I wanted to let you know why I did not fill out the questionnaire. Unfortunately, the Spotsylvania School Board has become too politicized, and it is my goal to stay away from anything that could be seen as partisan. I do not mean any disrespect to your organization, but I am choosing to steer clear from party and organizational endorsements, or anything that some may interpret that way. I am more than happy to answer those questions for voters if/when they come to me, and trust me, they have been! I know that is not helpful for your site, but I must stay the course for the betterment of the students and educators in Spotsylvania. If you are up for sharing any information about me (no hard feelings if not), you can encourage voters to follow me on Facebook, visit my website, or email me to connect.
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