The balance of power remains unchanged on the Charleston County School Board, as one candidate endorsed by Moms for Liberty lost his race while another one claimed victory, according to preliminary election results.
Incumbent Ed Kelley, a conservative member of the board who became embroiled in several controversies, was unseated by Mount Pleasant challenger Carolina Jewett in District 2.
Jewett is a business owner and parent of two children attending public schools in the district.
On her campaign website, Jewett listed issues such as keeping public funds in public schools, raising teacher pay and reducing class sizes, school safety, improving grade-level reading and ensuring a focus on education as priorities if she won the race for the seat.
Kelley’s two years on the school board included controversy. In March, 2023, he was asked to resign after a woman alleged he threatened to show up at a transgender teacher’s doorstep with a gun during a local Moms for Liberty chapter meeting. He was censured by his fellow board members. He also spearheaded a contentious overhaul of the district’s health advisory committee.
Michele Leber ousted Daron Lee Calhoun seat in West Ashley’s District 6.
Leber is the wife of Republican state Rep. Matt Leber. On her website, she listed priority issues such as responsible budgeting, school safety, partnerships with legislators and businesses and increasing trust between parents and schools.
Ex-school board member Kevin Hollinshead won the District 4 seat against Craig Logan and Samuel Whatley II. Board member Courtney Waters chose not to run again.
Incumbent Darlene Dunmeyer-Roberson held onto the District 8 seat, fending off challenges from Michelle Faust and the Rev. Charles Glover, who serves as chair of Constituent District 23 in Ravenel.
With these results, the board’s conservative leaning remains intact, with five candidates, a majority, endorsed by Moms for Liberty.
The ultra-conservative political organization deems itself an advocacy group for parents’ rights, pushing against LGBTQ-inclusive curricula, supporting book-ban legislation and opposing social-emotional learning and critical race theory, a college level subject generally taught in law schools, not public schools.
Four seats were up for grabs this election because of a change in state law. Now, newly elected board members will serve four year terms.
School board members’ jobs is to provide oversight of local schools and hold its leaders accountable. They are fiscal watchers of the district’s budget, approve school curricula, evaluate the superintendent and monitor student progress.
Since new Charleston County school board members were elected in 2022, both factions of the board have disagreed on critical matters such as leadership appointments and revision of district policies. Community members have raised concerns over the board’s dysfunctional dynamic.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
