Stevens, Still and Dove win Manassas School Board seats; Brescia falls 13 votes short

Lisa Anne Stevens, Marcus S. Still and Murina V. Dove won the three open seats on the Manassas City School Board in unofficial results Tuesday.

Stevens received 6,216 votes (19.70%), Still 6,102 (19.34%) and Dove 5,941 (18.83%). Incumbent Sara J. Brescia finished fourth with 5,928 votes (18.79%) — 13 votes behind Dove. Raul O. Campoverde Lindao and Javanese M. Hailey each received 3,626 votes (11.49%). Write-ins totaled 110 (0.35%).

Voters chose three members. Stevens is the only one of the three winners who currently serves on the board. Still and Dove are new. The race is nonpartisan.

Brescia, first elected in 2022, sought a second term. She has been a frequent subject of Potomac Local reporting on academic standards, transparency, and board process. In August, she filed a Freedom of Information Act petition alleging the board held an unlawful electronic or telephonic vote directing an investigation of her.

The petition was later dismissed after a closed-door settlement in which the board agreed to withdraw and not start the investigation. She also said three members used an Aug. 3 closed session to discuss moving her children out of Baldwin Elementary. On Oct. 13, she described 2026 accountability data as mixed, with no distinguished schools and student achievement still too low.

Still and Dove were endorsed by the Manassas & Manassas Park Cities Democratic Committee alongside Stevens. They held a joint campaign launch in July. Potomac Local has sought comment from both candidates on multiple occasions. Neither has responded.

Dove’s public Facebook page shared posts between 2024 and early 2026 supporting prayer and Bible reading in public schools, rejecting evolutionary science in favor of a biblical narrative, affirming marriage as one man and one woman, and stating that cultural opinion does not override what the Bible calls sin. Most were shares of third-party images. Potomac Local emailed Dove asking about the posts and how personal religious beliefs would affect curriculum and policy. No response.

Still was asked for comment on a TikTok and Facebook video posted by his partner, Michael Gramajo, a family liaison at Baldwin Elementary. In the video, Gramajo alleged that Brescia contacted him at school after learning Still was a candidate. Two formal complaints followed and were cited in the subsequent request to investigate Brescia. Still did not respond. Comment was also sought from Gramajo. No response.

Results are unofficial. Provisional ballots and remaining absentee ballots have not been fully counted. The city’s electoral board will certify the results later.