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Democrat
Jon Baron
Where you live: Bethesda
Date of birth: Oct. 2, 1962
Current occupation and employer:
– Former vice president of evidence-based policy, Arnold Ventures
– Founder and president of nonprofit Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy
– Former Clinton Administration official
Political experience:
I’m a first-time political candidate who has held senior policy positions in the federal government. During the Clinton Administration, I headed a nearly billion-dollar technology program (DoD Small Business Innovation Research) and later served as executive director of the Presidential Commission on Offsets in International Trade. I was twice appointed by President Bush, and confirmed by the Senate, to serve on the National Board for Education Sciences, and I chaired the board during the last year of my term.
Website: https://jonbaron.com/
Email: info@jonbaron.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JonBaronforMD
Twitter: @JonBaronforMD
Instagram: @JonBaronforMD
Why are you running for this office?
I’m running for governor because our state isn’t making progress on problems that damage millions of lives, and I’m offering a very different approach. More than one-fourth of Maryland eighth graders can’t read at a basic level – same as 20 years ago. The bottom 40% of Marylanders have seen flat wages since the 1980s. We’ve made no progress reducing the poverty rate since 1990.
We can’t keep doing the same thing we’ve done for decades—rolling out one unproven government program after another—and expect a different result. To make progress, we must expand solutions that don’t just sound like good ideas, but have actually been tested in the real world and shown to make a big difference in people’s lives.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
The greatest problem facing our state is that student achievement has been stagnant for decades and millions of Marylanders have seen flat wages since the 1980s. When I’m governor, we’ll do what’s proven to work—like providing high-quality tutoring to every struggling first and second grader in Maryland, moving them up toward grade level early, before their problems become serious in later grades. We’ll do this by recruiting an army of tutors from the community, including retirees and recent college graduates.
We’ll also provide proven job training programs to every adult who wants to advance. If done right, job training can be extremely effective—raising wages as much as 40%. But the key is to focus the training on fast-growing industries, like IT and healthcare, and to work closely with employers who provide paid internships to the trainees. Under my plan, the state will pay for the training, employers pay for the internships, our economy gets skilled workers—everyone benefits.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
One area where our state hasn’t made nearly enough progress is education. More than ¼ of middle schoolers in our state can’t read at a basic level, and more than one-third can’t do basic math. Those numbers are no different than they were 20 years ago, despite a 40% increase in education spending during the 2000s. I believe the enactment of the Blueprint could be a major turning point for our state. I strongly support the Blueprint and greater education spending. But this time, we must focus the expanded funds on solutions that aren’t just well-meaning, but have actually been tested in the real world and proven to improve student outcomes — like providing tutoring to every struggling first and second grader in the state (shown to significantly improve reading and math scores and prevent serious learning problems later on) and expanding high school Career Academies (shown to increase long-term wages by $3,000 per year).
In education and other areas, let’s do what works, Maryland!
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
My career has focused on government reform, and I’ve been able to drive real change from inside and outside government. As a Clinton Administration official, I headed a nearly billion-dollar technology program and won awards for reinventing government. Later, I founded and ran a nonprofit organization that sparked a movement to advance evidence-based policymaking throughout government, and worked with the Bush and Obama Administrations and Congress to enact major reforms in social spending programs. These reforms led to significant gains in worker earnings, student achievement, and other life outcomes. Most recently, as vice president of a national philanthropy, I headed the largest philanthropic initiative in the country that identifies and expands proven-effective social programs. I’ve been an appointee of Democratic and Republican presidents, and have twice been confirmed by the Senate.
Peter Franchot
Where you live: Takoma Park
Date of birth: Nov. 25, 1947
Current occupation and employer:
Comptroller of Maryland
Political experience:
Maryland House of Delegates (1987-2007)
Comptroller of Maryland (2007-Present)
Website: https://www.franchot.com/
Email: peter@franchot.com
Facebook: @PeterFranchot
Twitter: @PeterFranchot
Instagram: @PeterFranchot
Why are you running for this office?
