Tag Archives: endorsements

Brandy Brooks, Gabe Albornoz, MCEA

Brooks Out, Albornoz In

The Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA) has revoked their endorsement of Brandy Brooks and instead endorsed Council President Gabe Albornoz.

The teachers overlooked Tom Hucker, who is attempting to jump from District 5 to an at-large seat after pulling back from a bid for county executive. Some may see this as a bit of a snub since Hucker had been supportive and close to labor in the past.

In their choice, MCEA went with a safe bet for re-election and also overlooked one fresh candidate, Scott Goldberg. (Note: this is a correction. I mistakenly wrote Laurie-Anne Sayles was also overlooked but she had been endorsed by MCEA previously.)

Their decision is the latest in a line of organizations, such as CASA and DSA, that have pulled their endorsements from Brooks in the wake of a former staffer’s accusation of sexual harassment. Brooks has started participating in forums again but still has not spoken directly on the issue.

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2018 Governor's Race

Sun Endorses Larry Hogan

Though frequently critical of Gov. Larry Hogan and supporters of Jealous in the primary, the Baltimore Sun has endorsed Hogan for reelection:

Mr. Hogan’s stewardship of state finances has been sound. He has neither made large new spending commitments nor attempted big tax cuts but has instead maintained a steady approach to the budget. This year, when it became clear that unintended side effects of the federal tax cuts would increase state income tax collections, he again worked cooperatively with the legislature to offer protection for lower-income Marylanders while banking much of the windfall to lay the groundwork for a major increase in education spending related to the expected findings of the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education. His adoption of the Democrats’ proposal for a “lockbox” for casino revenue is another step along the same path.

That last point reflects something unusual about Mr. Hogan — his willingness to adopt (some would say, co-opt) ideas and policies first proffered by Democrats and claim credit for them. He has shown himself to be adept at jumping on politically popular bandwagons, whether that’s the fracking ban, the lockbox or free community college. It drives Annapolis Democrats nuts. They argue, not without some justification, that Mr. Hogan has no real agenda and is instead running on theirs. To which we would respond: How exactly is that going badly? We are accustomed in Maryland to governors who are the real drivers of policy, but what we have instead with Mr. Hogan is a governor who sometimes seeks to put the brakes on the legislature’s policy initiatives but otherwise focuses on the day-to-day business of running the state. Consequently, Mr. Hogan has offered little in the way of an agenda for his second term beyond offering more of the same.

The Sun joins the Washington Post and the Annapolis Capital in endorsing the Governor for reelection.

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Endorsements

Final MoCo Endorsements

By Adam Pagnucco.

Here is our final list of MoCo institutional endorsements.  Don’t ask us to list more because the font is small enough now!  We’re not sure what to make of MCGEO’s semi-endorsements of House candidates Gabe Acevero (D-39) and Julian Haffner (D-17) but we will leave them in this chart.  One more note: the Washington Post has chosen not to endorse in General Assembly races, something we don’t recall happening in the past.

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Adam Pagnucco, Endorsements

MoCo Endorsements: February 15, 2018

By Adam Pagnucco.

Below, we present a preliminary list of institutional endorsements for MoCo candidates in contested races.  These lists are incomplete for two reasons: first, several influential players (like MCGEO, the Washington Post, the Volunteer Fire Fighters and the Realtors) have not concluded their endorsement processes and second, many of those who have endorsed have decided on some races but not yet others.  That is particularly true of MCEA, holder of the mighty Apple Ballot, which has issued one round of endorsements and will be issuing another round shortly.

A few notes.

First, incumbents are cleaning up as usual.  Challengers, we know you think you can do a better job than them.  But the incumbents have cast real live votes and have relationships you don’t have.  Deal with it!

Second, a handful of non-incumbents are starting to rack up progressive endorsements.  In MoCo, the two who stand out are Council Member Marc Elrich, who is running for Executive, and District 3 County Council candidate Ben Shnider, who is challenging incumbent Sidney Katz.  If Shnider’s endorsements keep snowballing can he pull off the unthinkable?  Delegate Jeff Waldstreicher, who is running for Senate, has now claimed five major institutional endorsements against one claimed by his opponent, Dana Beyer.

