Emehel accuses London of ‘deception’ in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools election
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education candidate Toni Emehel made claims that opponent Anna London has ulterior motives tied to her campaign during a tense exchange Monday night.
London calls Emehel’s accusations a “distraction.”
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education candidates spoke at a forum Monday night hosted by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg League of Women Voters and WFAE in uptown Charlotte. Candidates addressed issues that included what to make of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ historic growth on state assessments during the 2024-25 school year, teacher recruitment and retention, transparency and funding for education.
When the three candidates from District 6 in south Charlotte took the stage during the last round of questions, accusations of “deception” and impropriety started flying.
District 6 candidate Emehel claimed that opponent London’s motivation to run for the board is to “strengthen the position and influence” of her employer, Mecklenburg County’s workforce development board, Charlotte Works. She also claimed London was motivated to run, in part, by her connections to Charlotte Works Board Chair Raki McGregor, whose wife’s consulting company, SYDKIMYL, holds a controversial six-figure contract with CMS.
“This is the element of deception that comes when elections come,” Emehel said. “The public needs to know who’s running for office, and they need to know that there has been absolutely a connection between the candidate and both organizations.”
Emehel said she received a cease and desist letter from the McGregors, who attended Monday’s forum, about “false and defamatory statements,” WFAE reported. District 1 candidate Melissa Easley reportedly also received a letter.
London called Emehel’s claims “false narratives and misleading information.”
“I am doing this for the right reasons, and I will continue to be respectful and lead a professional and clean campaign,” London said Monday night. “I do not have anything to do with the contract that continues to be referenced… So, it is really unfortunate that there continue to be distractions, misleading information, lies and false narratives, when our community cares about these kids, these educators and what’s best for our community.”
The third District 6 candidate in the race, Justin Shealy, didn’t comment on the controversy at Monday’s event.
Background on the hot-button issue
London and District 1 candidate Charlitta Hatch have ties to McGregor, which Emehel believes “give the look of impropriety,” she told The Observer in September.
McGregor, a Charlotte businessman and former advisor to CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill, accompanied London and Hatch when they filed to run for school board seats in July. His wife, Kimberly McGregor, owns an education consulting firm called SYDKIMYL that had a $500,000 CMS contract last year, which drew questions from some board members.
The original contract expired in June, but public records show CMS signed a new $180,000 contract with SYDKIMYL that runs through Jan. 30. The new contract falls below the $250,000 threshold that would require board approval.
Hatch and London are running for seats currently held by two of three board members who voted against approving the previous $500,000 SYDKIMYL contract. Lisa Cline of District 5 also voted against the contract extension. Meanwhile, Hatch and London share the same campaign treasurer, Misty Lyons, according to their statement of organization forms filed with Mecklenburg County this summer, who is also listed as the finance manager for SYDKIMYL on the firm’s website.
But school board votes on the SYDKIMYL contract did not factor into his decision about who to endorse, McGregor told WFAE in August. Instead, he said he felt some school board members were not totally supportive of the superintendent, who he said is “doing a phenomenal job.”
CMS and the McGregors have defended the contract, pointing to student achievement gains at 10 of the 12 schools where the firm has worked. CMS also previously told the Observer that its Office of General Counsel and Office of Compliance determined the contract did not constitute a conflict of interest.
London said she consulted “multiple different layers of legal counsel” who determined there is no conflict of interest for her to serve as president and CEO of Charlotte Works and on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education.
“If a conflict of interest opportunity did arise, I would abstain from voting or confer with the general counsel to confirm there is no conflict of interest there,” London told The Charlotte Observer in September.
This story was originally published October 27, 2025 at 10:42 PM.
