{"id":12582,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:51","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/nicole-johnson\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","slug":"nicole-johnson","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/nicole-johnson\/","title":{"rendered":"Nicole Johnson"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Ran unsuccessfully for special election to fill open seat on the council last year<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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1. Put students and opportunity first by asking questions about results, identifying gaps and supporting solutions that help every child succeed. \n2. Use taxpayer dollars responsibly through transparent budgets, thoughtful planning and clear communication about spending. \n3. Restore trust by listening to families and educators, promoting safe schools and ensuring our ward\u2019s concerns are heard.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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I\u2019m running for School Committee because our ward deserves a practical, accountable voice focused on what matters most: helping every student succeed, using taxpayer dollars responsibly and ensuring families and educators are heard. I will listen, ask tough questions and make thoughtful decisions that strengthen our schools, support safe learning environments and build trust between the district and our community.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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What is the biggest challenge facing your area\u2019s schools? The biggest opportunity?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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1. Lewiston\u2019s biggest challenge is meeting growing academic, attendance, staffing and student-support needs while keeping the budget sustainable and earning taxpayers\u2019 trust.\n2. Our greatest opportunity is a clear, community-backed plan that connects spending to results: stronger attendance, better reading and math outcomes, safe and supportive schools and transparent communication with families and residents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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A top issue for many parents is the age of Maine\u2019s school infrastructure. How would you address this issue locally from your position on the school board?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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I would push for a transparent, long-term facilities plan that ranks repairs by safety, accessibility, building condition and impact on learning. The committee should address urgent needs before they become costly emergencies, pursue available state construction and grant funding, and give families clear information before major capital decisions. Every project should deliver safe, efficient schools while protecting taxpayers through responsible planning.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Do you think the state government is too involved in local schooling? Not involved enough? The right amount of involved? Explain your answer.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The state should set statewide standards, protect students\u2019 rights, and provide reliable funding, especially for special education and aging school facilities. Local school boards should retain control over budgets, programs, staffing priorities and how to meet community needs. The state lacks support around the funding of special education and the hardships our local schools are facing when trying to meet those needs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7170,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Nicole","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"L.","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Johnson","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":12580,"voter_guide_candidate_age":39,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Solar Consultant\/Leads Manager, Maine Solar Solutions","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"","voter_guide_candidate_education":"Lewiston High School, Husson College (now University)","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1QFRHwgoRuyvqLc2aX2AEg_Kseqm5OJnS","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[1073],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-12582","candidate","type-candidate","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vg_party-democratic"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/candidate"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12582\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12583,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12582\/revisions\/12583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7170"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=12582"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=12582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}