Rod McMillion concedes his Baltimore County school board seat to Stacy McNish

Rod McMillion, one of the longest-serving elected members of the Baltimore County Board of Education, conceded his District 7 race late Tuesday night to challenger Stacy McNish.

McNish had drawn about 54.6% of the vote just before midnight Tuesday night with all early voting, some mail-in ballots and most Election Day ballots counted.

“I want to congratulate Stacy McNish for running an outstanding campaign,” McMillion said in an interview. “She’s very deserving of her win. I appreciate the votes for me previously and this year, and I want to thank everyone for all the support they’ve shown.”

McMillion said he’s “gravely disappointed, but the people spoke and that’s what elections are all about.” He plans to call McNish Wednesday morning.

In response to questions on The Banner’s voter guide, McNish wrote that she supports “reasonable restrictions” on devices in class and allowing students to use their phones when it supports learning. She pitched holding kids back when necessary to help improve math scores. And she wrote that parents have the right to raise concerns over school library books but that selecting library books “should remain grounded in professional standards.”

On her website, McNish describes herself as a mom, advocate and community-minded problem solver whose work with people with disabilities convinced her that strong schools are essential to a strong community.

She did not respond to an interview request late Tuesday night.

McMillion taught in Baltimore County Public Schools for nearly 36 years. Twenty-five of those years were spent at Chesapeake High School, where he was a teacher, athletic director and coach. McMillion has been one of the more vocal school board members, not shy about voicing his concerns or opposition. He was one of the few members to vote against the former superintendent’s budget earlier this year.

McClelland on track to oust Domanowski

In District 3, Kelli Slattery McClelland, the Democratic- and teachers union-backed candidate for school board, led incumbent Maggie Litz Domanowski, whose conservative politics and sharp questioning of school spending drew controversy during her term.

McClelland said late Tuesday night that she feels good about the results so far. She said she’s been talking to voters for months about what they want and what she can bring to the table, “and I think that they’re ready for change.”

Though school board elections are technically nonpartisan — meaning voters won’t see a “D” or “R” next to candidates’ names on the ballot — the fight for the District 3 seat has been filled with partisan rivalry. Endorsements and campaign donations are split along party lines, and McClelland has called her opponent’s political stances a danger to students.

The race was by far the most expensive for a Baltimore County school board seat this year, campaign finance records show. McClelland raised nearly $49,000 through mid-October, twice as much as Domanowski did. Of the other three contested races for seats on the board, District 6 candidates pulled in the second-highest amount in donations, at over $11,600. Three-fourths went to Christina Pumphrey.

Partisan groups and elected officials played a significant role in funding the candidates.

McClelland’s donors include about two dozen current and former elected Democrats, among them U.S. Rep. Johnny Olszewski Jr. and Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman. She also received donations from political action committees affiliated with U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen and Vote Mama, a New York-based group that says it aims to build the political power of Democratic mothers.

One of McClelland’s largest backers was the Maryland State Education Association, the statewide teachers union that gave $5,235 in cash and in-kind donations.

Domanowski, meanwhile, was bolstered by nearly $4,400 from 1776 Project PAC, a national conservative group that paid for mailers and robocalls supporting her campaign.

Both candidates have said they want to advocate for students, not push a political agenda.

McClelland, a Timonium resident who is registered to vote as a Democrat, said she became an advocate for others after her family was in a semitruck crash that killed her stepmother and left her brother with a brain injury. She said she went from championing her brother’s needs to pushing for changes to federal legislation to prevent tragedies like her family’s. Now, she advocates for her children, who attend Baltimore County Public Schools.

“I really believe that every child in BCPS deserves to have an advocate like me in their corner,” she told The Banner last month.

Domanowski, who is registered to vote as a Republican, has said her political views don’t influence her decisions as a school board member, a role she’s held since 2022.

Unlike conservative school board members in other parts of the state, Domanowski has not pushed for restrictions on school library books or rolling back diversity initiatives. However, her public Facebook posts include critiques of trans athletes in women’s sports, and the phrase “Make Education Great Again” was once displayed on her Facebook page.

“Yes, I am a political person as a mom and a resident of Baltimore County, but I just wanted to get in there and just look out for the students’ best interests,” she said in an October interview.

Domanowski has faced controversy in her four-year term. She was censured by her fellow board members in 2025 for using a “tone and manner that was perceived as uncivil and aggressive” when she asked the previous superintendent questions about her budget proposal during a Jan. 28 school board meeting. The State Board of Education, however, overturned the censure a few months later, calling Domanowski’s manner “calm and professional” and noting that the censure “defies reason.”

This year, she shared a meme that contrasted women’s rights under President Donald Trump with Islam’s Sharia law. After members of the Muslim community called out the meme as anti-Muslim, Domanowski apologized and toured a local mosque to learn more about the religion.

Domanowski did not respond to an interview request late Tuesday night.

Other contested races

Seven school board seats were up for grabs in November’s election, but only four races drew more than one candidate.

District 1: Just before midnight, newcomer Candice Logan-Washington, who has said students should treat artificial intelligence as a tool, had a slight lead over Lisa Mack, who served on the board between 2018 and 2022.

Logan-Washington called her race “a nail-biter,” late Tuesday night, but she remains committed to serving all Baltimore County students if elected to the board.

Mack said she was happy to see people voting in school board races.

“I just want it to be about the kids no matter who gets it,” she said.

District 6: Incumbent Christina Pumphrey, who championed a district immigration policy that prevents ICE agents from entering school buildings without a warrant, held a substantial lead over Darren Badillo, who has criticized the school system for being too violent and crowded.

Pumphrey and Badillo did not respond to interview requests late Tuesday.

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.