Incumbent Patricia Dorsey has pulled into the lead in the race for Carroll County school board, receiving roughly 18% of the votes Friday after early voting, in-person voting and most mail-in ballots had been counted.
Dorsey, a retired Carroll County Public Schools educator who earned the most votes in the 2018 election for the Board of Education, said she is both “humbled” and “grateful” to be on top in the primary.
“I’m grateful to know that citizens are voting for me and giving me the opportunity to serve [again]. I’m very appreciative,” Dorsey said.
Three seats on Carroll’s school board are at stake and the top six candidates will advance to the general election in November.
As of Friday, following Dorsey in vote totals were Tom Scanlan with 14,328 (16.15%), Steve Whisler with 14,216 (16.02%), Amanda Jozkowsi with 13,993 (15.77%), incumbent Tara Battaglia with 13,774 (15.52%), James Miller with 11,802 (13.3%), and Pat Sands with 1,701 (1.92%).
Katie Speert’s name remained on the ballot, though she withdrew from the race in June. Speert received 2,923 votes (3.29%).
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Responding to his second-place finish so far, retired Carroll County Public Schools teacher Scanlan said he was encouraged.
“I am encouraged by the support I received from parents, fellow educators and former students,” Scanlan said. “I believe the voters trust me to focus on what’s important: the students, our schools and our incredible staff.”
Jozkowski said she spent most of her Tuesday visiting polling sites at several public schools and talking to voters.
“My message seems to be resonating with many Carroll Countians and watching the numbers shift in my favor this week has helped keep up the energy and continue my commitment to running a positive campaign,” Jozkowski said.
Battaglia, Miller and Whisler are campaigning together on the BMW slate. A slate is an official legal designation; its members raise and spend money as a group with a shared mission. When reached on Friday, Battaglia, who was first elected to the school board in 2018, congratulated the other candidates and said she was “looking forward to reaching more voters in the general election.”
As of Friday afternoon, the county had received 9,580 mail-in-ballots. Of that total, 1,462 still need to be counted, according to Election Director Katherine Berry. In addition, 641 provisional ballots still need to reviewed, Berry said. The election results will be certified on July 29.