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Tawanna Simpson
Tawanna Simpson was a member of the Detroit Public Schools Community District in Michigan, representing District 2.
Simpson ran for election for an at-large seat of the Detroit Public Schools Community District in Michigan. She lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
The school board was disbanded on July 1, 2016, following the creation of a new school district to oversee city schools. Simpson lost election to the newly created Detroit Public Schools Community District Board of Education in the general election on November 8, 2016.[1]
Biography
Tawanna Simpson was born in Detroit, Michigan. She attended Wayne State University where she majored in social work and Wayne County Community College District where she majored in general studies and received a social service technician certificate.[2]
Elections
2024
See also: Detroit Public Schools Community District, Michigan, elections (2024)
General election
General election for Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sherry Gay-Dagnogo (Nonpartisan) | 12.5 | 57,228 |
| ✔ |  | Monique Bryant (Nonpartisan) | 9.3 | 42,928 |
| ✔ |  | Ida Carol Short (Nonpartisan) | 9.0 | 41,181 |
| Sherisse Butler (Nonpartisan) | 8.3 | 38,351 | ||
| Aliya Moore (Nonpartisan) | 7.9 | 36,407 | ||
| Boyd White III (Nonpartisan) | 7.3 | 33,592 | ||
 | Tawanna Simpson (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 27,252 | |
| Nicole Conaway (Nonpartisan) | 5.5 | 25,167 | ||
 | Toson Jewell-Knight (Nonpartisan) | 4.8 | 21,996 | |
| Christopher Johnson (Nonpartisan) | 3.2 | 14,498 | ||
| Marie Hill-Nixon (Nonpartisan) | 3.1 | 14,333 | ||
| Victor B. Gibson (Nonpartisan) | 3.1 | 14,125 | ||
 | Kenneth Snapp (Nonpartisan) | 2.7 | 12,628 | |
| Eugene Lewis (Nonpartisan) | 2.7 | 12,360 | ||
| Jason Malone (Nonpartisan) | 2.3 | 10,371 | ||
| Jeremiah Steen (Nonpartisan) | 2.0 | 9,036 | ||
| Faustine Onwuneme (Nonpartisan) | 2.0 | 9,003 | ||
 | Richard Clement (Nonpartisan) | 1.8 | 8,187 | |
| Jen Nixon (Nonpartisan) | 1.6 | 7,366 | ||
| Benjamin Royal (Nonpartisan) | 1.5 | 6,865 | ||
 | Tabrian Joe (Nonpartisan) | 1.3 | 5,823 | |
| R. Amir Short (Nonpartisan) | 1.1 | 4,914 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 1.3 | 5,803 | ||
| Total votes: 459,414 | |||
 = 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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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jaylin Harris (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Simpson in this election.
2020
Regular election
See also: Michigan House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
Abraham Aiyash defeated Howard Weathington, Linda Rayburn, and MD Rabbi Alam in the general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Abraham Aiyash (D) | 89.7 | 27,263 |
| Howard Weathington (R) | 5.7 | 1,736 | ||
 | Linda Rayburn (Working Class Party) | 3.4 | 1,023 | |
 | MD Rabbi Alam (Independent) | 1.2 | 355 | |
| Total votes: 30,377 | |||
| = 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
Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Abraham Aiyash | 38.4 | 5,355 |
 | Michele Oberholtzer | 13.9 | 1,945 | |
| Tawanna Simpson | 10.9 | 1,518 | |
 | Tonya Myers Phillips | 10.2 | 1,417 | |
 | Delorean Holmes | 7.2 | 1,002 | |
| Shahab Ahmed | 6.0 | 834 | ||
| Christopher Collins | 4.7 | 655 | ||
| Frazier Kimpson | 3.7 | 515 | ||
 | Abraham Shaw | 1.8 | 254 | |
| Anthony Ali | 1.1 | 150 | ||
| Sigmunt Szczepkowski Jr. | 1.1 | 148 | ||
| Gregory Reyner | 0.7 | 97 | ||
| Darwood Navarro | 0.5 | 63 | ||
| Total votes: 13,953 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Corletta Vaughn (D)
- Saad Almasmari (D)
- Christopher Wojtowicz (D)
- MD Rabbi Alam (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
Howard Weathington advanced from the Republican primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Howard Weathington | 100.0 | 329 | |
| Total votes: 329 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Working Class Party convention
Working Class Party convention for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
Linda Rayburn advanced from the Working Class Party convention for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on July 26, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | Linda Rayburn (Working Class Party) |
| ||||
| = 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. | ||||
Campaign finance
Special election
See also: Michigan state legislative special elections, 2020
General election
Special general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
Abraham Aiyash won election in the special general election for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Abraham Aiyash (D) | 100.0 | 28,379 |
| Total votes: 28,379 | |||
| = 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
Special Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4
The following candidates ran in the special Democratic primary for Michigan House of Representatives District 4 on August 4, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Abraham Aiyash | 37.9 | 5,208 |
| Michele Oberholtzer | 14.7 | 2,021 | |
| Tawanna Simpson | 12.6 | 1,728 | |
| Tonya Myers Phillips | 10.5 | 1,444 | |
| Delorean Holmes | 7.8 | 1,070 | |
| Shahab Ahmed | 6.2 | 852 | ||
| Christopher Collins | 5.4 | 739 | ||
| Abraham Shaw | 1.9 | 266 | |
| Sigmunt Szczepkowski Jr. | 1.2 | 164 | ||
| Anthony Ali | 1.1 | 152 | ||
| Gregory Reyner | 0.7 | 103 | ||
| Total votes: 13,747 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
2016
- See also: Detroit Public Schools elections (2016)
Seven seats on the Detroit Public Schools Community District Board of Education were up for general election on November 8, 2016. There was no primary. A total of 63 candidates filed for the election including 10 of the 11 incumbent board members. The top two vote recipients will serve six-year terms, the next three winners will serve four-year terms, and the remaining two winners will serve two-year terms.[1][3] The winning candidates were Angelique Nicole Peterson-Mayberry, LaMar Lemmons, Georgia Lemmons, Sonya Mays, Misha Stallworth, Deborah Hunter-Harvill, and Iris Taylor.
