Educator-Recommended Candidates Win Primary Races
And other legislative updates in this month’s Up the Street
THIS MONTH IN ANNAPOLIS
As Votes Continue to Be Counted, Educator-Recommended Candidates Emerge Victorious
While final results in many races may not be known for days, initial results from the June 23 primary demonstrate the political power in pro-public education positions, with educator-recommended candidates winning in an overwhelming majority of their races. Educator-recommended candidates in General Assembly primaries, and particularly important, in board of education races, had strong showings. At this point in the ballot-counting, in 93% of competitive board of education races, educator-backed candidates won and advanced to the November general election.
At the county level, educator-supported candidates dominated contests in Howard County and are positioned well in highly competitive fields in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. In Howard, county executive candidate Vanessa Atterbeary swept to victory with Howard County Education Association (HCEA) backing and 57% of the vote in a four-way primary. Additionally, all five HCEA-recommended county council candidates and all 11 recommended General Assembly candidates advanced, including MSEA members and teachers Amy Brooks (House of Delegates, District 13) and Jessica Nichols (County Council, District 2).
In Montgomery, while mail in ballots are still being counted, Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA)-backed Will Jawando is in the lead for county executive and of the 10 county council races, educator-recommended candidates won or are leading in seven with two more too close to call. For the two competitive board of education primaries, MCEA’s recommended candidates appear to be the top vote getter in each race.
In Prince George’s County, Aisha Braveboy was endorsed by the Prince George’s County Educators’ Association (PGCEA) and swept to victory with 70% of the vote, and educator-recommended candidates appear likely to win eight out of nine seats as well as state’s attorney and the competitive board of education primary. And in Frederick County, four educator-recommended candidates for Board of Education—including two MSEA members, Casey Day and Chad King Wilson, Sr.—advanced to the general from a crowded field where they will face a slate of four far-right candidates. Numerous other MSEA members also advanced to the general election, including in Allegany County (Chelea Boor, County Commissioner race), Baltimore County (Justin Holliday, State Senate District 6 race), Carroll County (Gary Foote, State Senate District 5 race and Sharon Wilhide, Board of Education race), and Washington (Linda Murray and Robin Merchant-Spickler, Board of Education race).
Finally, the endorsement and organizing skills of educators helped in the crucial open 5th congressional district, from which U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D) is retiring after 45 years. In a primary contest with 23 others, Del. Adrian Boafo (D-Prince George’s) won with endorsements from MSEA and the National Education Association. MSEA Vice President Nikki Woodward was a featured speaker at Boafo’s election night victory party.
MSEA members knocked on doors, handed out Apple Ballot voting guides, and engaged with their communities to promote candidates who support K-12 public education. MSEA’s endorsement proved significant up and down the ballot. Educators will remain highly engaged in this critical mid-term and gubernatorial election. The general election will be on November 3. Additional endorsements will be announced in the coming months in advance of the general.
AIB Undertakes Annual Blueprint Update; Two Members to Be Appointed
The Accountability and Implementation Board’s (AIB) annual process to update the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future is under way, and public comment on proposed changes will be accepted through July 19 using this survey. Proposed technical and legislative changes to the 10-year education plan include changes to qualifications and deadlines for early childhood providers, analysis of educators’ exit surveys, pathways to the profession, and more.
July 1 is the start of new six-year terms for two seats on the AIB. Terms for AIB Chair Isiah “Ike” Leggett and member Robin Werner expire June 30, though they were eligible to apply for reappointment. They and all applicants had until June 5 to apply. The AIB Nominating Committee will make recommendations to Gov. Wes Moore, and only the names of the final nominees forwarded to the governor are made public.
Leggett, the former county executive in Montgomery County, has served and chaired the board since it first met in November 2021. Werner is director of teaching and learning for public schools in Talbot County. She was appointed in August to replace Mara Doss, an original member of the board.
