Update: Now that all the votes have been counted and the Baltimore County election certified, I wanted to update this post. First, I want to say congratulations to everyone who won your primary! And thank you to all the candidates who stepped up to run, whether you were successful or not. It takes a tremendous amount of work and dedication to run for office, and I have a lot of respect for anyone who does it. I hope that this is a beginning, not an end, and that we will have opportunities to work together in the future, in or out of office, for the good of the county and the state.
Now that we move into the General election, I endorse and will be actively supporting all the Democratic nominees. For local races, I’m excited about this slate of candidates! We are on track for the most diverse Baltimore County Council ever, and each one of these candidates bring fresh ideas and perspective that will serve the county well.
Baltimore County Executive: Julian Jones
Baltimore County Council
District 1: Paul Dongarra
District 2: Ruben Amaya
District 3: Makeda Scott
District 4: Karson B. Kamenetz
District 5: Shawn McIntosh
District 6: Michael “Mike” P. Ertel
District 7: Caridad “Cari” Santiago
District 8: Sharonda Dillard-Huffman
District 9: Arkia A. Wade
Original post:
I made the decision to not endorse any Primary Election candidates for Baltimore County Executive or County Council. There were an abundance of good candidates running, and with a real opportunity for a fresh start in Baltimore County – new County Executive and at least 7 new Council Members out of the newly created 9 councilmanic districts, plus the first time Baltimore County candidates had access to public financing – I wanted to stay out of it and give Baltimore County voters the opportunity to make their choices. Instead, my focus has been on maintaining the good relationships needed to advocate for my district with whoever the winners are. My first priority is always my district and my constituents.
Now the voters have spoken, and it is our responsibility as Democratic leaders to honor the voters’ wishes and support the candidates they chose to be their nominees. That is, of course, the purpose of a primary. While mail ballots are still being counted and the election will be certified next Monday, July 6, in most races we know who the Democratic nominee will be.
In addition to honoring the voters’ choices, I’ll be supporting Democrats because Democrats believe that government should actually be working for the people. Democrats believe that children and seniors should not go hungry, that healthcare and housing should be affordable and accessible to all, that everyone has a right to a clean and healthy environment, including for generations to come, and that our diversity is our strength and equity is still needed to ensure everyone has a fair chance. Of course, the Democratic Party is a big tent party and we may disagree on the details of how to achieve those things, but let’s elect Democrats and have those conversations, rather than having to continually fight against losing all the progress that we’ve made.
As someone who is on the leftward side of my party, I’m still fighting for universal healthcare, collective bargaining rights, a living wage for all, holding polluters accountable, public transit, and ensuring wealthy individuals and profitable corporations pay their fair share. But that’s a conversation for another day. For today, I want to give full-throated and unconditional endorsement to our Baltimore County Democratic nominees, and I encourage all candidates who didn’t win and their supporters to do the same.
Baltimore County Executive: Julian Jones
Baltimore County Council
District 1: Paul Dongarra
District 2: Ruben Amaya or Lawrence Williams (this race is too close to call but I will endorse and support whichever of these candidates win)
District 3: Makeda Scott
District 4: Karson B. Kamenetz
District 5: Shawn McIntosh
District 6: Michael “Mike” P. Ertel
District 7: Caridad “Cari” Santiago
District 8: Sharonda Dillard-Huffman
District 9: Mark E. McCluskey or Arkia A. Wade (this race also appears too close to call)