Last Minute Spoiler Candidate Enters ISD Race Splitting Conservative Vote
Her entry into the race ensures the liberal candidate will win.
McKinney Independent School District, home to oversexualized books and anti-free speech tactics, has an election coming up on May 6th of this year.
McKinney has been in the news several times. Recently, the school board President was served with a lawsuit for supressing free speech of those who simply disagree with her.
Via Erin Anderson from Texas Scorecard:
In another action-packed school board meeting in McKinney, the board president was served with a lawsuit for suppressing the free speech rights of citizens who disagree with her policies.
Civil rights attorney Paul Davis served Amy Dankel, president of McKinney Independent School District’s board of trustees, during the public comments portion of Tuesday night’s meeting.
She directed police to physically remove people who were wearing green—supporters of conservative trustee Chad Green, who Dankel is trying to oust from the board.
“Those same rules were not applied to people wearing blue,” Davis said, referring to Dankel supporters. “For that, we have filed a civil rights lawsuit against you.”
They were also in the news for refusing to take action against sexually explicit books.
Also via Erin Anderson (isn’t she great folks?) from Texas Scorecard:
Among the controversial books parents are protesting is “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” a 1999 novel that contains explicit descriptions of minors engaging in sex and a teenager being raped.
A letter from McKinney ISD Deputy Superintendent Melinda DeFelice said the book “meets the selection criteria” in the board’s policy on instructional resources.
“Therefore, the book will continue to circulate without restriction,” DeFelice wrote, adding Elliott can appeal the district’s decision.
With a School Board election coming up on May 6th, many conservatives have rallied together to avoid splitting a vote and help oust the incumbent, Stephanie O’Dell, who has been complicit with both ignoring conservative parents and working against Chad Green, the only conservative member on the McKinney ISD School Board.
Conservatives and Republican club leaders had generally chosen to rally behind Jim Westerheid for Place 6.
Those who chose to endorse and support Westerheid included Serena Ashcroft.
Ashcroft, who previously ran a failed campaign for McKinney ISD Place 7 in 2021, has suddenly changed her mind and decided to enter the 2023 Place 6 race, effectively splitting the conservative vote and guaranteeing a win for O’Dell.
For those unaware, McKinney ISD School Board races do not have a run off, the candidate with the most votes simply wins the election.
In emails obtained by Current Revolt, Ashcroft, prior to announcing her sudden Place 6 run, had actually endorsed Westerheid and said she wouldn’t be running.



In the above emails, she claims that not only would Jim Westerheid do an “excellent job” but also that he has built up momentum. She also says she had decided not to run to focus on “behind the scenes work” and her own private school business. She ends the email by stating that Westerheid will “always have (her) support.”
We spoke to several voters and club leaders in Collin County and all seemed frustrated and shocked at Ashcroft’s sudden change of heart. Many were upset because they know the vote will be split ensuing that the liberal incumbent will win, others were theorizing why Ashcroft would enter a race against someone she previously endorsed and said she had no interest in running.
Nearly every club leader, activist, and voter we spoke to was frustrated with her campaign manager, Jason Zelovics, for consulting her to enter the race. Many were wondering why Zelovics would work on Ashcroft’s race considering he already knew the majority of Republican groups and activists had decided to back Westerheid. Some were wondering if money was a major motivator.
Collin County races are filled with the potential to make a lot of money if you’re a consultant or potential staffer. Hopefully citizens can look past the dollar signs and see the bigger picture.
Our assessment is that Collin County conservatives and Republicans really need to get their act together. Year over year Collin County continues to cede political ground to the left with consistent losses and failures to reach Republicans outside their political-club bubble.
We’d also advise the GOP groups to think bigger picture. The degenerate book stuff is a trap, the real issue and focus is the CRT, Marxism, and other leftist agendas being pushed by teachers and schools. We need to be united against Marxism and globalism. Being united may mean someone here needs to not run.