Jeana Conley knows her late bid for the District 1 seat on the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners is a long shot.
However, the outgoing school superintendent believes there is real value in the platform that comes along with her status as a political candidate.
Conley announced Monday she has qualified as a write-in candidate for the District 1 post and will challenge incumbent Commissioner Cal Stiles in the November general election.
“This will give me a platform for the next two and a half, three months, to be able to set the record straight on a lot of the things that people have said or posted that are just totally and completely inaccurate,” Conley said. “I really don’t have an expectation to win, but it will give me the medium to fight for some of the things that are important, and maybe open some people’s eyes about a lot of the things in the county.
“I just am really excited about the opportunity to be able to talk to the people in a way that I felt like as superintendent I was restricted to stick to certain topics and not be able to step outside a political box. Now I’ll be able to speak on a variety of topics that impact everybody.”
Conley said that although she initially intended to get off the public radar upon leaving her superintendent role later this year, she was approached by a variety of people who asked her to consider running for commissioner. While part of her desire has been driven by what she describes as “misinformation” over school spending, she said the problems within the county extend far beyond the education system.
“I know I’m associated with the school district, but the problems Cherokee County is facing are so much broader than that,” Conley said. “I feel like we’re just a very reactionary county.
“We’re not proactive. We kind of sit here and wait for the ball to be thrown over the plate before we strike at it, and I’d like to see us have some kind of strategy.”
Conley pointed to Cherokee County’s recent 11-cent property tax increase brought on largely by a $48.5 million financial settlement that resolved more than 20 lawsuits stemming from past practices by the Department of Social Services.
She said it’s fair to ask whether or not Cherokee County is better off than it was eight years ago, and she believes it’s time for a change. Conley also called it “ridiculous” that the school system received a $600,000 reduction in its 2022-23 budget allocation from county commissioners.
“We’re the only department that actually did not get an increase in the budget,” Conley said. “The children of Cherokee County took a $600,000 cut, and we’re finding a way to make it work like we always do, but we still come out the villain somehow.
“I want to make sure people understand what a great team works at Cherokee County (Schools) aside from their leader, aside from me, and what a great job they’ve been able to do and provide what they’ve been able to provide with how little that we’ve been given.”
In order to qualify as a write-in candidate in North Carolina, an individual must file a petition that includes 100 signatures from registered voters if the area or county has 5,000 or more registered voters. The paperwork must be filed by noon, 90 days before the general election. Conley said she received almost 200 signatures for her paperwork.
Stiles has spent nine years on the board of commissioners. He won the Republican primary in May by fending off challengers Jeff Tatham, a school board member, and Steve Jordan, a longtime Andrews alderman and former county commissioner. The incumbent gained 2,651 votes (45.61 percent) to defeat Tatham (1,993, 34.29 percent) and Jordan (1,168, 20.1 percent).
Stiles declined to comment Monday night about Conley’s candidacy.
In April, Conley announced her plans to retire by Dec. 31, but said she could leave sooner than that if the board of education finds a new superintendent. The 2022-23 school year will mark the beginning of her 33rd year in education – all of which has been spent in Cherokee County.
She said she prolonged her stay beyond what she originally intended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Conley called her career in Cherokee County “the blessing of my life.” She began her career at Marble Elementary School and went on to hold a variety of roles such as librarian, chief technology officer and principal before becoming the superintendent.