Lowe leads county BOE candidates in campaign donations

By ESTHER FRANCES

efrances@newspost.com

Frederick County Board of Education candidate Veronica Lowe raised the most contributions of the 2024 board candidates between April 27 and Aug. 20, according to pre-general campaign reports.

Lowe, a former director of transportation for Frederick County Public Schools, raised $6,915 in contributions in that period, according to campaign reports posted by the Maryland State Board of Elections.

Candidate Jaime Kiersten Brennan was next, raising $2,840 in contributions.

After her were Josh Bokee, with $2,560 in contributions; Chad King Wilson, Sr. with $1,368 in contributions; and Janie Monier with $1,258 in contributions. Bokee, Wilson and Monier have received the endorsement of the three unions representing Frederick County Public Schools employees.

A sixth candidate in the race, Colt Morningstar Black, did not file a pre-general report by the Aug. 27 deadline.

Most of the campaign contributions Lowe received were $100 or less. The highest donation of this filing period for her was $1,000.

Lowe also received three separate donations of $500 each, according to the online filing.

With a total of $4,663 in expenditures this period, Lowe had a $2,750 cash balance at the end of the period.

Lowe’s campaign also spent the most money in the period of any candidate who filed the pre-general report.

The majority of Lowe’s expenditures were for printing and campaign materials, including yard signs and brochures, according to the online filing.

(See CAMPAIGNS A10)

(CAMPAIGNS from A1) Lowe could not be reached for comment by phone or email on Thursday.

As of Thursday, Black, a funeral director in Frederick, had failed to file the pre-general report that was due Aug. 27, according to Maryland State Board of Elections spokesperson Allen Norfleet.

Maryland fines candidates who didn’t file a report on time $20 per day for the first seven days, then $35 per day for the next seven days, then $50 per day after that.

The maximum fine per report is $1,000, according to Norfleet.

Grant Johnson, Black’s treasurer, said in an interview on Thursday that Black’s campaign did not receive a notification about the Aug. 27 deadline and that Black raised less than $500 between April 27 and Aug. 20.

Johnson said he is working on filing the pre-general report for Black.

“I was asking about it back in early August,” Johnson said. “I didn’t really get an answer, and I usually get mail and whatnot, but I haven’t seen anything.”

During the filing period, the largest donation to Brennan — an accountant and former chair of the group Moms for Liberty — was $300. Most other donations ranged between $50 and $100.

Her campaign spent $4,292 in the period, including $1,640 on online advertising.

Brennan had a $5,694 cash balance, the second-highest total of candidates who submitted pre-general reports.

She could not be reached for comment by phone on Thursday.

Bokee, a former alderman for the city of Frederick, said in an interview that over the last couple of months, he has been actively meeting people in the community and asking about ongoing issues in their schools.

He said he is grateful for the contributions made so far.

“When someone gives $50 or $100 or $25, that’s money from their budget that they’re contributing,” Bokee said. “I really appreciate the support.”

Bokee’s campaign spent $4,416 this period and had a cash balance of $6,180, according to the online filing. He also had the highest cash balance of candidates who filed a pre-general report.

Wilson, a high school teacher in Montgomery County, spent the least out of board candidates who submitted the pre-general report by the Aug. 27 deadline. His campaign reported zero expenditures between April 27 and Aug. 20, according to the online filing.

He had a cash balance of $4,864, the third-highest among candidates who submitted pre-general reports.

Wilson could not be reached for comment by email on Thursday.

Monier, a registered nurse and president of the New Market Elementary Parent Teacher Association, spent $4,482 this filing period, the second highest of candidates who submitted pre-general reports by the Aug. 27 deadline.

The majority of her campaign’s expenditures were for consulting fees, and print and online advertising, according to the online file.

Monier had a cash balance of $1,928, the lowest of candidates who filed reports.

She could not be reached for comment by email on Thursday.

The six candidates are competing for three seats on the Frederick County Board of Education. The general election is on Nov. 5.

All registered voters in Frederick County are eligible to vote for Board of Education candidates regardless of their party affiliation.

A bar chart shows how much money five of the six Board of Education candidates raised and spent, according to pre-general reports.

Graphics by Esther Frances

A bar chart shows how much money five of the six Board of Education candidates had on hand, according to pre-general reports.