Highlights from Frederick County, Maryland Primary Election

Jan Gardner

George Wenschhof

The Republican primary to determine the candidate to face incumbent Democratic Frederick county executive Jan Gardner was one race watched closely. Gardner ran unopposed while three candidates battled for the Republican nomination.
  
Maryland state delegate Kathy Afzali would prevail over Frederick council member Kirby Delauter and former county budget officer Regina Williams.  Afzali aided by the split vote among three candidates and the largest war chest, won with 42% of the vote.

The November 6 General Election will have three candidates running for Frederick county executive.  In addition to Gardner (D) and Afzali (R), Earl Robbins, a well known Frederick businessman is running as an unaffiliated candidate.

Former NAACP president Ben Jealous would emerge the winner in a crowded field of candidates vying for the Democratic Party nomination for Governor.  He and Prince George's county executive Rushern Baker had been running neck and neck in polls that showed as many as 40% of Democratic voters remained undecided.  Jealous would receive 40% of the vote and Baker 29%.

Jealous and his Lt. Governor running mate Susan Turnbull, a former chair of the Maryland Democratic Party, will face Republican Governor Larry Hogan and Lt. Governor Boyd Rutherford.

Incumbent U.S. senator Ben Cardin (D) cruised to victory in the primary and will face Republican Tony Campbell.  Popular state comptroller Peter Franchot (D) ran unopposed and will face Republican Anjali Reed Phukan who also ran unopposed.  Respected state attorney general Brian Frosh (D) will face Craig Wolf (R) - both ran unopposed.

The announcement by congressman John Delaney (D-6th district) that he would not be running for reelection and would instead pursue a run for the White House, attracted eight Democratic candidates.  David Trone, owner of Total Wine & More, would beat Maryland state delegate Aruna Miller 40%-30%.  Trone ran for congress in the 8th district two years ago and lost to Jamie Raskin in the Democratic primary after spending millions of his own funds.  He would again spend millions self-funding his campaign in this race.

Trone will face Republican Amy Hoeber who won the Republican primary against three opponents with 68% of the vote.

Incumbent representative Jamie Raskin (D-8th district) coasted to victory receiving 90% of the vote against two other candidates.  He will face Republican John Walsh who received 45% of the vote among 3 candidates.

The district 3 state senate race attracted candidates and much speculation after incumbent Ron Young(D) barely won reelection four years ago.  Eight years ago, the four term former mayor of The City of Frederick defeated Republican Alex Mooney.  Young faced two opponents in this election, one of them Jennifer Dougherty who is another former mayor of Frederick and Jennifer Brannan.  Ron would win with 43% and Dougherty would receive 33%.

Young will face Republican Craig Giangrande who crushed Frederick council member Billy Shreve, receiving 77% of the vote.  Giangrande is the Frederick County Burger King franchise owner.

In the district 4 state senate race, Republican Michael Hough ran unopposed and will face Democrat Jessica Douglass who won a close contest with Sabrina Massett.

The district 3-a state delegate race where voters elect two, Democratic incumbents Karen Lewis Young and Carol Krimm survived a bit of a challenge from Ryan Trout and will face Republicans Mike Bowersox and James Dvorak who ran unopposed.

Democratic candidate Ken Kerr and Republican incumbent William "Bill" Folden both ran unopposed for state delegate in district 3-b and will face each other in the General Election.

Voters will pick 3 candidates in the district 4 state delegate race. Republicans Barrie Ciliberti, Dan Cox and Jesse Pippy ran unopposed and will face Democratic candidates Yselo Bravo, Lois Jarman and Darrin Ryan Smith, who also ran unopposed, in the General Election.

Republican incumbent sheriff Chuck Jenkins and Democrat Karl Bickel both ran unopposed and will face each other in the General Election.

The two Frederick County council members elected at-large (countywide) also attracted a lot of attention.  Democrats Kai Hagen, a former county commissioner and Susan Reeder Jessee would win a closely fought race among five candidates including former county commissioner and state delegate Galen Clagett.  Clagett would come in last and Kavonte Duckett, in his first try for office and bidding to be the first African American elected countywide in Frederick County, would come in a strong third.