I am running to create opportunities for all Marylanders to share in the prosperity of the state. As the comptroller, the chief financial officer of the state, I have seen the economic, geographical, and social barriers that communities on the margins face and I have the experience and vision to rebuild Maryland’s economy in a manner that makes it a more equitable and sustainable state in which generational wealth and opportunity become hallmarks.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
We must create a more competent government that delivers concrete results voters see on a daily basis. COVID showed us how much competence matters in our government, whether it’s the Department of Labor distributing unemployment checks in a more timely fashion, or doing a better job of procuring PPE for schools, or the many needs in between. When government works well, it gets results that lead to a thriving community for everyone. I will have a special focus on infrastructure projects like public transportation and green energy, and tie these investments to family-supporting jobs and incentives like student loan forgiveness.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
We need better infrastructure when it comes to our school buildings, and I have been a tireless advocate on this front. No child should attend a school with undrinkable water, or that lacks climate control for the hot and cool months. We must do a better job of cutting through red tape and acting with the fierce urgency of now when it comes to priorities like our children.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
My long record of service, as a veteran, a delegate, and now comptroller has been rooted in a constant presence in neighborhood main streets, faith communities, and small businesses across the state. The proof is in the pudding. Everyday voters are the constituents that inform my vision for Maryland. I am ready to improve the quality of life for all Marylanders, and I have the experience in state government that will let me hit the ground running on Day One.
Doug Gansler
Where you live: Chevy Chase
Date of birth: Oct. 30, 1962
Current occupation and employer:
Current: Attorney. Head of Cadwalader’s State Attorneys General Practice
Previous: Maryland attorney general, Montgomery County state’s attorney
Political experience:
Maryland attorney general (2006-2014)
Montgomery County state’s attorney (1998-2006)
Assistant United States attorney (1992-1998)
Previous run for governor in 2014
Website: https://www.douggansler.com
Email: info@douggansler.com
Facebook: facebook.com/douggansler
Twitter: @douggansler
Instagram: @douggansler
Why are you running for this office?
Both my running mate, former Hyattsville Mayor Candace Hollingsworth, and I believe people work hard and they deserve a government that works for them. That means meeting government’s number one responsibility: keeping people safe. It also means rebuilding our communities, schools and businesses post-COVID. How do I know we can do it? Because we have done it before — restoring safety in the wake of the Beltway Sniper, transforming Hyattsville into a thriving economic and cultural center. You can trust and count on us.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
In every poll and conversation I have had throughout this campaign, the issue people say matters to them most is the rise in crime. They worry about their children’s safety at school and see crime as a barrier to rebuilding healthy, thriving communities post pandemic. As a former federal prosecutor, state’s attorney and Maryland attorney general, and the only candidate with experience fighting crime, I am uniquely qualified to lead in this moment. Not just because I know we need more, better trained police – 1,000 more – but because I know what works: drug courts that prioritize violent offenses over petty possession and domestic violence dockets and family justice centers to provide the support needed to break the cycle of violence.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
As a state we are not prepared for the coming onslaught against women’s reproductive rights. First and foremost, with the impending reversal of Roe v. Wade, we must elect a Democratic primary winner who can beat the Republican candidate. There is no room for another loss to the Republicans. Twice is enough. Next we need a candidate who knows how to put in place the legal safeguards necessary to ensure we do not see a chipping away of reproductive rights in Maryland. And we need a candidate with the courage of his convictions, not afraid to lead as I did in the fight for Marriage Equality.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
I could point to my service as the attorney general serving every department of Maryland state government, or the billions I secured to keep Maryland residents in their homes after the mortgage foreclosure crisis, or securing the largest fines against corporate polluters to protect our Bay and environment. But what I want people to know about my experience is that when a problem is put before me I will work for them to solve it. Just as I led the charge for Marriage Equality, I will fight for the people of Maryland, for your families and your community.
Ralph Jaffe
Where you live: Baltimore
Date of birth: Aug. 21, 1941
Current occupation and employer:
Teacher
Political experience:
In 1992, I started a movement to get rid of widespread corruption in Maryland politics and bring in real ethical reform in the political system. I developed a set of principles which I believe are essential for accomplishing the objective. Putting this journey for justice into high gear, as a teacher, not a politician, I have run for political office in the last seven elections either for governor or senator, as part of my teaching strategy to demonstrate by action, not just words, what needs to be done to put an end to moral bankruptcy out and bring in ethics – refuse campaign contributions, serve 1 term, no salary, tell the whole truth, avoid professional lobbyists. I not only talked the talk, but I walked the walk.
Although I was not elected, I have “won” the campaigns because they were run based on the principles I believe are essential for ethical politicians.
