19-year-old runs for Charlotte County school board spot

A 19-year-old has his eyes set on becoming a member of the Charlotte County School Board.

Leonardo Trent is running against Kim Amontree, who has been on the board representing Punta Gorda since 2016.

Despite just graduating from Charlotte High School, Trent isn’t nervous and said his supporters are looking for change.

“Many of them do share the opinion that we do need somebody young,” Trent said.

However, his opponent believes his lack of experience is not going to go over well with voters.

“I do not think that the voters of this county are going to vote for somebody who has never held a job before, so I anticipate that I am going to win by a wide margin,” Amontree said.

Amontree is confident based on the last two elections, winning by as much as 72%, but Trent knew who he was going up against.

Trent said he attended multiple school board meetings, and he told us why he got into the race and what he wants to do if he wins.

“I decided to run myself and to take on what I call the establishment here in Charlotte County. My main focus, the career pathways, all for the students and small private businesses here in Charlotte County,” he said.

Amontree points to her record—particularly her record of improving school safety—as what voters need to look at before going to the polls.

“We just implemented school guardians to be ancillary to our school resource officers. When I started as a board member, we had not given raises to teachers and staff in four years. We’ve gone from having one of the lowest starting pays to one of the highest in the state,” Amontree said.