Dennis Rape was an at-large representative on the Union County Public Schools school board in North Carolina. Rape won the seat in the at-large general election on November 8, 2016. He left office in 2018 after he was elected as a commissioner of Union County.[1]
Rape was a candidate for an at-large seat on the Union County school board on November 4, 2014. He lost in the 2014 general election. Rape also ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the board in 2012.
Six of the nine seats on the Union County Public Schools school board were up for general election on November 8, 2016. Four of the seats were elected by district and two were elected at large. In District 1, two newcomers filed for the open seat: Rebekah Ratliff and Candice Sturdivant. Sturdivant won the spot on the board. Matt Helms filed for the vacant District 2 seat and ran unopposed, winning the seat. In District 5, two newcomers filed for the vacant spot on the board: Joseph Morreale and Amelie Schoel, with Morreale emerging victorious. District 6 saw Kathy Heintel file unopposed for the unexpired term and win the seat. Three filed for the two at-large seats: incumbent Christina Helms and newcomers Lee Henage and Dennis Rape. Rape and Helms were successful in winning terms on the board. There was no primary.[2][3]
Union County Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
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Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
Dennis Rape | 35.77% | 53,283 |
Christina Helms Incumbent | 33.31% | 49,612 |
Lee Henage | 30.03% | 44,726 |
Write-in votes | 0.89% | 1,331 |
Total Votes | 148,952 | |
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Unofficial General Election Results-Union," accessed November 8, 2016 These election results are unofficial and will be updated after official vote totals are made available. |
Rape reported $18,125.00 in contributions and $17,775.74 in expenditures to the Union County Board of Elections, leaving his campaign with $349.26 cash on hand as of November 4, 2016.[4]
School board candidates in North Carolina were required to file campaign finance reports to their county's board of elections unless the candidate:
(1) Did not receive more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in contributions, and
(2) Did not receive more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in loans, and
(3) Did not spend more than one thousand dollars ($1,000).[5]
The third quarter campaign finance deadline was October 31, 2016, and the fourth quarter deadline was January 11, 2017.[6]
Five seats on the Union County Board of Education were up for general election on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Jim H. Benton, Sr. faced Sharon C. Harrell in District 1. In District 3, Gary Sides challenged incumbent Richard A. Yercheck. Newcomers Casey Carver, Monica Earp Frank and Melissa Merrell ran for the District 4 seat. Incumbent Marce Savage faced Jason Marton for re-election to the District 6 seat. Challenger Leslie Boyd won election to the at-large seat on the board by defeating Dennis Rape and Sean Maher.
Union County Public Schools, District 3 Special Election, 2-year term, 2012 | ||||
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Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Nonpartisan | Richard Yercheck | 55% | 5,739 | |
Nonpartisan | Dennis Rape | 44.7% | 4,662 | |
Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 40 | |
Total Votes | 10,441 | |||
Source: North Carolina Board of Elections, "Election Results," accessed September 1, 2014 |
Rape highlighted the following issues on his campaign website:
“ | My 14 Point Plan
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—Dennis Rape's campaign website (2014)[8] |
Union County Public Schools is located in Union County, North Carolina. The county seat of Union County is Monroe. Union County was home to 222,742 residents between 2010 and 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[9] The district was the sixth-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 41,074 students.[10]
Union County outperformed in comparison to North Carolina as a whole in terms of higher education attainment from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 32.3 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to 27.8 percent for state residents. The median household income in the county was $65,893, compared to $46,693 for the state. County residents lived below the poverty level at a rate of 10.8 percent, while that rate was 16.4 percent for state residents.[9]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
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2016 Union County Public Schools Elections | |
Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
Candidates: | District 1: Rebekah Ratliff • Candice Sturdivant District 2: Matt Helms |
Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |