The group, calling itself Education Not Indoctrination and backed by a political-action committee pumping money into similar efforts around the U.S., will square off in Tuesday’s election against a four-candidate slate supported by teachers unions, in a contest that both sides say carries high stakes for the school district’s more than 45,000 students.
The spirited race in central Maryland mirrors a continuing fight for control of the elected bodies that oversee public schools nationwide. Many Republicans running for governor and Congress have highlighted in this year’s midterm elections parental rights and K-12 education issues including critical-race theory, book bans and what students can be taught about gender, building on battles dating to school closures earlier in the pandemic.