And third, there are so many big endorsements that have not yet come down.  It’s still early so don’t carve anyone’s tombstone yet.  That is particularly true of the Council At-Large race, where only incumbent Hans Riemer is building a big stack of them.  The coming endorsements could act as a critical differentiator in a historically huge field.

We will be updating this list periodically.  We will not be including individual endorsements from elected officials or other prominent muckety-mucks.  (OK, maybe if Barack Obama gets involved, we will make an exception.)  And we will not be listing endorsements from tiny, piddly-squit groups that have never shown any game here.  That means if the Wheaton Beer-Drinking Bass Guitarists Political Club issues an endorsement list, tough beans! – we will not be running it.

To be continued.

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Endorsements

WaPo Endorses in MoCo Legislative Races

You can find the full endorsements online:

District 14
House: Kaiser, Luedtke, Zucker

District 15
House: Dumais, Miller, Fraser-Hidalgo

District 16
Senate: Lee
House: Kelly, Frick, Korman

District 17
Senate: Kagan
House: Barve, Platt, Hoffman

District 18
Senate: Madaleno
House: Gutierrez, Waldstreicher, Shetty

District 19
House: Kramer, Cullison, Bardack

District 20
House: Hixson, Unger, Jawando

 

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Endorsements

AFL-CIO Endorsements

MD AFLThese are the recommendations from the AFL-CIO. I have dispensed with my usual attempt to highlight non-incumbents, partly because it is striking how many Democratic incumbents were not endorsed.

The AFL-CIO gave the Senate President a pass in D27. They endorsed Gov. O’Malley’s choice, former Del. Connie DeJuliis, over Sen. Jim Brochin in D42. Well, I guess that’s finally something Miller and Brochin have in common.

In Montgomery County, the AFL-CIO said no to five incumbent delegates: Kathleen Dumais and Aruna Miller in D15, Ariana Kelly in D16, Al Carr and Ana Sol Gutiérrez in D18. They endorsed only two challengers in these same districts: Bennett Rushkoff in D15, and Natali Fani-Gonzalez in D18.

In Prince George’s District 26, the AFL-CIO picked Del. Veronica Turner over incumbent Sen. Anthony Muse. Indeed, they went with Turner’s whole slate. In Charles County District 2, they also said no to two incumbent delegates–C.T. Wilson and Sally Jameson–but endorsed challenger Edith Patterson.

No doubt there is more news in here but that’s what I noticed in a very quick glance.

GOVERNOR/LT. GOVERNOR: Anthony Brown/Ken Ulman
COMPTROLLER: Peter Franchot
ATTORNEY GENERAL: Brian Frosh

CONGRESS
District 1                     No Recommendation
District 2                     Dutch Ruppersberger
District 3                     John Sarbanes
District 4                     Donna Edwards
District 5                     Steny Hoyer
District 6                     John Delaney
District 7                     Elijah Cummings
District 8                     Christopher Van Hollen

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

District 1
Senate: George C. Edwards
House: 1B Kevin Kelly

District 2
House: 2A  Elizabeth Paul, No Recommendation / 2B John Donoghue

District 3
Senate: Ron Young
House: 3A  Carol Krimm, Roger Wilson

District 4
House: Gene Stanton

District 5
Senate: Anita Riley

District 6
Senate: John Olszewski
House: Eric Crizer, Eric Washington, Mike Weir, Jr.

District 8
Senate: Kathy Klausmeier
House: Harry “H.B. ” Bhandari, Eric Bromwell, Renee Smith

District 9
Senate: Ryan Frederick
House: 9A  James Ward Morrow  /  9B  Tom Coale

District 10
Senate: Delores Kelley
House: Robert Johnson, Adrienne A. Jones, Carin Smith

District 11
House: Shelly Hettleman, Dan Morhaim, Dana Stein

District 12
Senate: Edward J. Kasemeyer
House: Terri Hill,  Eric Ebersole, Nick Stewart

District 13
Senate: Guy Guzzone
House: Vanessa Attabearry, Shane Pendergrass, Frank S. Turner

District 14
Senate: Karen Montgomery
House: Anne Kaiser, Eric Luedtke, Craig Zucker

District 15
Senate: Brian Feldman
House: David Fraser-Hidalgo, Bennett Rushkoff

District 16
Senate: Susan Lee
House: Bill Frick

District 17
House: Kumar Barve, Jim Gilchrest, Andrew Platt

District 18
Senate: Richard Madaleno
House: Natali Fani-Gonzalez, Jeff Waldstreicher

