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Escambia County School District elections (2014)
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Three seats on the Escambia County School Board were up for general election on August 26, 2014. The general election determined if candidates for each seat could garner a majority of the vote total. Because no candidate received 50 percent plus one of the general election votes in the District 3 race, the top two vote recipients advanced to the runoff election on November 4, 2014.
Incumbent Linda Moultrie faced a challenge from newcomers Laura Dortch Edler and Charlie Nichols in District 3. Since neither Moultrie nor Nichols was able to garner 50 percent plus one of the vote, they faced each other in the runoff election in November. Moultrie retained her seat after winning the runoff election. Fellow board members Jeff Bergosh and Gerald W. Boone ran for re-election without opposition in Districts 1 and 2, respectively.
With only one challenged seat, the 2014 general election was a relatively calm race. However, District 3 candidate Edler demonstrated that high campaign contributions and expenditures do not always correlate to a win. Additionally, a candidate interview with the Pensacola News Journal highlighted differences in focus between the advancing District 3 candidates.
About the district
- See also: Escambia County School District, Florida
Escambia County School District is based in Pensacola, the county seat of Escambia County, Florida. Escambia County is home to 305,817 residents, according to the United States Census Bureau.[1] Escambia County School District was the 20th-largest school district in Florida, serving 40,496 students during the 2011-2012 school year.[2]
Demographics
Escambia County underperformed in comparison to the rest of Florida in terms of higher education achievement in 2012. The United States Census Bureau found that 23.2 percent of Escambia County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 26.2 percent for Florida as a whole. The median household income in Escambia County was $43,806 compared to $47,309 for the state of Florida. The poverty rate in Escambia County was 17.8 percent compared to 15.6 percent for the entire state.[1]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Voter and candidate information
The Escambia County School Board consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Each member represents a specific geographic district. There was a general election on August 26, 2014, and the runoff election for District 3 took place on November 4, 2014, as no candidate received 50 percent or more of the general election vote.
Candidates for the school board filed for the election by June 20, 2014. The county's elections office hosted early voting for the general election at various locations from August 16, 2014, to August 23, 2014. The early voting window for the runoff election ran from October 25, 2014, to November 1, 2014. The last day to request a mailed absentee ballot in the general election was August 20, 2014, and the runoff election deadline was October 29, 2014.
Elections
2014
Candidates
District 1
- Jeff Bergosh
- Incumbent
- Graduate, Grossmont College and San Diego State University
- U.S. Government contractor, Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola
District 2
- Gerald W. Boone
- Incumbent
- Graduate, Chipola Junior College and University of West Florida
- Retired educator
District 3
- Linda Moultrie
- Incumbent
- Graduate, Pensacola Junior College and Troy State University
- Precinct 3 manager, Escambia County sheriff’s office
- Charlie Nichols
- President, Eleventh Episcopal District Lay Organization
Candidate defeated in the general election:
- Laura Dortch Edler
- Graduate, Pensacola Junior College, Florida State University and the University of West Florida
- Assistant professor, University of West Florida
District map
Election results
Runoff: District 3
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Linda Moultrie Incumbent |
55% | 7,913 | |
| Nonpartisan | Charlie Nichols | 45% | 6,471 | |
| Total Votes | 14,384 | |||
| Source: Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, "2014 General Election," accessed January 2, 2015 | ||||
General: District 1
Jeff Bergosh was re-elected without opposition.
General: District 2
Gerald W. Boone was re-elected without opposition.
General: District 3
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Linda Moultrie Incumbent |
36.2% | 1,858 | |
| Nonpartisan | Charlie Nichols |
35.8% | 1,841 | |
| Nonpartisan | Laura Dortch Edler | 28% | 1,440 | |
| Total Votes | 5,139 | |||
| Source: Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, "Election Results: 2014 Primary Election," accessed October 28, 2014 | ||||
Endorsements
Pensacola publication Inweekly endorsed District 3 incumbent Linda Moultrie.[4]
Campaign finance
Candidates received a total of $53,032.94 and spent a total of $45,901.38 by October 28, 2014, according to the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections.[5]
District 1
In the District 1 race, unopposed incumbent Jeff Bergosh raised a total of $11,261.38 and spent a total of $9,521.70.