Susan Reeder Jessee and Kai Hagen will face Republicans Phillip Dacey and Danny Farrar who won against two other candidates in a very close contest.  Also running for one of the two at-large council seats is Frederick County council president Bud Otis who is running as an unaffiliated candidate.  Mr. Otis was elected as a Republican but changed to unaffiliated after his support of Democratic county executive Jan Gardner upset his Republican colleagues on the council.

In the Frederick county council district 1 race, Democrat incumbent Jerry Donald ran unopposed and will face Republican Kevin Grubb who beat Dylan Diggs in their primary.

In a bit of an upset, Tony Chmelik, a Frederick County council member representing district 2, was beat by Steven McKay 54-46%.  McKay is well known locally from his work with (RALE) Residents Against Landsdale Expansion and much of the candidate differences in the campaign were centered on growth issues.

McKay will face Democrat Lisa Jarosinski in the General Election.

In the nonpartison race for board of education, the top eight from 13 candidates advanced to the General Election where voters will elect four.  Incumbent Brad Young led all candidates by a large margin.  Also moving on in order of votes received were Karen Yoho, Jay Mason, Liz Barrett, April Miller, Cindy Rose and Camden Raynor. 

Two candidates were locked in a tight race for the eighth and last position.  They were Kim Williams (4,932) and Marie Fisher-Wyrick (4892).  With only a 40 vote difference, this is a one race that will be decided by counting provisional/absentee ballots.

The Maryland Primary Election also received some intrigue when The Baltimore Sun reported days before the election, the state motor vehicle administration had failed, due to a computer glitch, to notify the board of elections of address changes and/or change of party affiliation done online for as many as 80,000 voters across the state.  These voters were notified they could vote using a provisional ballot.

Provisional and absentee ballots will be counted and the election certified on July 6.  Frederick County board of elections supervisor Stuart Harvey told me 700 absentee ballots had been received.

The primary results were also delayed for one hour when the hours of several voting polls in Baltimore were extended due to some problems opening these polls.

Out of the total votes cast in Frederick County, Democratic voters equaled 49.5% and Republicans voters 44.6%. 

--

Support www.FrederickPolitics.com by clicking on the donate button located in the right hand margin of the web page.  Thank You!

Bickel Wants to Restore Dignity to Sheriff’s Office

George Wenschhof

Karl Bickel

During an interview Thursday afternoon, Democrat Karl Bickel repeatedly complained of the lack of leadership in the Frederick County, Maryland Sheriff office.  He told me incumbent Republican sheriff Chuck Jenkins, manages through fear and intimidation resulting in scared employees and low morale.

He said there were good people in the Frederick County Sheriff department and he was running because he wants the opportunity to build leaders in all levels of the organization.

Bickel added he wanted to “restore dignity from top to bottom and that the leadership style needs to change”.

He sent me an email early Friday evening following the interview informing me it was now official and that he had filed to run for Sheriff.  His Treasurer is local attorney and Republican Jason Shoemaker who will also help in managing the campaign.  So far, two Republicans; incumbent Chuck Jenkins and Kevin Grubb have announced they are running for Frederick County Sheriff.

The deadline for candidates to file in the 2014 election is February 25.  The primary election is June 24 and the general election is November 4.

Bickel, who has lived the last 35 years in Monrovia, Maryland recently retired from the U.S. Department of Justice and has a 40 year career in law enforcement.  He previously was the Chief of Law Enforcement Operations with the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office when Carl Harbaugh was sheriff and worked with the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.

Karl also told me he had served on the Frederick County Ethics and Human Relations Commissions.

His education includes a Master of Science Degree in Management; Police Executive Leadership Program from John Hopkins University and a Master of Science Degree; Justice from American University.

He also has taught criminal justice at Allegheny College, Montgomery College and American University. 

Due to Hatch Act restrictions, he explored running as an “Unaffiliated” candidate four years ago, falling short of the required signatures needed to appear on the ballot.

In a wide ranging interview, Bickel told me “there were so many problems across the board.., and that the Sheriff department had a bad reputation outside of Frederick County”.