Attorney General Brown Wins Fight for Federal Pandemic Relief Funding
Despite the U.S Department of Education’s intention to deny Maryland $87 million of pandemic relief funds, Maryland has received all of the funding it expected. Success followed a multistate lawsuit that included Attorney General Anthony Brown on Maryland’s behalf. “Maryland’s schools have now recovered every dollar of COVID relief funding that the Trump Administration tried to withhold,” Brown said in a statement on social media. “The pandemic may be over, but its impacts are still being felt in classrooms across our state.” Ultimately, Maryland received a total of $188 million in federal relief funds. “These resources are critical to helping our students recover from the disruptions caused by COVID-19…Our office will always defend Maryland’s children and the resources they need for the future they deserve.”
NEWS AND NOTES
Rep. Elfreth Gathers Educators for Roundtable Discussion at MSEA HQ
At MSEA headquarters on June 17, U.S. Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-3rd) conducted a roundtable to share information about her work on education issues and to hear from educators. “From expanding mental health support for our students to addressing the impact of technology in our classrooms, I’m committed to working together to ensure our school communities have the resources, support, and accountability that they deserve,” Elfreth said. “We’re always willing to work with Congresswoman Elfreth, and are incredibly appreciative of the opportunities she provides for listen and learn sessions about the issues happening in her district,” said Ben Schmitt, Howard County Education Association president. Elfreth, who co-sponsored the Keep Public Schools Public Funds in Public Schools Act and the Department of Education Protection Act of 2025, updated the group about her work on education access and support for military families.
MSEA Pushes for Arts, Humanities, and Math; Universal Restorative Practices
Social studies, fine arts, and negotiated contracts are at risk to accommodate a revised K-12 math program, MSEA President Paul Lemle and public speakers told the State Board of Education (SBOE) on Tuesday. Lemle lauded the collaboration that has so far occurred with Schools Superintendent Carey Wright and her staff on policy development and implored further work on the new policy. It was originally intended to be implemented in the 2027-2028 school year and calls for an hour of math instruction every day. That time commitment raises concerns about time for social studies, the arts, and humanities. Given the complexity of implementing the new program, MSDE is recommending pushing back the deadline to the 2028-2029 school year for local school districts to implement the program. Lemle reiterated the need to provide training in new policies before requiring their implementation.
MSEA Treasurer Colleen Morris informed the State Board that the requirement to apply restorative practices universally in schools has fallen short and that the SBOE needs to hold schools accountable. “We hope this board will honor the full intent of restorative practices in our schools and work to build in real accountability so that the standards for a restorative school are genuinely upheld,” she said. The work of restorative practices is not simply an alternative approach to student discipline. “It is built around the concept that restorative justice, the underpinning philosophy of restorative practices, is a way of re-thinking how we build community, how we relate to each other, how power is distributed, how we hold each other accountable, how we repair harm, and how we transform systems that create harm,” she said.
CAMPAIGN 2026
Redistricting Has Chance to Be on the November Ballot
The U.S. Supreme Court decision against minority congressional districts has changed the landscape for redistricting in Maryland. The Maryland General Assembly may reconvene in a special session next month to reconsider getting a referendum about redistricting on the November ballot. For more than a year at President Trump’s urging, Republican states have initiated irregular mid-decade redistricting, ahead of the scheduled 2030 census redistricting, to potentially increase Republican representation in Congress. In response to the breach of tradition, the Maryland House of Delegates last session passed a new congressional district map that might counteract national Republicans’ maneuver, but the Senate did not take up the legislation. Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) originally withheld support based on constitutional questions, but his position has evolved after the Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana v. Callais that congressional districts drawn to consider race of the voters were unconstitutional gerrymandering. “The rules have changed,” Ferguson said, and Maryland “must respond as the ground shifts.”
Maryland Voters’ Personal Data Safe for Now; Voting Rights at Stake
President Trump’s attempt to restrict voting rights continues, but his quest for voters’ personal information and the establishment of a national voter database has been disallowed a ninth time. A federal district court ruled against the Department of Justice, which demanded Maryland turn over voters’ personal data so Trump could create a national voter database. U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher, like eight federal judges before her, concluded that a statewide voter registration list “is not a record or paper that a state must produce to the United States.” Maryland State Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis has protected voters’ data from federal overreach. “This fishing expedition by the DOJ, courts saw through it and they [DOJ] were not forthright as to what their reasons behind asking for over 4.3 million records on voters that include sensitive information. I feel vindicated in my decisions.”