District 19
Senate: Roger Manno
House: Bonnie Cullison, Ben Kramer, Marice Morales

District 20
Senate: Jamie Raskin
House: Sheila E. Hixson, Will Jawando , David Moon

District 21
Senate: Jim Rosapepe
House: Ben Barnes, Barbara Frush, Joseline Pena-Melnyk

District 22
Senate: Paul Pinsky
House: Tawanna Gaines, Ann Healey, Alonzo Washington

District 23
Senate: Douglas J.J. Peters
House: 23A Geraldine Valentino-Smith / 23B Marvin Holmes, Joe Vallario

District 24
Senate: Joanne Benson
House: Erek Barron, Carolyn Howard, Michael Vaughn

District 25
Senate: Ulysses Currie
House: Dereck Davis, Larry Greenhill, Sr. , Juanita Miller

District 26
Senate: Veronica Turner
House: David Sloan, Kris Valderrama

District 27
House: 27A  James Proctor /  27B  Michael Jackson / 27C Sue Kullen

District 28
Senate: Thomas “Mac” Middleton
House: Edith Patterson

District 29
House: 29B  John Bohanan / 29C  Len Zuza

District 30
House: 30A  Michael Busch, Chuck Ferrar / 30B  Mitchelle Stephenson

District 31
House: 31A  Ned Carey

District 32
Senate: James Ed DeGrange
House: Pamela Beidle, Spencer Dove, Theodore Sophocleus

District 33
House: Henry Green

District 34
Senate: Mary-Dulaney James
House: 34A  Mary Ann Lisanti, Pat Murray / 34B  Cassandra Beverly

District 35
House: 35A  David Rudolph

District 37
House: 37A  Sheree Sample-Hughes

District 38
House: 38B  Norman Conway / 38C  Judy Davis

District 39
Senate: Nancy King
House: Charles Barkley ,  Kirill Reznik,  Shane Robinson

District 40
Senate: Catherine Pugh
House: Frank Conaway, Barbara Robinson, Shawn Tarrant

District 41
Senate: Lisa Gladden
House: Jill Carter, Nathaniel Oaks, Samuel “Sandy” Rosenberg

District 42
Senate: Connie DeJuliis
House: 42A  Stephen Lafferty / 42B  Robert Leonard

District 43 
Senate: Joan Carter Conway
House: Curt Anderson, Maggie McIntosh, Mary Washington

District 44
Senate: Shirley Nathan-Pulliam
House: 44A  Keith Haynes / 44B Aaron Barnett, Charles Sydnor, III

District 45
Senate: Nathaniel McFadden
House: Talmadge Branch, Chery D. Glenn, Cory McCray

District 46
Senate: Bill Ferguson
House: Luke Clippinger, Peter Hammen, Brooke Elizabeth Lierman

District 47
Senate: Victor Ramirez
House: 47A  Jimmy Tarlau / 47B  No Recommendation

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Endorsements, equality maryland

EQMD’s Final Endorsements

Here is a list of Equality Maryland’s final endorsements for 2014. I’ve done my best to boldface the non-incumbents but have undoubtedly made a few mistakes here.

Statewide Offices
Governor/Lt. Governor: Anthony Brown/Ken Ulman
Attorney General: Brian Frosh

General Assembly
District 3
House: Carol Krimm (D3A), Karen Young (D3A)
Senate: Ron Young

District 4  
House: Gene Stanton (D4A)

District 5
House: Dorothy Scanlan

District 6
Senate: John Olszewski, Jr.

