BOE - who are people voting for?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The people who vote in the primary are a smaller, more politically motivated group than your typical voter. A large group are probably MCPS employees. Many others are MCPS parents. As we can see from the results, the majority of primary voters did not vote a straight Apple Ballot. Most people most likely voted for the candidates that most closely match their values and/or followed recommendations from friends and family.

Yeah, there are no doubt voters who are swayed by endorsements in any race, but primary voters tend to be more motivated, turnout is always lower compared to the general election. DH always asks me who to vote for for BOE. Turns out 2 of the 3 I voted for were on the apple ballot, but they were the most reasonable to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I follow the BOE stuff moderately closely and I usually vote apple ballot because my number 1 priority is for the teachers to be happy and feel valued so if they say that a particular candidate is best for that, that will generally be my pick. Happy teachers= good educators in my experience. Resentful teachers who are stressed to their limits = frustrating experience for kids.
Plus the apple ballot picks always seem the most sane to me.

You might want to check your logic. Teachers are at their wits end and we have has apple ballot candidates for eons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mandel could inch out ahead of Shebra, which would be quite remarkable if that happens.

The BOE needs to wake up. People are furious with the current state of MCPS.

Why not use Evans instead of her first name? Just as you did for Mandel.

People didn't want to vote Mandel but wanted to stick it to the current BOE. And then there is Harris - an incumbent.

People use the more distinctive name, to aid communication.

Or is it people using "distinctive name to aid comminication" use first name for non-whites and last name for whites?
DP

No. It isn't. Were you not here when everyone called former superintendent Jack Smith "Jack," but we weren't allowed to call Monifa, "Monifa"?
Diaz should be a clue to you that everyone is tired of the fake "micro offenses. " get a grip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mandel could inch out ahead of Shebra, which would be quite remarkable if that happens.

The BOE needs to wake up. People are furious with the current state of MCPS.

Why not use Evans instead of her first name? Just as you did for Mandel.

People didn't want to vote Mandel but wanted to stick it to the current BOE. And then there is Harris - an incumbent.

People use the more distinctive name, to aid communication.

Or is it people using "distinctive name to aid comminication" use first name for non-whites and last name for whites?
DP

No. It isn't. Were you not here when everyone called former superintendent Jack Smith "Jack," but we weren't allowed to call Monifa, "Monifa"?
Diaz should be a clue to you that everyone is tired of the fake "micro offenses. " get a grip.

Everyone on DCUM didn't call Jack Smith "Jack" though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mandel could inch out ahead of Shebra, which would be quite remarkable if that happens.

The BOE needs to wake up. People are furious with the current state of MCPS.

Why not use Evans instead of her first name? Just as you did for Mandel.

People didn't want to vote Mandel but wanted to stick it to the current BOE. And then there is Harris - an incumbent.

People use the more distinctive name, to aid communication.

Or is it people using "distinctive name to aid comminication" use first name for non-whites and last name for whites?
DP

No. It isn't. Were you not here when everyone called former superintendent Jack Smith "Jack," but we weren't allowed to call Monifa, "Monifa"?
Diaz should be a clue to you that everyone is tired of the fake "micro offenses. " get a grip.

Everyone on DCUM didn't call Jack Smith "Jack" though.

But no one tripped when someone did either.

[Anonymous]

One thing to note about the school board races is that there are a lot of mail-in ballots to be counted.

Adam Pagnucco breaks this out: https://montgomeryperspective.com/2024/05/14/early-election-leaders-senate-cd6-and-school-board/

At-Large:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,922

District 2:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,855

District 4:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,838

That's a lot of mail ballots. If patterns remain the same, then the current winners stand. But if Smondrowski, for whatever reason, emerges with a large portion of the oustanding mail ballots, then she's back in the game. I don't know how long it'll take for them to count these and make the calls final. Hopefully it's soon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I voted Diaz, Mandel and Mofor.

My main issues were educational standards, safety, budget and opt out.

They seem to be the main indicators for me of how MCPS is failing. I am very strong on those issues except opt out. I don’t care so much about per se, but to me it signifies the strident and unacceptable attitude at the BOE and MCPS that needs to be brought into check.

The troll is strong in this one!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mandel could inch out ahead of Shebra, which would be quite remarkable if that happens.

The BOE needs to wake up. People are furious with the current state of MCPS.

Why not use Evans instead of her first name? Just as you did for Mandel.

People didn't want to vote Mandel but wanted to stick it to the current BOE. And then there is Harris - an incumbent.

People use the more distinctive name, to aid communication.

