National politics have for years been influencing public education. Maryland, for the most part, has stayed immune.

But now, partisanship has crept into local school board elections, which are supposed to be nonpartisan. A recent announcement from the Maryland Democratic Party makes clear that the spirit of the races has shifted.

For the first time “in modern Party history,” the Democrats are investing in board of education campaigns across Maryland “aimed at countering the far-right agenda being championed by extremist and hate-group aligned candidates,” the party said in a news release.

The divide is perhaps most apparent in Carroll County, where two seats are up for grabs on the five-person school board. Fighting for the spots are Greg Malveaux and Kristen Zihmer, both endorsed by Republican leaders and groups, and Muri Lynn Dueppen and Amanda Jozkowski, who are endorsed by Democratic leaders and the teachers union — a group that often endorses Democratic candidates in Maryland.

Endorsing both Malveaux and Zihmer is Carroll’s chapter of Moms for Liberty, which calls itself nonpartisan, though its stances consistently align with those of Republicans. The national group first emerged in 2021 when some parents were unhappy with virtual school and mask requirements to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Carroll’s chapter formed the same year.

Locally, the group’s influence on schools has been growing.

When pride flags got passed around a school in 2022, Carroll chapter President Kit Hart testified at a school board meeting that pride flags didn’t belong there because gender identity was an adult concept too heavy for children. Kids shouldn’t be reduced to their sexuality, she said. During Pride Month, Carroll’s school board voted to end the display of the rainbow flag, or any flag unless it’s the American, Maryland or Carroll County flag.

Chapter Vice Chair Jessica Garland said her proudest accomplishment was Moms for Liberty’s 2023 campaign to challenge over 50 school library books they saw as inappropriate for kids. Most were written by LGBTQIA+ authors and authors of color, though they said ridding schools of sexually explicit content was their only motivation. The campaign led the superintendent to temporarily remove all the challenged books, and the school board tightened its policy so no textbooks or library books deemed sexually explicit could be available in schools.

Moms for Liberty is supporting Malveaux and Zihmer because they’re most aligned with the group’s values. Kit Hart, the chapter’s president, said they back Malveaux, specifically, because he supports parental involvement in education.

Malveaux told The Banner that safety and special education are among his top priorities, and said at an election forum last week that students want equality, not equity. He is a Republican and said in an email that his positions on books and parental rights “are just some of the reasons the Republican Party supports me as well as many Independent and Democrat voters.”

Campaign finance reports show his funders include the Republican Club of Carroll County, Republican Commissioner President Ken Kiler and former Republican state delegate Susan Krebs.

Zihmer calls for more focus on academics, wants class sizes to be manageable and said at Thursday’s election forum that “divisive theories on race” should not be pushed onto students. She said in an email that she’s a Republican who aligns with traditional conservative values. Her campaign received money from Kiler and fellow Republican commissioner Joseph Vigliotti as well as Republican state lawmakers Justin Ready, April Rose and Christopher Tomlinson.

Zihmer told the Banner she did not seek the endorsement from Moms for Liberty, and she doesn’t advertise it.

The Brookings Institute, a public policy research nonprofit, reported that 47% of Moms for Liberty-endorsed school board candidates won their races in 2022. That dropped to 33% in 2023.

If Malveaux and Zihmer lose, Garland said, Moms for Liberty knows what to expect from their opponents.

“We will continue to fight against their progressive policy ideas if they win, which will further plummet our educational system,” she said.

Democrats see the stakes as equally high.

Neal Goldberg, a Carroll County parent and Democrat, fears that Malveaux and Zihmer winning will lead to more decisions like the banning of books and flags, as well as good educators leaving the school system.

He joins a group of people in the district who’ve organized efforts to fight against Moms for Liberty. His organization, Move Carroll Forward, identifies as nonpartisan but advocates for “progressive change,” sustainable environmental practices, inclusivity and equity — all traditionally Democratic stances.

Campaign finance reports show both Jozkowski and Dueppen received campaign donations from David Trone, a Democratic Congressman.

Jozkowski supports better pay and more manageable workloads for educators. She said at Thursday’s forum she supports the intentions behind Maryland education reforms and told The Banner her goal is to stop “politically-motivated and divisive rhetoric currently harming our school system.”

Dueppen told The Banner she would prioritize students when making decisions, and said at Thursday’s forum that Moms for Liberty’s book campaign was an “assault” on students’ freedom to read and learn.

Dueppen and Jozkowski are campaigning together. Both are Democrats. Dueppen, who used to be part of the Democratic Central Committee, said she wishes the election wasn’t political.

Jozkowski said she and Dueppen accepted help from Democrats because they can’t afford to turn it down, but that it wouldn’t dictate how they’d govern the school system if elected. It’s important to represent everyone — “that includes those who don’t carry the same party affiliation,” she said.

School board races weren’t always like this. Traditionally they’re hyperlocal affairs focused on issues like teacher pay, academic achievement or overcrowded schools. Party affiliation wasn’t relevant. In recent years, though, the conversation in some districts has shifted to restrictions on pride flags and school library books. School board candidates are now routinely endorsed by partisan groups.

The Pew Research Center reports that the pandemic brought out a partisan divide on many education issues. About half of Republican parents who were polled in 2022 said the government has too much influence on what schools are teaching, compared with 2 out of 10 Democratic parents. Republicans were also more likely to say their state government and local school board have too much influence.

In Carroll County, government leaders, such as the commissioner board, the sheriff and the State’s Attorney, are Republicans. During the 2020 election, 60% of Carroll voters picked Trump as president. Its school board members don’t necessarily flaunt their party affiliation, but in the last few years, their actions in meetings have aligned with conservative values.

When parents were unhappy their kids had to wear masks in 2021, board members called on the state to lift mask-wearing. The board enacted a policy to limit political conversations in classrooms after parents incorrectly accused the system of teaching critical race theory in 2022.

Kiler, now president of the Board of Carroll County Commissioners, was a school board member when decisions about COVID, flags and political conversations were made. Throughout his school board tenure, he said he’s been called a racist, a homophobe and senile, and some have called for his removal. It stems from the divisions in the county and country between Republicans and Democrats, he said. He thinks it’s OK to be divided and not agree on everything, but it gets concerning “particularly when it turns to hatred.”

Kiler said he’s not part of Moms for Liberty, but agrees with them on some things, like the book removals. He pitched withholding funds from local libraries for supporting the state law that prevents book bans. He did say, however, the number of books that were challenged was “extreme.” But Moms for Liberty isn’t a hate group like others have alleged, he said.

“We all have the right to our opinions,” said Kiler.

Nine states have passed legislation to make races partisan, according to The Conversation, a nonprofit news source. Carroll County parent Bryan Thompson argues that’s the way it should be. He didn’t share his party affiliation, but started a group in 2020 that fought against mask-wearing and school closures during the pandemic — efforts supported by Republicans.

He’s supporting Malveaux and Zihmer and recently wrote in the Carroll County Times that party affiliation should be considered in the race.

“I encourage everyone to vote their conscience and take the candidates’ political affiliations into account,” he wrote in an email. “This isn’t about bringing political agendas into our schools, but rather about ensuring transparency regarding the candidates who are running.”

About the Education Hub

This reporting is part of The Banner’s Education Hub, community-funded journalism that provides parents with resources they need to make decisions about how their children learn. Read more.