A June 2016 state reorganization bill split Detroit Public Schools into two entities. The existing district will collect taxes to pay down debts, while a new district overseen by the school board was created to oversee school operations. This bill reduced the school board's membership from 11 to seven after the November 2016 election. The state-appointed Detroit Financial Review Commission will oversee the new district's financial dealings.[1]
Results
Funding
School board candidates in Michigan were required to file pre-election campaign finance reports with their county election offices by October 28, 2016. Post-election reports were due by December 8, 2016.[4]
In Michigan, candidates are prohibited from receiving contributions from corporations or labor organizations. Within 10 days of becoming a candidate, candidates must form a candidate committee. Following the creation of the committee, candidates have an additional 10 days to register the committee with the school district filing official by filing a statement of organization. A candidate committee that does not expect to receive or spend more than $1,000 during the election cycle is eligible to receive a reporting waiver, which allows that committee not to file pre-election, post-election, and annual campaign statements.[5]
October 28 filing
Candidates received a total of $164,533.68 and spent a total of $100,234.02 as of October 30, 2016, according to the Wayne County Clerk.[6] Angelique Nicole Peterson-Mayberry led the field with $57,980.00 in contributions and $40,364.82 in expenditures for the reporting period. Her biggest donor through October 28, 2016, was the United Auto Workers Michigan V-PAC, which contributed $27,500.00 to her candidate committee. Sixteen of the 63 candidates filed campaign finance statements by October 30, 2016. The remaining candidates had not filed their reports or qualified for exemption from reporting.
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tawanna Simpson | $1,200.00 | $996.38 | $203.62 |
| Ida Carol Short | $1,409.15 | $975.00 | $434.15 |
| Herman Davis | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Angelique Nicole Peterson-Mayberry | $57,980.00 | $40,346.82 | $17,633.18 |
| Kevin Turman | $5,038.99 | $3,555.84 | $1,483.15 |
| Deborah Hunter-Harvill | $3,950.00 | $4,387.83 | -$577.83 |
| John Telford | $19,000.00 | $5,341.52 | $13,658.51 |
| Markita Meeks | $100.00 | $25.00 | $75.00 |
| Mary Kovari | $14,383.54 | $16,883.54 | $4,315.86 |
| Ben Washburn | $500.00 | $0.00 | $500.00 |
| Iris Taylor | $10,725.00 | $6,311.16 | $4,413.84 |
| Sonya Mays | $20,935.00 | $15,450.49 | $0.00 |
| Charmaine Johnson | $0.00 | $1,939.68 | $0.00 |
| Phillip Caldwell II | $2,915.00 | $2,713.37 | $201.67 |
| Leslie Andrews | $16,114.00 | $0.00 | $6,500.00 |
| Penny Bailer | $10,283.00 | $1,307.39 | $8,975.61 |
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Tawanna Simpson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Tawanna Simpson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Simpson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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OVERVIEW
The only candidate that has been residing in district 4 for over 25 years with prior governmental experience
A grass roots worker on behalf of this district
A former Detroit Public School Board member who helped prevent the state from continuing the State Take Over resulting in massive debt!
An advocate for the poor, seniors, and children including being a loyal caregiver for aging mother.
- Our children's education is a matter of national security
- Humanitarian 1st and a politician 2nd
- Neighborhood development through Aviation
Precinct Delegate (163 & 158) 1990 - present
Detroit Board of Education Member 2011-2016
Member of Virginia Park Citizen District Council 2000- 2013
Obama Foundation Fellowship - Fellow 2008-2010
City of Detroit Commissioner with Department of Human Service Area C for 10 yrs
Michigan Regional Director MoveOn.org 2007-2009
Phone banking for national & local political campaigns
Organized 13th & 14th district constituents for the 2008 Presidential election with house parties to discuss & educate about the democratic issues
Green for All - Fellow 2009 - As a fellow I was trained to provide on- the -ground leadership in a movement to create an inclusive green economy, create effective strategies for engaging low-income communities in Detroit in building healthy communities and climate solutions
Member of Michigan Democratic Party Environmental Caucus
Completed Job training with Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice DWEJ
Member of the Hon. Isaac Robinson Environmental Committee for State Rep. District 4
Community Advocate - Education-Social Justice-Environmental Justice-Health Awareness
Wayne County Community College District,
Administrative Assistant Internship awarded from June 2008- June 2011 with The International Programs and Global Partnerships/Professional Development
Assisted the Vice Chancellor IPGP with the day to day office operations.
Develop recruitment application material, evaluate applications & other documents for admission, help student receive F1 visas, operate computer software & resolve issues and/or concerns
Worked independently with little direction, trained & provide work assignments
Finance
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate Detroit Public Schools Community District, At-large |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Wayne County, Michigan, "Elections Division-Election Information," accessed August 30, 2016 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "list" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 8, 2020
- ↑ The Detroit Free Press, "72 people seek seven Detroit school board seats," July 26, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Bureau of Elections, "2016 and 2017 Campaign Finance Filing Schedule," January 12, 2016
- ↑ Genesee County, "Filing Requirements under Michigan's Campaign Finance Act," February 7, 2014
- ↑ Wayne County Clerk, "Wayne County Campaign Finance Information System," accessed October 30, 2016