Website: http://www.fedupwithcrookedpolitics.com
Email: rjaffe4@verizon.net
Facebook: Ralph Jaffe Facebook: Fed up with crooked politics
Instagram: Ralph Jaffe
Why are you running for this office?
As my website suggests – I am fed up with crooked politics. My movement – Journey for Justice – has met with success, but we need more. Ending practice of career politicians and getting money out of politics are means for accomplishing this. I’m proud of the results – between 2010 and 2018 over 42,000 votes – budget by design $1,700. I don’t take campaign contributions -they’re disguised bribes. Take campaign contributions and distribute money to poor and needy Because I practice what I preach, as a teacher, I’m again, running as a Democratic candidate for governor.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
Trust is most important issue. People serving in government positions should remember they’re in that office to serve their constituents, not themselves. Raising exorbitant amounts of money to get elected ( better use of all that money – help poor & needy)) isn’t proof they have these traits. When career politicians tell the truth some of the time, not all of the time, call it whatever you want – a lie is a lie – no matter how big or small. Whom do voters trust the most to make Maryland a healthier, safer state.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
The violent violence and the deficient public school education. A two-fold plan will be implemented if elected governor of Maryland.
Step 1 : Minutes, if not seconds, after taking office, I will call out the National Guard, on a temporary basis, to get a handle on the unrelenting surge of violence plaguing the streets of Baltimore. Step 2: I will implement the tutor-mentor team program, designed to keep our youth in school helping them to become productive citizens instead of dropping out like flies and winding up on a course of criminal activity. Check my Facebook videos for more details on this unique program.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
From my teaching experience:
In 1962 – Pioneer of new teaching strategy – Student Activism in the Classroom –
in 2022 – Pioneer of new educational approach – Tutor Mentor TEAM Program-
and from my 80 years of life I have come to see and understand what is bad and what is good in our community and what is needed to make the light shine on Maryland once again.
Ashwani Jain
Where you live: Montgomery County
Date of birth: Aug. 12, 1989
Current occupation and employer:
Program director – National Kidney Foundation
Political experience:
I ran for one of four at-large seats for the Montgomery County Council in 2018. My primary included 33 Democrats. I lost, but – as the youngest in that race – I beat 25 candidates; was only one of four (out of 33) to earn the SEIU Local 500 endorsement; had the second highest local donors of all candidates; and was the only person in the Maryland primary to earn Joe Biden’s endorsement.
I have also worked in the public, private and non-profit sectors – where I helped manage the political appointee process in the Obama White House; worked to get more than 400,000 Marylanders access to healthcare at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; worked on affordable housing at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; and helped get the NIH and the FDA billions in additional revenue when I was then-Vice President Biden’s director of outreach for the Cancer Moonshot.
Website: https://www.jainforgovernor.com
Email: VolunteerForJain@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JainForGov/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JainForGov
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jainforgov/
Why are you running for this office?
I’m running for governor to make politics more inclusive and accessible.
That’s why I’m fully accessible (100% of our events are free; I don’t take donations from developers, businesses, PACs or polluters; and I’m the only governor candidate to personally meet voters in a different county each day of the week); I’m fully accountable (we are the first statewide campaign in the U.S. to be 100% volunteer-run); and I’m fully transparent (we’ve shared the most detailed policy agenda since last January 2021).
And while I would be the nation’s youngest governor, I have the experience, perspective and detailed policy solutions needed to serve you well.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
We need a governor who will tackle issues in a comprehensive way, while including residents in the decision-making process.
That’s why each of the 150 policies detailed on my website (since last January 2021) are fully paid for and created by residents (not consultants) who will be impacted by those policies.
One of our signature programs is called the “Maryland Now Plan”, which will eliminate the state income tax for 95% of Maryland workers (anyone making less than $400,000); make public transit free; create the nation’s first guaranteed jobs program; legalize marijuana while expunging records; and get money out of politics.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
The issue of accessibility, accountability and transparency has not been prevalent in our politics. And when residents do not have a genuine seat at the table from day one, no policy will truly be equitable.
That’s why – since launching in January 2021 – I have not only committed to rejecting donations from all developers, businesses, PACs and polluters, but I am the only candidate who has also committed that every event I host is free and open to the public. And with my mobile offices, I’m personally meeting voters in a different county each and every day of the week.