Or is it people using "distinctive name to aid comminication" use first name for non-whites and last name for whites?
DP

No. It isn't. Were you not here when everyone called former superintendent Jack Smith "Jack," but we weren't allowed to call Monifa, "Monifa"?
Diaz should be a clue to you that everyone is tired of the fake "micro offenses. " get a grip.

Everyone on DCUM didn't call Jack Smith "Jack" though.

But no one tripped when someone did either.

Probably because there isn't a long history of minimizing white men by calling them by their first name instead of their title and last name.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mandel could inch out ahead of Shebra, which would be quite remarkable if that happens.

The BOE needs to wake up. People are furious with the current state of MCPS.

Why not use Evans instead of her first name? Just as you did for Mandel.

People didn't want to vote Mandel but wanted to stick it to the current BOE. And then there is Harris - an incumbent.

People use the more distinctive name, to aid communication.

Or is it people using "distinctive name to aid comminication" use first name for non-whites and last name for whites?
DP

No. It isn't. Were you not here when everyone called former superintendent Jack Smith "Jack," but we weren't allowed to call Monifa, "Monifa"?
Diaz should be a clue to you that everyone is tired of the fake "micro offenses. " get a grip.

Everyone on DCUM didn't call Jack Smith "Jack" though.

But no one tripped when someone did either.

Probably because there isn't a long history of minimizing white men by calling them by their first name instead of their title and last name.

You should probably get over yourself and find something significant to worry about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing to note about the school board races is that there are a lot of mail-in ballots to be counted.

Adam Pagnucco breaks this out: https://montgomeryperspective.com/2024/05/14/early-election-leaders-senate-cd6-and-school-board/

At-Large:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,922

District 2:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,855

District 4:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,838

That's a lot of mail ballots. If patterns remain the same, then the current winners stand. But if Smondrowski, for whatever reason, emerges with a large portion of the oustanding mail ballots, then she's back in the game. I don't know how long it'll take for them to count these and make the calls final. Hopefully it's soon.

I think Smondrowski could eek out enough votes to advance. As Adam points out, she leads Diaz in the mail in ballots that have been cast so far. Diaz appeals to more right-leaning voters who are less likely to vote by mail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing to note about the school board races is that there are a lot of mail-in ballots to be counted.

Adam Pagnucco breaks this out: https://montgomeryperspective.com/2024/05/14/early-election-leaders-senate-cd6-and-school-board/

At-Large:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,922

District 2:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,855

District 4:

Mail ballots received but not yet counted as of 5/13/24: 38,838

That's a lot of mail ballots. If patterns remain the same, then the current winners stand. But if Smondrowski, for whatever reason, emerges with a large portion of the oustanding mail ballots, then she's back in the game. I don't know how long it'll take for them to count these and make the calls final. Hopefully it's soon.

I think Smondrowski could eek out enough votes to advance. As Adam points out, she leads Diaz in the mail in ballots that have been cast so far. Diaz appeals to more right-leaning voters who are less likely to vote by mail.

She could eke out enough votes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:255 of 257 districts reported now. Top 3 in each race:

At Large:
Lynne Harris 26,845 31.07%
Rita Montoya 26,824 31.05%
Melissa Kim 13,344 15.45%

Incumbent (Harris) has a strong showing. Very close race, may be equally close in the general.

D2:
Natalie Zimmerman 38,863 46.11%
Brenda M. Diaz 18,774 22.28%
Rebecca Smondrowski 14,216 16.87%

Incumbent (Smondrowski) voted out.

D4:
Laura M. Stewart 40,103 47.30%
Shebra Evans 22,840 26.94%
Bethany S. Mandel 21,843 25.76%

Incumbent (Evans) barely squeaks by, beating DCUM's favorite candidate (joke) by less than 1,000 votes. Strong chance Evans will lose in the general.

So in the general, we know 1 incumbent is already out (Smondrowski), and 1 is likely to lose (Evans), so that just leaves Harris. If all 3 get voted out, that will be quite a coup!

Not a coup. A demonstration of the power of the MCEA Apple Ballot.

Or, the Apple ballot is a good reflection of the general opinions of the voters of this county. Many people do their own research and come to the same/similar conclusions as the Apple Ballot. Zimmerman and Stewart had 46/47 percent of the vote, but Montoya only 31. People didn’t just vote straight Apple Ballot.

