Greg Copeland
Greg Copeland was the Maplewood City Manager.
Copeland (Republican Party) ran for election to the Minnesota House of Representatives to represent District 66B. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Biography
Copeland earned a B.A. in political science from Saint Leo University in 1976. From 1987 to 1992, Copeland owned and operated the General Lines Insurance Agency. In 1993, he founded the Liberty Resources Corporation. Copeland previously served as the chair of the St. Paul Republican Party Committee.[1] From 2006 to 2008, he also served as the city manager of Maplewood.[2]
Elections
2024
See also: Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
General election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 66B
Incumbent Athena Hollins defeated Greg Copeland in the general election for Minnesota House of Representatives District 66B on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Athena Hollins (D) | 76.1 | 10,864 |
 | Greg Copeland (R) | 23.6 | 3,370 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 38 | ||
| Total votes: 14,272 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Athena Hollins advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 66B.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Greg Copeland advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota House of Representatives District 66B.
Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Copeland in this election.
2022
See also: Municipal elections in Ramsey County, Minnesota (2022)
General election
General election for Ramsey County Board of Commissioners District 6
Mai Chong Xiong defeated Ying Vang-Pao in the general election for Ramsey County Board of Commissioners District 6 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Mai Chong Xiong (Nonpartisan) | 50.2 | 7,993 | |
| Ying Vang-Pao (Nonpartisan) | 48.8 | 7,780 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 1.0 | 160 | ||
| Total votes: 15,933 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Ramsey County Board of Commissioners District 6
The following candidates ran in the primary for Ramsey County Board of Commissioners District 6 on August 9, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Mai Chong Xiong (Nonpartisan) | 39.7 | 2,372 | |
| ✔ | Ying Vang-Pao (Nonpartisan) | 28.9 | 1,725 | |
| Dino Guerin (Nonpartisan) | 15.7 | 937 | ||
| Greg Copeland (Nonpartisan) | 6.2 | 371 | |
| Nick Muhammad (Nonpartisan) | 4.5 | 271 | ||
| Clara Ware (Nonpartisan) | 2.7 | 159 | ||
| Foua-Choua Khang (Nonpartisan) | 2.4 | 144 | ||
| Total votes: 5,979 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2020
See also: Minnesota State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Minnesota State Senate District 66
Incumbent John Marty defeated Greg Copeland in the general election for Minnesota State Senate District 66 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | John Marty (D) | 76.9 | 31,880 |
| Greg Copeland (R) | 22.9 | 9,490 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 90 | ||
| Total votes: 41,460 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent John Marty advanced from the Democratic primary for Minnesota State Senate District 66.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Greg Copeland advanced from the Republican primary for Minnesota State Senate District 66.
Campaign finance
2019
General election
General election for St. Paul City Council Ward 6
The ranked-choice voting election was won by Nelsie Yang in round 5 . The results of Round are displayed below. To see the results of other rounds, use the dropdown menu above to select a round and the table will update.