Furthermore, with my anti-corruption measures proposed in the “Maryland Now Plan” – I will ban the governor, lieutenant governor and agency heads from personally owning a business or stocks (retirement savings are exempt) while in office; ban the governor, lieutenant governor and agency heads from serving on for-profit corporate boards; and impose a four-year lobbying ban for when we leave office.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
I am a 32-year-old cancer survivor, the son of immigrants and minority-owned small business owners, and a product of Maryland public schools. I have worked in the public, private, and non-profit sectors, and served the Obama White House and two federal agencies.
While I’d be the nation’s youngest governor, I have the experience and perspective needed.
I’ve helped manage the political appointee process in the Obama White House; worked to get more than 400,000 Marylanders access to healthcare at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; worked on affordable housing at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; and helped get the NIH and the FDA billions of dollars when I was then-Vice President Biden’s Director of Outreach for the Cancer Moonshot.
Equally important – I’m a product of Maryland public schools; son of immigrants and small business owners; and a cancer survivor who knows what it feels like to have others make decisions for me, instead of with me.
John King
Where you live: Silver Spring
Date of birth: Jan. 5, 1975
Current occupation and employer:
President and CEO of The Education Trust
Former secretary of education under President Obama
Political experience:
Former secretary of education for President Obama
Former commissioner of education for the state of New York
Website: https://johnkingforgovernor.com/
Email: info@johnkingforgovernor.com
Facebook: @Johnkingforgovernor
Twitter: @JohnBKing
Instagram: @Johnkingforgovernor
Why are you running for this office?
As an educator, I have always been very conscious of how all the systems operating in kids and families’ lives affect their outcomes from housing to healthcare, and from criminal justice to economic opportunity. The next governor of Maryland will be uniquely positioned to work across policy silos to make government a force for good in people’s lives in much the same way public schools were such a powerful force for good in my life after both of my parents passed away by the time I was 12.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
We must rebuild from the pandemic in an equitable way. That means ensuring economic dignity for every Marylander by treating housing as a human right, ensuring a livable wage, and universal affordable child care. It means we address racial inequity by creating a state bank that will give women and people of color equal access to capital to start a business and buy a home, building the Red Line and investing in public transportation so everyone can reliably get to where the jobs are, and treating health care as a human right. It means tackling the climate crisis, building a thriving green economy, and addressing the generations of environmental injustice that have harmed historically black and brown communities.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
To date, Maryland is not moving with the necessary urgency to address our climate emergency. While the recently passed Climate Solutions Act is a step forward, we need a much more ambitious approach to changing building standards, shifting transportation policy, and rapidly accelerating the growth of renewable energy (wind, solar, etc.) to achieve net zero greenhouse admissions by 2035. The state should lead by making all state office buildings, schools, and college campuses net zero by 2030, shifting the state fleet, public transit buses, and school buses to electric by 2030, and building 10,000 charging stations (to accelerate the shift to electric cars).
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
As U.S. secretary of education under President Obama, I managed a department with a budget over $15 billion, bigger than the state of Maryland’s, and I will bring that executive leadership to the governor’s office. After the Obama administration, I continued working for the public good as the president of the Education Trust, an education civil rights organization. In 2020, I founded Strong Future Maryland to advocate for progressive policies in Maryland in our recovery from the pandemic and fought to pass progressive legislation in Annapolis across a wide range of areas including education, housing, the environment, and economic dignity. As a lifelong educator (high school teacher, middle school principal, leader of a school network, chief state schools officer), I have continued as an educator teaching education policy at University of Maryland College Park.
Wes Moore
Where you live: Baltimore
Date of birth: Oct. 15, 1978
Current occupation and employer:
Former CEO, Robin Hood Foundation
Political experience: N/A
Website: www.WesMoore.com
Email: Wes@WesMoore.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/iamwesmoore
Twitter: https://twitter.com/iamwesmoore
Instagram: https://instagram.com/iamwesmoore
Why are you running for this office?
