School board hopefuls meet Washington County voters

Washington County School Board District 1 candidates Jimmy Johnson and Mary Grace Wooten met with voters Tuesday during a candidate forum. The League of Women Voters of Northeast Tennessee, a nonpartisan nonprofit, hosted a Washington County candidate meet-and-greet at the Langston Centre as part of a two-day initiative to introduce candidates ahead of the Aug. 6 county general election. Tuesday's event featured candidates from Washington County Commission Districts 5-13 and Washington County School Board Districts 1 and 3. Candidates from County Commission Districts 1-4, 14 and 15 participated in a separate event July 9. Three seats are up for election in both Washington County School Board Districts 1 and 3. District 1 is the only contested school board race. Five candidates are seeking the three District 1 seats. Republican incumbents Vince Walters, Annette Buchanan and Keith Ervin are seeking reelection. Democrat Mary Grace "MG" Wooten is also running, with Jimmy Johnson qualifying as an official write-in candidate on June 4. In District 3, Republican incumbents Chad Fleenor, David L. Hammond Jr. and Gregg Huddlestone are seeking the district's three available seats. Wooten and Johnson, along with District 3 incumbents Hammond and Huddlestone, attended Tuesday's event at the Langston Centre. Johnson said he attended the event to introduce himself to voters since he is new to the race. "It's not about my desires for the school board; it is about the teachers and students and what they desire," Johnson said. Johnson said his priorities include reducing costs and improving long-term planning. "My concerns are about things being added to the school district that may be taking away from teachers," Johnson said. "I'm also concerned about the budget. I'd like to see how much is spent on maintenance, how much is spent on gas for vehicles in Washington County, and I'd like to see everything laid out with a plan." Wooten previously said one of her top priorities is improving the working relationship between the Washington County Commission and the school board. "Trust in the school board has collapsed, so it's crucial to rebuild that through transparency and open dialogue," Wooten said in a July 1 statement. "It's clear that the relationship between the commissioners and school board members isn't strong, and they often blame each other instead of collaborating. This conflict is impacting the approval of the school budget, which ultimately affects the students and our community." Early voting for the Aug. 6 state/federal primary and county general election begins July 17 and continues through Aug. 1. More information about the election is available through the Washington County Election Commission or by calling (423) 753-1688.