|
Total votes: 5,708 |
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| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
2017
Three of the seven seats on the Saint Paul Public Schools school board in Minnesota were up for nonpartisan general election on November 7, 2017. Incumbents John Brodrick and Jeanelle Foster won election, along with newcomer Marny Xiong. The challengers who lost were Luke Bellville, Greg Copeland, Andrea Touhey.[3]
Results
| Saint Paul Public Schools, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Marny Xiong |
30.44% | 36,480 |
| Jeanelle Foster Incumbent |
24.93% | 29,883 |
| John Brodrick Incumbent |
21.84% | 26,172 |
| Andrea Touhey | 11.09% | 13,288 |
| Greg Copeland | 7.03% | 8,425 |
| Luke Bellville | 3.64% | 4,358 |
| Write-in votes | 1.04% | 1,244 |
| Total Votes | 119,850 | |
| Source: Saint Paul Public Schools, "Minutes Of The Regular Meeting Of The Board Of Education," November 14, 2017 | ||
Funding
Copeland reported $1,019.00 in contributions and $517.10 in expenditures to the Ramsey County Elections & Voting Office, which left his campaign with $501.90 on hand in the election.[4]
Endorsements
Copeland was endorsed by Saint Paul Republicans.[5]
2016
One of the seven seats on the Saint Paul Public Schools Board of Education was up for at-large special election to a one-year term on November 8, 2016.[6] Five candidates filed to run for the seat—Eduardo Barrera, Greg Copeland, Jeanelle Foster, Cindy Kerr, and Tony Klehr. Foster won the seat.[7][8]
Results
| Saint Paul Public Schools At-large Special Election, 1-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Jeanelle Foster |
37.91% | 35,221 |
| Eduardo Barrera | 20.86% | 19,381 |
| Cindy Kerr | 17.89% | 16,621 |
| Greg Copeland | 16.13% | 14,983 |
| Tony Klehr | 5.50% | 5,108 |
| Write-in votes | 1.71% | 1,592 |
| Total Votes | 92,906 | |
| Source: Saint Paul Public Schools, "Board Meeting Minutes: 11/15/16 - BOE," accessed December 22, 2016 | ||
Funding
Copeland reported $1,019.00 in contributions and $323.62 in expenditures to the Ramsey County Elections, which left his campaign with $695.38 on hand in the election.[9]
2015
The election in Saint Paul featured four of the seven seats on the board up for at-large general election on November 3, 2015.
The seats of incumbents Anne Carroll, Mary Doran, Keith Hardy, and Louise Seeba were up for election. Hardy, who was the only incumbent who filed for re-election, faced challengers Aaron Anthony Benner, Greg Copeland, Zuki Ellis, Linda Freeman, Steve Marchese, Scott Raskiewicz, Jon Schumacher, and Mary Vanderwert for the four at-large seats.
Ellis, Marchese, Schumacher, and Vanderwert won the four seats. All four were endorsed by the Saint Paul Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, and they campaigned together as an unofficial candidate slate.[10]
Benner informally ended his campaign on September 16, 2015, but he still appeared on the ballot since the formal withdrawal deadline was August 13, 2015. He stated that if he had won, he would not take office. Copeland previously ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the board in 2013.
Results
| Saint Paul Public Schools, At-Large, General Election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Mary Vanderwert |
20.3% | 17,777 |
| Zuki Ellis |
17.4% | 15,290 |
| Jon Schumacher |
16.7% | 14,652 |
| Steve Marchese |
16.6% | 14,524 |
| Keith Hardy Incumbent | 9.7% | 8,548 |
| Linda Freeman | 6.7% | 5,914 |
| Greg Copeland | 5.1% | 4,468 |
| Scott Raskiewicz | 3.2% | 2,810 |
| Aaron Anthony Benner | 3.0% | 2,660 |
| Write-in votes | 1.19% | 1,047 |
| Total Votes | 87,690 | |
| Source: Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State, "Local Results in Ramsey County," accessed November 4, 2015 These election results are not official and will be updated when certified results are available. You can submit certified results by contacting us. |
||
Funding
Copeland reported $1,002.00 in contributions and $314.81 in expenditures to the Ramsey County Election Office, which left his campaign with $687.19 on hand during the election.[11]
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify any official endorsements for Copeland in the election.
2013
Copeland and Terrance Bushard were defeated by incumbents Jean O'Connell and John Brodrick and fellow newcomer Chue Vue for the three at-large seats in the general election on November 5, 2013.