I’m running for governor to create work, wages, and wealth, with a focus on equity, for every family in Maryland. As governor, I’m going to build an economy where every family can thrive by accelerating the minimum wage increase to $15 by 2023, creating strong pathways to the workforce with job training and apprenticeships, and setting students up for success by fully funding and implementing the Blueprint.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
When I’m governor, our administration will create opportunities for people to step into better jobs, earn higher wages, and build wealth they can pass down to their children. I will invest in job training programs, strengthen affordable pathways to higher education and fix our broken child care system. I will help Marylanders secure better wages by raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2023 and addressing wage theft. And I will ensure every Marylander has opportunities to create wealth by making homeownership more accessible.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
While Maryland is asset rich, we’re strategy poor, and our unemployment rate—which is currently the 42nd worst in the country—is a clear example of this. We have more than two jobs available to each of our 148,000 unemployed Marylanders, showing we are failing to meet our workforce needs. I’m going to build an economy where everyone can thrive by leveraging the billions of federal infrastructure dollars coming to Maryland to build a transportation system that serves as an engine of economic opportunity, connecting Marylanders to great jobs, better wages and the ability to build generational wealth.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
I’ve led soldiers in combat as a captain in the 82nd Airborne, I’ve led students to success as the founder of a Baltimore small business helping students make it to and through college, and I’ve led one of the largest anti-poverty organizations in the country making me uniquely prepared to lead Maryland forward toward a better future. As CEO, we invested over $600 million and worked in the halls of government, tackling the issues holding our communities back head on. In the military, we learned a motto: “Leave nobody behind,” and that is exactly what I’ll do as governor.
Tom Perez
Where you live: Takoma Park
Date of birth: Oct. 7, 1961
Current occupation and employer:
Co-chair, American Bridge 21st Century
Political experience:
Montgomery County Council member, 2002-2006
Maryland secretary of labor, licensing, and regulation, 2007-2009
Assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights, 2009-2013
U.S. secretary of labor, 2013-2017
Chair of the Democratic National Committee, 2017-2021
Website: https://tomperez.com/
Email: hello@tomperez.com
Facebook: @TomPerez
Twitter: @TomPerez
Instagram: @TomPerez
Why are you running for this office?
I am running for governor to deliver jobs, justice, and opportunity for every Marylander. I’m a proud member of the “GSD” wing of the Democratic Party: I want to get stuff done. That’s exactly what I have done throughout my career in public service fighting for working families in Maryland and throughout our country. I will put my experience working at every level of government to work to meet the multifaceted challenges Maryland faces.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
We must provide expanded economic opportunities so every Marylander can provide for their families, start and grow businesses, and build generational wealth. As President Obama’s labor secretary, I was a key member of the administration’s economic team that created millions of middle-class jobs. We will do the same in Maryland and transform our state into a green energy economy epicenter. We will work with our educators, businesses, and others to address shortages by increasing the pipeline of professionals. And we will work directly with emerging businesses and minority-owned businesses to provide the capital, talent, and resources they need to thrive.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
A concerning and recurring theme of this administration has been the continued failure to sweat the details of governance. Look no further than the mismanagement of the Purple Line project – now billions over budget and years behind schedule. That project is symbolic of many other shortsighted efforts, including the hollowing-out of state agencies which has led to disastrous results like a broken unemployment system that forced people to wait months for benefits amid an economic crisis. As governor, I will put my experience managing complex organizations to work to provide a results-driven and outcome-focused government that will deliver for Marylanders.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
As The Washington Post acknowledged in their endorsement, my wide-ranging career makes me uniquely qualified to lead at this critical moment. I prosecuted police misconduct and hate crimes at the Justice Department. On the Montgomery County Council, I tackled education, housing, and health care challenges at the local level. As Maryland’s labor secretary, I implemented the country’s first statewide living wage law and helped combat housing insecurity. As head of President Obama’s Civil Rights Division, I led police reform and protected reproductive health clinics. As U.S. Labor Secretary, I helped rebuild our economy and settled major national labor disputes.
Jerome Segal
Where you live: Silver Spring
Date of birth: Nov. 25, 1943
Current occupation and employer:
Present: Director, International Peace Consultancy
Formerly: Senior research scholar, University of Maryland School of Public Policy (25 years)
Formerly: Senior adviser for agency planning, U.S. Agency for International Development
Political experience:
- Political activist since the first teach-in on the Vietnam War in 1965.
