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Mike Simon (Maryland)
Mike Simon was a candidate for the District D seat on the Harford County Board of Education in Maryland. He advanced from a primary election on June 24, 2014, losing to incumbent Nancy Reynolds in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Biography
Simon graduated from North Harford High School in 2002. At the time of his candidacy, Simon was completing an associate degree in business administration at Harford Community College. Simon works as a project management for Empire Corrugated Machinery.[1]
Elections
2014
The June 24, 2014, primary ballot included primaries for Districts B, C, D, E and F with the top two vote recipients in each primary advancing to the general election on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Robert "Bob" Frisch and challenger Laura Runyeon defeated Greg Johnson in District B. District C incumbent Alysson L. Krchnavy and challenger Joseph L. Voskuhl advanced to the general election by defeating John Anker. Nancy Reynolds faced challenger Mike Simon in her bid for another term in District D after defeating challengers Chris Scholz and Tishan D. Weerasooriya in the primary. The primary race for District E resulted in board member Arthur Kaff and newcomer Rachel Gauthier defeating Stephen Eric Macko and Barney Michel. Macko dropped out of the race after the withdrawal deadline which meant his name still appeared on the ballot. District F incumbent Thomas Fitzpatrick and Michael R. Hitchings squared off in the general election after defeating Joe Fleckenstein in the primary.
The District A race advanced to the general election without a primary as newcomers Frederick A. Mullis and Jansen M. Robinson were the only candidates to file for the seat.
In the general election Jansen M. Robinson won District A, incumbent Robert "Bob" Frisch was returned to District B, challenger Joseph L. Voskuhl defeated incumbent Alysson L. Krchnavy for District C, incumbent Nancy Reynolds won District D, newcomer Rachel Gauthier defeated incumbent Arthur Kaff for District E and incumbent Thomas Fitzpatrick won another term in District F.
This was the first time that county voters selected members for these seats on the Harford County Board of Education. Board members were appointed by the governor prior to a 2009 state law that turned six of the nine board seats into elected positions. There were board elections for two-year terms in Districts A, B and D in November 2010. Victorious candidates in the general election took office in July 2015 along with three newly appointed members.[2]
Results
General
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan |  Nancy Reynolds Incumbent |
67.1% | 9,557 | |
| Nonpartisan | Mike Simon | 31.8% | 4,536 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 1.1% | 150 | |
| Total Votes | 14,243 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election results for Harford County," accessed December 20, 2014 | ||||
Primary
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Nancy Reynolds Incumbent |
55.2% | 3,212 | |
| Nonpartisan | Mike Simon |
20.5% | 1,193 | |
| Nonpartisan | Chris Scholz | 16.2% | 944 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tishan D. Weerasooriya | 8% | 466 | |
| Total Votes | 5,815 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Harford County," July 17, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Simon reported no contributions or expenditures to the Maryland State Board of Elections as of June 10, 2014.[3]
Endorsements
Simon was endorsed by The Aegis and The Baltimore Sun.[4]
Campaign themes
2014
Simon explained his themes for the 2014 race in an interview with The Baltimore Sun:
| “ |
Q: How will you address the budget issues that each year leave Harford County Public Schools millions of dollars short of what school system officials say they need to operate? It's time to make tough choices and find the most logical allocation of resources. Q: In the wake of years of tragedies committed in schools across the country, please explain your position on school safety and security and what, if anything, should be done in Harford County Public Schools. Safety and security should be of the utmost importance. I believe that self awareness and promotion of ones general well being are a great place to start to avoid future tragedies. Q: What is your position on two controversial cost savings measures – ending bus transportation waivers for students who live close to school and having tiered schedules in elementary schools to save on the number of buses needed. I think we can find better ways to save money. This seems like a quick fix on paper but I doubt the results will yield a positive outcome. Q: How will you address student achievement in all ages in the various testing programs? Teacher incentives and actual learning techniques thought in the classroom. Q: How has HCPSS performed in implementing the Common Core state standards? Should anything be done differently as the school system continues its implementation? Forget Common Core, its garbage and needs to be repealed.[5] |
” |
| —The Baltimore Sun, (2014) | ||
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Mike + Simon + Harford + County + Public + Schools"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Candidates line up for six Harford school board seats to be filled by voters," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Five Harford school board members run for election; four don't," February 26, 2014
- ↑ Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System, "View Filed Reports," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ The Aegis, "Robinson, Runyeon, Voskuhl, Simon, Kaff, Hitchings for Harford School Board," October 17, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Mike Simon," accessed June 10, 2014
| 2014 Harford County Public Schools Elections | |
| Harford County, Maryland | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | District A: • Frederick A. Mullis • Jansen M. Robinson District B: • Robert "Bob" Frisch • Greg Johnson • Laura Runyeon |
| Important information: | Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