Results
| Saint Paul Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year terms, 2013 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Chue Vue |
30.8% | 20,605 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jean O'Connell Incumbent |
29.3% | 19,621 | |
| Nonpartisan | John Brodrick Incumbent |
24.6% | 16,449 | |
| Nonpartisan | Greg Copeland | 9.4% | 6,307 | |
| Nonpartisan | Terrance Bushard | 5.1% | 3,417 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.7% | 481 | |
| Total Votes | 66,880 | |||
| Source: Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State, "Results for Selected Contests in School District No. 625 - St. Paul," accessed December 18, 2013 | ||||
Funding
Copeland reported no contributions or expenditures to the Ramsey County Election Office.[12]
Endorsements
Copeland received an endorsement for his campaign from the Saint Paul Republicans, which he led at the time.[13]
2011
Copeland ran to fill the District 66 seat vacancy created when Ellen Anderson (DFL) resigned to serve as chair of the Public Utilities Commission. He was defeated by Mary Jo McGuire (D) in the special election held on April 12, 2011.[14][15]
2010
- See also: Minnesota State Senate elections, 2010
Copeland ran unopposed in the primary on August 10, 2010, for the District 66 seat in the Minnesota State Senate. He was defeated by incumbent Ellen Anderson (DFL) in the general election on November 2, 2010.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Greg Copeland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Greg Copeland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Greg Copeland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Greg Copeland did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.
2017
Ballotpedia survey responses
GREG COPELAND participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of school board candidates.[16] In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on September 21, 2017:
| “ | I have followed the Saint Paul Public Schools Budget process for over 20 year and I cannot remember any year when the School Board spent the Majority of the General Fund Education Dollars in a Direct Allocation to Schools. The 2018 Budget spends only 47% of those dollars in the classrooms under the Principals direct management. It is way past time for new accountability and that the District Budget prioritize allocation of General Fund Education dollars Directly to School Sites and Classrooms for Direct Student Instruction, rather than have it lost to the myriad of District Office Programs. Principals need to assume direct management over these education dollars and responsibility for their school's educational outcomes. The District has no business building a new school on a hazardous waste site at 1050 Kent for disabled, including brain and other neurologically injured students who are particularly sensitive to environmental chemical hazards which will always be part of this property, which the owner in a deed restriction said that no school building should be built on the property, ever! Our Children deserve much better, than this absurd use of limited capital resources by this failed school board.[17][18] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Minnesota. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | Student Academic Achievement must Priority #1; in order to beneficially serve our students and to attract new student enrollment to grow District financial resources, without asking for more funds from over-burdened city property taxpayers.[18] | ” |
| —GREG COPELAND (September 21, 2017) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer eight questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| Yes. Charter Schools were founded in Minnesota as Public Schools and in Saint Paul over 10,000 students have chosen to enroll in Charter Schools. The "competition" between Traditional Public Schools and Charter Schools has been going on for over twenty years. The success of Charter Schools in engaging Parents and their Children, as well as Teachers and Educational Leaders from many distinct Saint Paul communities in undisputed. Charters have come to represent, a real choice for Parents, they are a fact of life in our Capitol City. In deed, Educational Choice in the form of Charter Schools, or Historic Parochial Schools and Private Academies are nothing new in Saint Paul, all these forms of education are part of a rich culturally diverse, and creative competitive educational environment that is the envy of other states around the nation! |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. union has actively opposed costing the District millions of education dollars. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| Yes. The MCA's are unpopular with some educators and teacher union leaders, because they have served to document the horrible educational outcomes of many of our poorest students and children of color who are the majority of Saint Paul Public School pupils now. The fact is the MCA's demonstrate how little progress has been made in getting students to read and do math at grade level, despite spending millions to hire more teachers to lower student-teacher ratios over this last teachers contract. "Graduating" students who cannot read or do math well enough to compete for college admission, or vocational career training, is NOT an Option in Minnesota where a worker shortage is being projected in 2020. Every student must Graduate ready to go to work and pursue their advanced career and educational training. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Offer additional training options. Offer additional training options. Put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve. Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. Exceptional job performance should be encouraged among all teachers and staff employed by the District, and to the extent possible under State Law, employment and union contracts, merit recognition pay to supplement base wages is an excellent investment in our District personnel and retaining the Best of the Best employees over time. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| Yes. Parents are entitled to choose any Public Education option of their choice that is available for their child within the Constitution and Laws of Minnesota and the United States, that provides public funding for education services given to children that meets the educational standards of the State and/or Federal funds disbursed for Public Education purposes.. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Rarely, but in accordance with Minnesota Law and the District 's Student Behavior Handbook of Rights & Responsibilities. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers. Nothing is of more value to every Parent and Student, than the commitment of each individual Teacher to the direct instructional needs of each student; as well as to each of their students fulfilling their unique Individual Educational Plan for Success! Hiring more Guidance Counselors has been a goal of mine since 2013 when I learned the District had only 85 counselors; one for every 435 students, rather than the National Standard of 1 to 250 students! I have made this my premier issue in four elections, and there has been a 40% increase, 34 new counseling hires, to develop and monitor academic progress of our students. Saint Paul still needs 29 more Guidance Counselors to continue to complete this critical internal accountability program to ensure a quality education for all our students. |
2015
Copeland completed a survey conducted by the Pioneer Press:
| “ | Why are you qualified to hold this office?