- Worked on Sen. Eugene McCarthy’s challenge to President Lyndon Johnson in 1968 presidential primary
- Worked on Sen. Robert F. Kennedy’s challenge to Johnson until RFK assassination, 1968
- Instructor, Philosophy Department, University of Pennsylvania, 1968-1972
- Assisted Clarence Mitchell at U.S. Mission to the United Nations (fall 1975)
- Aide to Congressman Donald M. Fraser, 1975-1977
- Administrator House Budget Committee Task Force on social justice, 1977-1979
- Coordinator for Near East, USAID, Carter and part-of Reagan admin, 1979-1983
- Senior Advisory for Agency Panning, USAID, 1984-1988
- Founding director, The Jewish Peace Lobby 1989-present
- Senior research scholar, University of Maryland School of Public Policy, 1975 -2014
- Founding director, International Peace Consultancy, 2015 – present
- Candidate for U.S. Senator, Maryland Democratic primary, 2018
- Candidate for president of the United States, Bread and Roses Party of Maryland, 2020
- Candidate for governor of Maryland, Democratic Party (present)
Website: www.SegalforGovernor.org
Email: Jsegal@breadandroses.us
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
It remains education. The so-called Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, which has become law, was a giant step forward in resolving the social justice aspects of the distribution of financial and human resources to schools, and closing multiple equity gaps. However, when it came to education itself, what should be taught in the classroom and what are the missions of the public schools, it turned out to be a terribly impoverished document, with a very limit vision of the mission of public schools, and even in the area of its focus: getting better jobs, it had a weak understanding of future labor markets, and failed to undertake the needed long-term thinking when educating today’s children, most of whom will be healthy and active into the twenty-second century.
In its pursuit of a “world class” school system, it committed Maryland a focus on the only way of comparing schools internationally: standardized testing.
As governor I would use my powers or new legislation to scrap the “educational” part of the Blueprint, and begin a genuine conversation across Maryland about how public schools can best contribute to our society and to rich and fulfilled lives for our children. I would clean house with respect to those responsible for the mindless endorsement of the Blueprint
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
The pandemic:
- We should have mobilized a Health National Guard to protect those in nursing homes, who died like sheep in the first six months.
- We should have used work sharing programs so that an employer who went from needing five workers at 40 hours (200 hours) to four workers at 40 (160 hours) instead went to five workers at 32 hours (also 160 hours). We could have avoided almost all the unemployment.
- A year of new education: We should have stopped teaching all the high stress, competitive courses in school. Instead we should have had a fun year, teaching through film, teaching the arts, had virtual debates, learned about the history of slavery, had performance competitions, read only the most enjoyable books, or better yet, heard them on audio books, written poetry, visited other countries (virtually). We should have aimed at having the most educational and joyful school year possible.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
From my childhood on, I was aware of how hard it is to juggle work, time, money and meaning into a healthy life for oneself and one’s family. My parents didn’t succeed in this. I came to see this not as a purely personal matter of individual choice but also of our social and economic policy environment. I pursued this issue in my studies, and in my political work, and ultimately I wrote a book called “Graceful Simplicity – the Philosophy and Politics of the American Dream” that lays out a new political program that today I call Bread and Roses Socialism.
I know government. I have a masters in public affairs, worked for the Congress and then for the Executive Branch and then 25 years at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy. I believe I can lead Maryland to become the most interesting and vital place to live in America.
Republican
Dan Cox (Information not submitted)
Robin Ficker (Information not submitted)
Kelly Schulz
Where you live: New Market
Date of birth: Jan. 2, 1969
Current occupation and employer:
Candidate for governor
Political experience:
State delegate representing Frederick, 2011 – 2015
Secretary, Maryland Department of Labor, 2015 – 2019
Secretary, Maryland Department of Commerce, 2019 – 2021
Website: https://www.KellySchulzforGovernor.com
Email: info@kellyschulzforgovernor.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KellyMSchulz
Twitter: @KellyMSchulz
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kellymschulz
Why are you running for this office?
As a state, we’ve come a long way and made incredible strides over the last seven and a half years. Our campaign is focused on building upon this progress and making sure that all Marylanders, regardless of their zip code, have the opportunities to pursue their own dreams. This will only happen if we continue to move our state in the right direction – I’m the only candidate who will be able to do that.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
Affordability/opportunity. With inflation at a 40-year high and costs skyrocketing, it’s more important than ever to have a governor who understands these burdens. I know what it’s like to struggle and live paycheck to paycheck. I waited lots of tables and tended bar to provide for my family. I want to make sure that you can achieve your own dreams here. We must continue to make Maryland more affordable – fighting for tax relief so that you have more money in your pockets and continuing to improve our business climate so we can retain, grow, and attract new businesses.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
Our state is much better off now than it was eight years ago. I am proud to have worked with Gov. Hogan to pass the RELIEF Act, one of the largest tax cuts in state history, eliminate / streamline hundreds of regulations, and make Maryland the most improved state for business. I will fight to lower taxes, tackle violent crime, bring record funding and accountability to our public schools, and expand opportunity for every Marylander. I will build upon the success our state has made over these last eight years. We’ve come a long way, and we can’t go back.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
This is the state where I raised my two boys, graduated college, started a small business, became a member of the House of Delegates, and became the first woman in state history to ever serve as the cabinet secretary for both the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce.
