In Small Counties, Earlier Start to School Board Fundraising

In the first major round of local elections since Gov. Youngkin made "parental rights" a rallying cry, school board candidates in Virginia's smaller counties have gotten off to a faster start to raising money. This trend may indicate that what had been low-key, nonpartisan elections may get caught up in culture war issues this November.

Number of School Board Candidates Who Raised Money in First Quarter

Locality population 100,000 or more

Locality population 50,000-100,000

Locality population less than 50,000

Source: Campaign finance reports filed with the Virginia Department of Elections covering the first quarter of 2019 and 2023.