Saint Paul Public Schools need New Non-Partisan Leadership. Greg is a Leader with the backbone & political will to stand up to the entrenched Special Interests using $50,000 from Washington DC's American Federation of Teachers to Buy this Election! Students, Parents, Committed Teachers & Staff deserve an Independent School Board; NOT one Bought and Paid for by apologists for the Failed Status Quo. What will be your top priorities if elected? HIRE A NEW SUPERINTENDENT |
” |
| —Pioneer Press survey (2015)[19] | ||
2013
In a candidate forum hosted by the Minnesota Achievement Gap Committee and the League of Women Voters, Copeland argued that the district's student achievement gap was caused by poverty instead of racial inequities.[20]
2010
Copeland published the following on his campaign website:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Greg Copeland (2010)[21] | ||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Minnesota House of Representatives District 66B |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ MinnPost, "St. Paul GOP still waiting for news on possible candidates for mayor and school board," April 17, 2013
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Greg Copeland's Biography," accessed October 23, 2013
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings: 2017 Municipal and School District Elections," accessed August 16, 2017
- ↑ Ramsey County Elections & Voting Office, "2017 Campaign Finance Reports," accessed December 18, 2017
- ↑ Saint Paul Republicans, "SaintPaulRepublicans.us Endorses Greg Copeland for St Paul Public School Board," September 21, 2017
- ↑ Saint Paul Public Schools, "Applications to Fill Board of Education Vacancy on Interim Basis are Now Open," accessed July 21, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings: 2016 State General Election," accessed August 17, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Results for Selected Contests in School District No. 625 - ST PAUL," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ Ramsey County Elections, "2016 Campaign Finance Reports," accessed December 8, 2016
- ↑ Pioneer Press, "Ellis, Marchese, Schumacher, Vanderwert: We're of varied background and opinion, and we'll keep doing our homework," April 25, 2015
- ↑ Ramsey County Election Office, "Campaign Finance Reports - 2015," accessed November 1, 2015
- ↑ Ramsey County, Minnesota, "Campaign Finance Reports - 2013," accessed December 27, 2013
- ↑ Saint Paul Republicans, "St Paul Candidates," accessed October 23, 2013
- ↑ Star Tribune, "Seven candidates file to replace MN Sen. Ellen Anderson (Updated)," March 15, 2011
- ↑ KARE 11, "Former state lawmaker Mary Jo McGuire wins primary," March 30, 2011
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2017, "GREG COPELAND's responses," September 21, 2017
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Pioneer Press, "Your 2015 Pioneer Press voter's guide," October 9, 2015
- ↑ TwinCities.com, "St. Paul school board candidates agree on problems, but not on fixes," October 17, 2013
- ↑ Greg Copeland for Senate, "About," accessed June 22, 2010