One area Bickel wants to work on is consolidation of services with The City of Frederick and state police.  He believes there is a strong possibility for combining training with the city.

He also wants to see the Sheriff’s office receive more federal funds, something Bickel says Sheriff Jenkins has failed to do, pointing to a $500,000 federal grant Jenkins turned down when it was brought to his attention from former Maryland sixth district Representative Roscoe Bartlett’s office.

When it comes to high profile cases such as the tragic death of Ethan Saylor, who suffered with Down syndrome, that resulted from actions taken from off duty sheriff deputies working as security guards, Bickel believes an outside agency should do the investigation.  When the investigation is complete, Bickel says it is important to immediately share it with the public.

He believes this type of action could well have prevented a civil rights investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Bickel also shared with me an article he had written for a local newspaper where he was critical of the management of the Frederick County jail, where numerous suicides have occurred under the watch of Sheriff Jenkins.

As sheriff, he plans to take a look at current administrative costs and wants to put more deputies on the road. Bickel said he would like to require ranking officers to spend 10% of their time in the field.

Overall, Karl Bickel wants to provide a change in leadership and move the Frederick County Sheriff’s office forward.

Stay tuned.

Grubb Explores Run for Frederick County Sheriff

George Wenschhof

Kevin Grubb

Former City of Frederick police captain and deputy chief Kevin Grubb, who is currently a Republican, tells me he is seriously considering running for Frederick County Sheriff as an unaffiliated candidate in next year's election.  He plans to meet with election director Stuart Harvey of the Frederick County Board of Elections next week to go over the guidelines for a run for office.

A twenty-four year veteran of the city police force, Kevin will need to obtain the required number of verified signatures from registered voters in the county in order to appear on the ballot. 

 

Elections Director Stuart Harvey informed me a candidate must file a Declaration of Intent to be nominated by petition by 9 PM Tuesday, February 25, 2014.  Harvey said the date that will determine the exact number of signatures needed will be voter registration as of January 1, 2014. 

 

Signatures from one per cent of the countywide registered voters would be needed by unaffiliated candidates or those affiliated with a non-recognized political party in Maryland.

 

All signatures and the Certificate of candidacy are due no later than Monday, Aug 4 by 5 PM. 

This is similar to the process former mayor Jennifer Dougherty followed to appear on The City of Frederick ballot, making it a three way race for mayor in the city election this year.

In 2010, Karl Bickel ended his attempt to run for sheriff as an unaffiliated candidate after he failed to receive the required number of signatures.  Republican Chuck Jenkins ran unopposed in the 2010 election, when the Democrats were unable to field a candidate.  

Grubb’s entry and the resulting three-way contest, if a Democratic candidate(s) files would make the sheriff race fun to follow in 2014.   Jenkins, who won easily in 2006 and 2010, will have served two terms and is expected to seek a third term.

When I asked Grubb why he didn’t just change his party affiliation to Democrat and avoid the arduous process of obtaining signatures, he said that action would not fit into why he is running.

Grubb went on to say the highest law enforcement officer in Frederick County should not be politicized and said, like the Board of Education, the sheriff should be a nonpartisan election.

I informed him of an article I wrote that was published in TheTentacle.com on October 30, 2006, where I called for a number of the county elected positions to be changed to merit based hires.  Presently, to appear on the ballot, candidates for sheriff, register of wills, clerk of the court and the three orphan court judges need only be a Frederick County resident.

Kevin agreed there should be more requirements than residency for sheriff and stated he was disappointed the charter writing board did not consider and include a county police force in the recently passed Frederick County Charter, that will be implemented in the 2014 election.  Grubb added he had been a long term supporter of a change to charter government and was glad it passed.

Grubb told me he would also like to see a study done on the viability of a joint City of Frederick and Frederick County law enforcement agency.  He would like to see if a combined police force would cost taxpayers less money while providing even more effective services. 

Grubb said in an email to me "the office of the sheriff is about the people of Frederick County not individuals or groups."  He concluded by saying "the sheriff shouldn't be afraid to provide the citizens with information and let them help in deciding what services they are paying for." 

