Senator King, Delegate Barkley Propose Changing MCDCC Membership

Senator Nancy King and Delegate Charles Barkley, both of District 39, are proposing legislation that would change the membership composition of the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee (MCDCC).

Currently, MCDCC has 23 members: two elected from each of the county's eight legislative districts and seven elected at-large. Senator King and Delegate Barkley's bill, MC-802-08, would expand the committee's membership to 27, with three elected from each legislative district and three elected at-large. Senator King told the Gazette, "It’s a fairness thing more than anything. It’s to even out the playing field... With the upcounty growing like it is we need three members to help build the upcounty part of the membership."

MCDCC spokesman Milton Minneman (who has spoken on reform issues before) had this reaction:

Although the Central Committee has taken no official position on the bill, they believe the discussion would be better if tabled and taken up during a summer county legislative session, committee spokesman Milton Minneman said.

"We don’t think there is any reason to make the change. We know this is all a kickback because various people are concerned with the filling of the delegate and senate seats," Minneman said. "The system we’ve been under has worked for years and only in the last year or so has the issue popped up."

Hmmm, Mr. Minneman. Now who would those "various people" be? You surely are not referring to any blog authors in this county, are you?

Of MCDCC's current at-large membership, five members are from down-county legislative districts (one from 16, one from 18, one from 19 and two from 20) and two are from up-county districts (one each from 14 and 15). Districts 17 and 39, the latter represented by King and Barkley, have no at-large members. This is the likely prompt for King and Barkley's bill.

There is another side to this issue. It is not the easiest thing in the world to find active, dedicated Democrats willing to volunteer for MCDCC. The position has no pay. Its occupants achieve little fame and fortune. The committee is constantly dogged by fanatical bloggers. And remember House Majority Leader Kumar Barve's famous joke that if committee members could not appoint themselves to be delegates, they would have to be paid to serve? Perhaps Mr. Barve was not kidding. While I understand Senator King and Delegate Barkley's position, it's important to have a way to attract the most talented, well intentioned Democrats to serve on MCDCC regardless of where they live.

But the issue addressed by this bill is a small matter relative to MCDCC's other issues. Far more important is that MCDCC members can and do appoint themselves to state office, do not adhere to formal standards in deciding vacancy selections (with Alan Banov being a prominent exception) and are not required to consider any measure of actual voter sentiment within the district in which a vacancy occurs. These are the matters that should be addressed by MCDCC itself, or failing that, state legislation.