WUFT News News and Public Media for North Central Florida from the University of Florida in Gainesville
Tina Certain emerged as the only incumbent Alachua County School Board member to hold onto her seat Tuesday night, as Mildred Russell lost to Diyonne McGraw, the challenger in District 2 who most recently held her seat.
Sarah Rockwell beat Ray Holt in District 3, and Kay Abbitt defeated Prescott Cowles. Both Rockwell and Abbitt are newcomers to the board.
Gov. Ron DeSantis removed McGraw from the District 2 seat in 2021 and replaced her with Russell because McGraw didn’t live within the district. Redistricting shifted the boundary lines this year and her residence now falls within them. Russell received an endorsement from DeSantis’ campaign earlier this month, and she had outspent McGraw by a 3 to 1 margin.
Unofficial results from the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections are below:
| Name | Votes | Percentage | Contributions | Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tina Certain | 30,360 | 60.46% | $41,290.28 | $26,778.31 |
| Daniel Fisher | 39.54 | 19,858% | $23,174.03 | $20,917.97 |
| Name | Votes | Percentage | Contributions | Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diyonne McGraw | 28,463 | 56.82% | $28,929.61 | $12,180.37 |
| Mildred Russell | 21,632 | 43.18% | $44,147.83 | $38,405.39 |
| Name | Votes | Percentage | Contributions | Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Holt | 20,646 | 41.69% | $43,365.76 | $32,464.70 |
| Sarah Rockwell | 28,878 | 58.31% | $62,034 | $59,486.47 |
| Name | Votes | Percentage | Contributions | Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kay Abbitt | 26,586 | 54.17% | $15,419.79 | $11,055.96 |
| Prescott Cowles | 22,497 | 45.83% | $26,413 | $23,953.46 |
