Dr. Campos-Spitze takes fundraising lead in '23 Greeley-Evans school board race

Casteel still leads in spending as race begins to heat up

There are three seats on the seven-member Greeley-Evans School District 6 board up for grabs Nov. 7, and declared candidates on Thursday had to submit May fundraising figures to the Colorado Secretary of State.

All but one candidate, Rasheed Garza Archuleta, had fundraising figures to report. Here’s a quick breakdown of the numbers and where the race stands:

• Incumbent Dr. Brenda Campos-Spitze, a family doctor at Sunrise Community Health who was appointed to her seat this past year, now leads the fundraising pack with $4,719.90 raised. She’s spent $657.02 on the race so far, and she has $4,338.88 cash on hand. She reported no fundraising activity before May, as her campaign has not yet officially launched. Her campaign kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. June 20.

• Elda “Ibet” Palacios remains second in fundraising with $1,766 raised. She has spent $37.59 on the race so far, and she has $1,728.41 cash on hand. She raised $926 in May.

  • Note: There is little information available about Palacios other than that her registered agent is Amber Cecil, treasurer for Greeley Republican Women and the agent for book-ban advocates Stacey Casteel and Ashlee Tilley. Casteel, Tilley and Palacios appear to be quietly attempting to run together as a conservative bloc.

• Casteel, who led the field in fundraising after the first filing period this past month, drops to third with $1,679.74 raised. She has spent $917.90 on the race so far, the most of any candidate, and she has $761.84 cash on hand. She raised less than $45 in May.