It’s true they didn’t just vote Apple ballot but I think Melissa Kim was another strong option for at-large who split votes with Montoya. The other races didn’t have a second good non-incumbent in addition to the Apple ballot. Melissa Kim’s voters will likely go for Montoya over Harris.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I follow the BOE stuff moderately closely and I usually vote apple ballot because my number 1 priority is for the teachers to be happy and feel valued so if they say that a particular candidate is best for that, that will generally be my pick. Happy teachers= good educators in my experience. Resentful teachers who are stressed to their limits = frustrating experience for kids.
Plus the apple ballot picks always seem the most sane to me.

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:255 of 257 districts reported now. Top 3 in each race:

At Large:
Lynne Harris 26,845 31.07%
Rita Montoya 26,824 31.05%
Melissa Kim 13,344 15.45%

Incumbent (Harris) has a strong showing. Very close race, may be equally close in the general.

D2:
Natalie Zimmerman 38,863 46.11%
Brenda M. Diaz 18,774 22.28%
Rebecca Smondrowski 14,216 16.87%

Incumbent (Smondrowski) voted out.

D4:
Laura M. Stewart 40,103 47.30%
Shebra Evans 22,840 26.94%
Bethany S. Mandel 21,843 25.76%

Incumbent (Evans) barely squeaks by, beating DCUM's favorite candidate (joke) by less than 1,000 votes. Strong chance Evans will lose in the general.

So in the general, we know 1 incumbent is already out (Smondrowski), and 1 is likely to lose (Evans), so that just leaves Harris. If all 3 get voted out, that will be quite a coup!

Not a coup. A demonstration of the power of the MCEA Apple Ballot.

Or, the Apple ballot is a good reflection of the general opinions of the voters of this county. Many people do their own research and come to the same/similar conclusions as the Apple Ballot. Zimmerman and Stewart had 46/47 percent of the vote, but Montoya only 31. People didn’t just vote straight Apple Ballot.

It’s true they didn’t just vote Apple ballot but I think Melissa Kim was another strong option for at-large who split votes with Montoya. The other races didn’t have a second good non-incumbent in addition to the Apple ballot. Melissa Kim’s voters will likely go for Montoya over Harris.

Melissa Kim's supporters were looking at what Kim could bring to the table: master educator, past experience as a principal, experienced school district administrator and education policy expert. Montoya's only experience in education is a few months as her elementary school's PTA president. It's unlikely that Kim's supporters will see Montoya as an acceptable alternative.

[Anonymous]

According to this report from MoCo 360, canvassing of the mail-in ballots will start Thursday and happen through the weekend, which means we'll probably know who won next week.

SOURCE: https://moco360.media/2024/05/15/final-primary-results-awaiting-counting-of-thousands-of-mail-in-ballots/

The Montgomery County Board of Elections still has to count thousands of mail-in ballots that were not received before Election Day, and it will be 10 days before the election is certified.

“The board doesn’t call races until we’ve counted all of the eligible votes,” President David Naimon said Wednesday during a virtual press briefing hosted by the Montgomery County Executive Office. “News organizations and candidates can, and some have called races, but as far as we’re concerned, we only say that there’s a winner when we’re completely done.”

The tabulating, set to begin Thursday, could particularly impact the Montgomery County Board of Education race, where some margins are close, according to unofficial state board of elections results posted as of 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. For example, in the District 4 race, Laura Stewart has a strong lead with 47.3% of the vote, but her two fellow candidates for the seat are separated by just over a point–incumbent Shebra Evans has 26.94% of votes, with challenger Bethany Mandel close behind at 25.76%. That’s a difference of less than 1,000 votes. The top two of the three candidates will move on to the November general election.

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According to state board of elections data, 134,779 county residents requested a mail-in ballot. The Montgomery County Board of Elections has received almost 63,000 mail-in ballots, according to Naimon. As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, 30,845 of those had been processed by the elections board.

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Voters were able to place their mail-in ballots in polling place dropboxes until polls closed at 8 p.m. and any ballot postmarked by May 14 will be counted if it is received by the elections board for up to 10 days after the election. The election cannot be certified by the board until every eligible ballot is processed.

Naimon noted that about 110,000 county residents are on an automatic mail-in ballot request list, which means they signed up to automatically receive a mail-in ballot every election. This means that some residents may have received a ballot because they chose to be on the list, but may not have planned to vote in the primary or decided to vote in person. Montgomery County is home to at least 680,831 eligible registered voters.

According to Naimon, 64,000 county residents voted in person on Tuesday. Only around 20,000 voters participated in in-person early voting from May 2 through 9.

The board will begin canvassing remaining uncounted mail-in ballots Thursday and continue canvassing Friday and Saturday. Naimon said the board will assess how many additional canvasses may be needed based on progress over the weekend.