| Candidate | Monetary contributions |
In-kind contributions |
Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Bergosh | $9,521.70 | $1,739.68 | $9,521.70 | $0.00 |
District 2
In the District 2 race, unopposed incumbent Gerald W. Boone raised a total of $1,743.00 and spent a total of $1,700.00.
| Candidate | Monetary contributions |
In-kind contributions |
Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gerald W. Boone | $1,700.00 | $43.00 | $1,700.00 | $0.00 |
District 3
In the District 3 race, candidates raised a total of $40,028.56 and spent a total of $34,679.68.
| Candidate | Monetary contributions |
In-kind contributions |
Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laura Dortch Edler | $16,147.65 | $1,850.00 | $16,147.65 | $0.00 |
| Linda Moultrie | $5,700.00 | $674.25 | $4,453.16 | $1,246.84 |
| Charlie Nichols | $14,938.66 | $718.00 | $14,078.87 | $859.79 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
With three incumbents running in the 2014 election and two of them unopposed, Escambia County School Board was guaranteed to see at least two returning board members: Jeff Bergosh in District 1 and Gerald W. Boone in District 2. District 3 incumbent Linda Moultrie did not receive a decisive victory in the general election. Just 17 votes ahead of second place finisher Charlie Nichols, Moultrie only earned 36.2 percent of the general election votes. Nichols and Moultrie advanced to a runoff election on November 4, 2014, while the other challenger, Laura Dortch Edler, was defeated with only 28 percent of the general election vote in her favor.
Despite their unopposed races, both Bergosh and Boone reported campaign contributions and expenses. As of October 28, 2014, Nichols was outpacing Moultrie in fundraising by more than double and in expenditures by more than triple. Edler, despite her defeat in the general election, reported more contributions and expenditures than the advancing candidates at that time.[6]
Issues in the election
District 3 candidate questionnaire
In response to a candidate questionnaire, Moultrie stated that student achievement, parental involvement and business and community partnerships were the top three issues that could be impacted by her board position. Nichols emphasized improving the graduation rate, lobbying for mandatory pre-kindergarten education and communication with constituents as his top three issues. The candidates disagreed on the top challenge in the district. Moultrie stated that economic development is the top challenge and should be addressed by coordination between schools and the community, including businesses. Nicholos, however, focused on the dropout rate for students in the district, which he stated could be addressed by providing additional training to teachers and researching "best practices."[7]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the school board election in 2014:
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| June 20, 2014 | Last day of candidate filing period |
| August 16, 2014 | First day of early voting in general election |
| August 20, 2014 | Last day to request mailed absentee ballot for general election |
| August 23, 2014 | Last day of early voting in general election |
| August 26, 2014 | General election day |
| October 25, 2014 | First day of early voting in runoff election |
| October 29, 2014 | Last day to request mailed absentee ballot for runoff election |
| November 1, 2014 | Last day of early voting in runoff election |
| November 4, 2014 | Runoff election day |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Florida elections, 2014
Area residents voted on county and statewide races on November 4, 2014. Residents of Escambia County voted on races for county commission and county judge seats. Voters decided on a statewide ballot measure to amend the state constitution to allow the use of medical marijuana. The November 4, 2014, ballot included races for state legislature, state executive and U.S. House seats.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Escambia + County + Schools + Florida"
See also
- Florida
- Escambia County School District, Florida
- Florida school board elections, 2014
- List of school board elections in 2014
- School board elections, 2014
- Escambia County, Florida ballot measures
- Local ballot measures, Florida
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 United States Census Bureau, "Escambia County, Florida," accessed July 8, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed July 7, 2014
- ↑ Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, "Home," accessed July 8, 2014
- ↑ Inweekly, "Inweekly Primary Endorsements," accessed August 22, 2014
- ↑ Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 28, 2014
- ↑ Escambia County Supervisor of Elections, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 28, 2014
- ↑ Pensacola News Journal, "5 questions with Escambia School Board candidates," October 25, 2014
| 2014 Escambia County School District Elections | |
| Escambia County, Florida | |
| Election date: | August 26, 2014 |
| Candidates: | District 1: • Jeff Bergosh District 5: • Laura Dortch Edler • Linda Moultrie • Charlie Nichols |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
