Montgomery County Democrats on Monday kicked off their efforts to fill a District 15 state delegate seat, which Del. Kathleen Dumais is leaving after Gov. Larry Hogan named her to be a Circuit Court judge.
Two people who already had expressed interest as of Monday afternoon were former Del. Saqib Ali and Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee Chairwoman Linda Foley.
For a vacancy in Maryland, the party of the most recent state senator or delegate gets to recommend a successor, through applications and a review by the party’s central committee in that jurisdiction. Dumais is a Democrat.
The Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee will meet on Nov. 30 to interview candidates and recommend one to Hogan, who makes the appointment and often approves of a central committee’s choice. It will be a public meeting on Zoom, with a public vote.
The meeting also will be streamed lived through the Central Committee’s Facebook page.
Foley is recusing herself from the committee’s review process.
Dumais represented Barnesville, Poolesville., Clarksburg, Darnestown, Germantown, Rockville and Potomac in the General Assembly. She was in her fifth four-year term as a delegate.
Last week, Hogan chose Dumais to fill the Circuit Court judge seat previously held by Gary Bair.
District 15 is also represented by Democratic Dels. David Fraser-Hidalgo and Lily Qi.
Foley, 66, of Potomac, is a former journalist. She is also a former president of the Newspaper Guild and a former vice president of the Communications Workers of America.
Ali, 46, of North Potomac, represented District 39 as a state delegate from 2007 to 2011. Ali is of Pakistani and Indian descent and his candidacy is promoted by the Montgomery County Muslim Council.
He lost in a 2010 Democratic primary to Sen. Nancy King for her seat in District 39.
Candidates must submit a cover letter and resume to the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee by 5 p.m. Nov. 29.
All applicants must be registered Democrats, live in District 15 and be at least 21 years old.
Under Maryland state law, Hogan has 15 days to accept or reject the Central Committee’s recommendation.
The Maryland General Assembly is scheduled to reconvene on Dec. 6 for a special session to talk new legislative and congressional maps through redistricting. The regular session for 2022 starts in January.