District 8
House: Eric Bromwell
Senate: Katherine Klausmeier

District 9  
House: Tom Coale (D9B)
Senate: Ryan Frederic

District 10
House: Benjamin Brooks, Robert “Bob” Johnson, Adrienne Jones
Senate: Delores Kelley

District 11
House: Shelly Hettleman, Dan Morhaim, Dana Stein
Senate: Bobby Zirkin

District 12
House: Rebecca Dongarra, Terri Hill, Clarence Lam
Senate: Ed Kasemeyer

District 13
House: Vanessa Atterbeary, Frank Turner
Senate: Guy Guzzone

District 14
House: Anne Kaiser, Eric Luedtke, Craig Zucker
Senate: Karen Montgomery

District 15
House: Kathleen Dumais, David Fraser-Hidalgo, Aruna Miller
Senate: Brian Feldman

District 16
House: Bill Frick, Ariana Kelly, Marc Korman
Senate: Susan Lee

District 17
House: Kumar Barve, Jim Gilchrist, Andrew Platt
Senate: Cheryl Kagan

District 18
House: Al Carr, Ana Sol Gutierrez, Jeff Waldstreicher
Senate: Richard Madaleno

District 19
House: Bonnie Cullison, Benjamin Kramer, Marice Morales
Senate: Roger Manno

District 20
House: (four endorsements for three seats): Sheila Hixson, Will Jawando, David Moon, Will Smith
Senate: Jamie Raskin

District 21
House: Joseline Pena-Melnyk
Senate: James Rosapepe

District 22
House: Tawanna Gaines, Anne Healey, Alonzo Washington
Senate: Paul Pinsky

District 25
House: Stanley Onye

District 26
Senate: Veronica Turner
House: Kris Valderrama

District 28
House: John Coller

District 30
House: Michael E. Busch (D30A), Mitchelle Stephenson (D30B)

District 31
House: Robert Haynes (D31A)

District 32
House: Spencer Dove

District 34
House: Cassandra Beverly (D34B)

District 39
House: Charles Barkley, Kirill Reznik, Shane Robinson
Senate: Nancy King

District 40
House: Barbara Robinson

District 41
House: Samuel “Sandy” Rosenberg

District 42
House: Stephen Lafferty

District 43
House: Curt Anderson, Maggie McIntosh, Mary Washington

District 44
House: Keiffer Mitchell (D44A), Charles Sydnor, III (D44B)

District 45
House: Cory McCray
Senate: Nathaniel McFadden

District 46
House: Luke Clippinger, Peter Hammen, Brooke Lierman
Senate: Bill Ferguson

District 47
House: Will Campos (D47B), Diana Fennell (D47A), Michael Summers (D47A)
Senate: Victor Ramirez, D47

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Casa de Maryland, Endorsements, George Leventhal, Montgomery County Council, Nancy Floreen

Leventhal Slams CASA

casa logo

The Washington Post reports that dealing with negative impacts of the Purple Line on low-income people is CASA’s biggest priority and the lack of concern with these issues cost incumbent Councilmembers George Leventhal and Nancy Floreen the organization’s support:

CASA ‘s biggest priority in Montgomery at the moment is the Purple Line’s potential threat to affordable housing and minority-owned small businesses in communities such as Long Branch. In CASA’s assessment, they weren’t there with them. . . .

CASA and other groups are worried that gentrification, triggered by escalating real estate values along the route, will price Latinos out of the community.

“George’s perception is that any discussion of equity around the Purple Line undermines its chances of going forward,” Propeack said.

George responded less than tactfully:

“My impression is that they’re trying to insult me,” Leventhal said. He added: “I do think CASA sometimes loses sight of the fact that the primary beneficiaries of the Purple Line will be Latinos. It will be of enormous benefit to workers who will have greater access to jobs. I guess they think transit is bad for communities.”

This quote exhibits George’s greatest strengths and weaknesses. He is fervent in his causes and makes cogent arguments for them. At the same time, he often acts in ways that express disdain for people who disagree with him and build barriers rather than friends. This case is especially telling because of his past very close relationship with CASA and his genuine, strong support for Latinos.

Nancy also made a statement to the reporter:

Floreen said she couldn’t say what happened.

“I have no idea. These are folks with their own agenda. They’re all advocates for something or other.”

Whether you agree with her or not, Nancy is opinionated, informed, and smart as a whip. But when I read this, it sounded like the least sensible quote ever from Nancy Floreen. Of course, they have an agenda. They’re an interest group.

However, interviews are long and quotes are short, so I gave Nancy a call. Her assessment has more sang-froid than George’s:

It’s their assessment of the politics of the situation. I’ve always supported them and their interests in the past and will continue to do so in the future whether or not they endorse me.

Essentially, they’re an interest group with their own goals they will do what they will do. A smart response as it leaves doors open, doesn’t alienate, or give the story more traction.

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