Crowded Contests in Districts 18 and 19

This is the second in a series of posts profiling state legislative Democratic primaries in Montgomery County. Except for the state senate race in District 18, Democrats will have plenty of choices in both Districts 18 and 19. However, the fights are fiercer in District 19 with two delegates fighting for the senatorial nomination and two open delegate seats as compared to only one in District 18.

District 18 (Chevy Chase, Kensington, parts of Silver Spring and Wheaton). This is my district. Del. Richard Madaleno has the excellent fortune to find himself unopposed in the Democratic senatorial primary for an open seat. He is running on a slate with incumbent Del. Ana Sol Gutiérrez and Del. Jane Lawton. A past mayor of the Town of Chevy Chase, Lawton was appointed to the House of Delegates after Del. John Hurson stepped down in 2005. She had run a competitive but losing race for the House in 2002.

While Madaleno has an easy path to the Senate, the two incumbent delegates are joined on the campaign trail by six other candidates: Dana Beyer, James Browning, Al Carr, Dan Farrington, Noah Grosfeld-Katz, and Jeff Waldstreicher. All of the newcomers appear to be running hard and are not to be taken lightly; so far Dana Beyer and James Browning have knocked on my door in addition to the incumbents. Al Carr is the longest-serving member of the Kensington Town Council.

Noah Grosfeld-Katz is the son of retiring Sen. Sharon Grosfeld; he is young at 21 but working the district hard. Along with the incumbents, Attorney Jeff Waldstreicher received the valuable endorsement of the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA); Waldstreicher can also claim support from NARAL and the Sierra Club. I have seen a surprising number of lawn signs for Farrington which is always a boost for new candidates.

The incumbents cannot take this district for granted even if they have an edge in name recognition and of a coordinated slate. All of the challengers except Dr. Dana Beyer, one of the first transexuals to seek public office, are men which may aid the effort of both incumbent delegates to win renomination. However, the incumbents undoubtedly remember that this district dumped incumbent Del. Leon Billings who didn't campaign hard in 2002.

Like Montgomery itself, this district is diverse in terms of both ethnicity and income. It contains significant Latino (18 percent), Black (13 percent), Asian (9 percent) and Jewish populations. Housing ranges from among the toniest in Montgomery to much less affluent neighborhoods. McMansion construction is definitely an issue. However, income doesn't divide District 18 much by party as virtually all of the district's precincts vote strongly Democratic.

District 19 (Aspen Hill, Glenmont, part of Wheaton) is the scene of some of the hottest state legislative races in Montgomery. Maryland's multimember districts often set up interesting Senate primaries between experienced candidates. In District 19, Del. Adrienne Mandel and Del. Carol Petzold are battling it out for the nomination along with Mike Lenett. Petzold has served five terms in the House compared to three for Mandel but Mandel would seemingly have the edge in this race. Retiring Sen. Leonard Teitelbaum has endorsed her. In the 2002 delegate primary, Mandel finished in first place and received 1173 more votes than Petzold who came in third. However, Lenett seems to be scarfing up the endorsements and in a competitive three-way race who knows what will happen.

Eight candidates, including incumbent Henry "Hank" Heller, are seeking the Democratic nomination in this safely Democratic district. Roger Manno has seemingly been endorsed by everyone from MCEA to Progressive Maryland to the Firefighters Union. His experience working with both B'nai B'rith and the Congressional Black Caucus ought to help him gather votes in this diverse district. Melodye Berry has been endorsed by the MCEA; she is one of two African-American candidates in this 17 percent black district.

Attorney Tom DeGonia is supported by Progressive Maryland. Paul Griffin is a veteran. Somali-American Guled Kassim has served in the Marines; the Gazette wonders if this Muslim candidate will have trouble attracting Jewish support despite his all-American immigration story. Alec Stone has been active in a variety of Jewish organizations. Benjamin Kramer is the final candidate for the House. His father held this seat for two terms before becoming a one-term County Executive but that was back in the 1980s. His sister is currently the senator for neighboring District 14.