The groups endorsing candidates in the Springfield Board of Education election set for April 2 are also making donations and incurring expenses in support of their picks, according to 40-days-before-election reports filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
Combined with how the candidates themselves have already raised more than $205,000 for this election cycle, the activity reported by other fundraising groups pushes the total past what was raised by four candidates in Springfield's 2023 school board election.
Seven candidates seek three open seats on the board. Incumbents Danielle Kincaid, Scott Crise and Maryam Mohammadkhani are running against challengers Landon McCarter, Susan Provance, Kyler Sherman-Wilkins and Chad Rollins.
The last Missouri Ethics Commission deadline before the election is March 25, when 8-days-before-election reports must be filed.
United Springfield
According to the Ethics Commission reports, United Springfield raised $27,625 and spent $3,379.56, and has $110,813.25 on hand. The group has endorsed Kincaid, Provance and Crise based on their promise of uniting Springfield children, citizens and community.
A $2,500 in-kind donation was received from Alina Lehnert, of Lehnert Leadership Group for coordinating interviews, while 36 other supporters gave cash donations. According to its report, the committee received several large donations, including:
- $5,000 from Bryan Magers, president of Bryan Properties.
- $2,500 each from attorney Chandler Gregg and Shannon Gregg, of Rogersville.
- $2,500 each from Robert Baird and Sally Baird, of Springfield.
- $2,000 from David O’Reilly, executive vice chairman for O’Reilly Auto Parts.
- $1,000 from Darren Lehnert, a doctor with Mercy Hospital.
- $1,000 from William Turner, chairman of Great Southern Bank.
The remainder of the donations range from $50 to $500.
Among its expenses, $2,500 was paid to Victory Enterprises for campaign consulting, $404.38 to DPI Printing and Signs for promotional materials and $421.68 to Efactory for meeting space.
The committee has raised $120,992 and spent $6,678.75 during this election cycle, and has no indebtedness.
United Springfield formed in 2023 in response to partisan groups backing candidates in non-partisan races. It is co-chaired by Terri McQueary and Jim Anderson — Anderson is also a member of the Hauxeda’s board of directors.
Back on Track America
Back on Track America raised $10.770 and spent $4,981, and has $6,715.59 on hand. The group has endorsed McCarter, Rollins and Mohammadkhani.
A donation of $25,000 was returned to the Cook Family Foundation, according to the report. A report from the Internal Revenue Service identifies the foundation as a non-profit group, and such groups are not allowed to make campaign contributions.
That return was listed in the Back on Track America’s 40-days-before-election report, submitted four days after a Feb. 22 deadline.
On Feb. 29, the group submitted reports of four contributions of $6,250 each, for a total of $25,000, from Paula Cook Daugherty, Gerald and Kay Cook, Gerald A. Chip Cook Jr. and Mr. and Mrs. Loren Cook — all affiliated with the foundation.
Back on Track's major donation was a $10,000 loan from Diane Ely, of Springfield. That loan is to be paid back on April 25, according to the report.
It reported expenses of $2,459.68 to A&J Printing, of Nixa, for voter guides and flyers for the three endorsed candidates. It also spent $1,260 with i360 LLC for an email list,
The conservative group was active in 2023’s Springfield Board of Education race, where it backed McCarter and Rollins, and published a negative mailer targeting that election’s eventual winners, Shurita Thomas-Tate and Judy Brunner.
For its 2024 endorsements, the PAC is working with Christians Uniting for Political Action, a conservative group that has campaigned for right-wing talking points, such as protesting critical race theory and protections for transgender people.
The group’s executive director, Calvin Morrow, said it is working to establish a Christian majority on the Springfield school board and claims credit for electing Mohammadkhani, Kelly Byrne and Steve Makoski, according to a report in the Springfield News-Leader.
In a mailer supporting McCarter, Rollins and Mohammadkhani, Back on Track published a voter guide that shows candidate answers to questions raised by conservatives and political evangelicals, including questions dealing gender identity and race segregation, and asking for yes-or-no answers.
Springfield NEA
The Missouri National Education Association PAC is the fundraising committee used by the Springfield National Education Association, the union that collectively bargains for teachers in SPS. The statewide group reported $17,481.99 in donations, $1,047.11 in expenses and $7,597.10 in contributions, and currently has $665,593.37 on hand.
According to its report, all of its donations came from people donating $100 or less. Of its contributions, it donated $1,000 each to McCarter, Sherman-Wilkins and Mohammadkhani, the candidates it has endorsed in the April 2 election. It also donated $4,597.10 to candidates in other school board races across the state.
The report marks its first accounting of financial activity in the SPS Board of Education race.
Teamsters 245
Teamsters 245, the PAC operated by the union that represents Springfield Public Schools bus drivers, raised $10,349.28 and donated $7,996.90, and has $63,231.28 on hand.
Its biggest donation was $4005.18 from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, based out of Maryland Heights, Missouri. The PAC reported $6,332.10 worth of donations made by people who gave $100 or less.
It donated $2,500 to Crystal-PAC, a committee campaigning for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Crystal Quade; $2,400 to Stephen Webber, a Democratic candidate for Missouri Senate; $1,596.90 to DRIVE, a political organization run by the national Teamsters organization; and $1,500 to the Missouri Democratic Party.
The local group has endorsed McCarter, Provance and Sherman-Wilkins for the board.
It has raised $67,443.16, spent $700 and donated $45,509.40 during this race, and has no indebtednes.
Vote 417
Vote 417 has not yet filed a 40-days-before-election report with the Missouri Ethics Commission. The group recently endorsed Kincaid, Provance and Crise in the upcoming election, and has recently run Facebook ads supporting the three candidates.
Jacob Brower, secretary/treasurer for the group, said it had not raised or spent anything at the reporting deadline. It has filed reports of limited activity since the 2023 school board election.