I believe that my life experiences, challenges and career accomplishments make me uniquely qualified to serve this state as your next governor.
Unlike any other candidate in this race, I have a track record of success both in the legislative branch and as a member of a governor’s cabinet.
Joe Werner (Information not submitted)
Libertarian
David Lashar
Where you live: Annapolis
Date of birth: July 16, 1963
Current occupation and employer:
- Current (since 2019): IT Executive, running a 50-person globally distributed consultancy with my business partner. We specialize in software and services for improving the ability of public agencies and commercial businesses to improve their ability to serve their citizens and customers.
2. Maryland Department of Health (2016 – 2018): Chief information officer (CIO), chief operating officer (COO), and chief of staff, running technology and operations for this $14 billion agency. Also served on Budget Reform Commission and the Maryland Transportation Commission.
3. Remedi SeniorCare (2014): Chief information officer (CIO) for one of the nation’s leading innovators for pharmacy services to long-term care facilities.
Political experience:
- Libertarian candidate for Congress (2018): Stood as a third-party alternative in the grossly gerrymandered 3rd Congressional District.
2. U.S. House of Representatives (1988 – 1992): Served as a policy analyst with specialty in infrastructure, trade, and budgets for an idea-oriented GOP caucus, The House Wednesday Group.
3. Dole for President campaign (1988): Served as a research analyst.
Website: https://davidlashar.com/
Email: info@davidlashar.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lashar2022
Twitter: https://twitter.com/davidlashar
Instagram: https://instagram.com/lashar2022
Why are you running for this office?
I believe that our slow-but-steady progress in liberty, justice, and prosperity for all is in dire jeopardy. And the reason is not what the two big parties are telling us. The reason is the two big parties themselves. I am standing as a principled, accomplished, and civil alternative to their us-against-them politics.
What is the most important issue in this race and what specific plans do you have to address it?
The pressing issue for Maryland is the practice by Democrats and Republicans alike of politics that divide us … the imposition by Democrats and Republicans alike of policies that intrude into our personal decisions and our community preferences.
As Maryland governor, I will be different.
I will be genuinely inclusive in my politics because I respect and embrace all persons of goodwill regardless of their race, gender, sexuality, religion, politics, or wealth. I will be restrained in my policies, because I carry faith in the ability of individuals to make decisions for themselves and their loved ones.
I will strive to restore trust where it is broken … to revive hope where it has lapsed … especially in our historically disadvantaged communities.
What is one major issue that has been handled poorly and what would you have done differently?
The pandemic was grossly mishandled by our politicians and elites, who politicized the civic debate, ignored the clinical data, and presumed to omniscience.
To be clear, I believe that the policies in the initial months of the pandemic were acceptable. But by fall of 2020, the young and the healthy should have been returning to school and work.
By early 2021 when the vaccines became available, the return should have been accelerated, for example by removing incentives to stay at home… but not by government vaccine mandates (which violate the fundamental principle that we own our own bodies).
As governor I would have devoted myself to educating and persuading instead of demonizing and coercing. I would have sought shared the data to inform civic debate. I would have fought policies and groups interfering with a return to normalcy.
And if elected, I will move from first day in office to restrain executive powers over our lives in any future health emergency.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
I am a family man and an IT executive who has served with distinction in both the legislative and executive branches of government at both the federal and state levels.
I possess a long record of success at bringing together people of diverse backgrounds and interests in order to agree and embark upon new directions forward for themselves and those whom they serve. I know not only how policy gets made… but also how policy gets turned into programs and services successfully.
In short, I know how to work with people and get things done. I am ready to be productive from day one in office. And I will always be principled and civil.
Thus, for those in Maryland who want change from our recent politics and current direction, I encourage you to follow my campaign… and on November 8, vote for a third party for perhaps the first time in your life.