In addition, Grubb said he wanted to look into the cost of operating the jail (a major cost in the sheriff department budget) to see if there are practices being used in other jurisdictions that are cost effective to implement in Frederick County.

His entry into the race should prove to be interesting.  There is no news from the Democrats at this point as to who may challenge Sheriff Jenkins.

Stay Tuned….

 

---

 

Donations to Frederick Politics are Appreciated - Click on Donation Button in right hand margin of page - Thank You!

Frederick County MD Sheriff to Run Unopposed

George Wenschhof

Incumbent Republican Sheriff Chuck Jenkins will now be the only candidate for Sheriff to appear on the ballot this fall.

Karl Bickel had announced back in April his intent to run as an "Unaffiliated" candidate for Sheriff. Bickel then followed up his announcement by filing a Declaration of Intent to seek nomination by petition.

As I reported back then, in order to appear on the ballot, he needed to obtain signatures from at least one per cent of the registered voters in Frederick County. The signatures would then need to be verified by the Frederick County Board of Elections.

Today, at 5:00 PM ET, the deadline to submit the signatures came and went without Mr. Bickel submitting any signatures to the Board of Elections.

The Elections Director informed me he received a phone message from Mr. Bickel a little after 2:00 PM that he had fallen short and would not be coming to submit signatures for verification today. As of 5:00, the Elections Director was deleting Mr. Bickel from the data base as a potential candidate for Sheriff.

The number of verified signatures needed for Mr. Bickel to have appeared on the ballot was 1,449. Interestingly, I received news from various sources who work in downtown Frederick, that they were approached for signatures for Mr. Bickel today.

The Frederick County Democratic Party did not field a candidate for this position, the Register of Wills position, or the State's Attorney position.

Voters still have the option to "write-in" a candidate in the election. However, no one can remember anyone being elected for a county wide position as a "write-in" candidate.

---

To receive "Daily Email updates", click on "Subscribe to this feed" below or use the sign up box located in the upper right hand margin.

Frederick County, MD Sheriff Chuck Jenkins on "All Things Political with George Wenschhof"

George Wenschhof

Originally Published on 6-29-2010

My interview with Sheriff Jenkins (R) flew by and before we knew it, time was up. We talked a little about his background and how he came to get involved in law enforcement. He spoke of some of his accomplishments in office and I brought up some of the more controversial issues that took place in his first term in office.

You could see his passion in enforcing the law and particularly in regard to illegal immigration.

He currently is not facing any primary challenge within the Republican Party and only one other candidate to date has indicated his intent to file. That is Karl Bickel who must receive approximately 1343 signatures by August 2 to appear on the November 2 General Election ballot as a "Unaffiliated" candidate.

Candidates have until July 6 to file for office.

I welcome your comments. You can enter them by clicking on "Comment" below or by emailing me at georgewenschhof@gmail.com

Also, email me if you would like to schedule an appearance on the show, place an advertisement, or send a donation.



---

To receive "Daily Email Updates", click on "Subscribe to this feed" below or use the sign up box located in the upper right hand margin.

Petition Drive Starts For Hopeful Frederick County Sheriff Candidate

George Wenschhof

Karl Bickel recently announced he was running as an unaffiliated candidate for Frederick County Sheriff. One of his reported reasons for filing as an unaffiliated candidate is he feels the Sheriff should be nonpartisan. The Frederick News Post has more here.

What is interesting is he will possibly be the first candidate for Sheriff to file a Declaration of Intent to seek Nomination by Petition in Frederick County, Maryland. In talking with Frederick County Board of Elections Director Stuart Harvey, he indicated that in talking with his staff no one could remember a petition candidate over the last twenty one years.

After filing the intent, an Unaffiliated candidate must receive signatures from 1% of the registered voters as of June 21, 2010 in Frederick County. This requirement was reduced recently by the state legislature from a previous requirement of 3%.

These signatures would then need to be submitted to the Frederick County Board of Elections by August 2, 2010. Verification of the signatures would then take place. Today, there are 134,277 registered voters in Frederick County and the needed number of signatures would be 1,343.

The current voter registration in Frederick County consists of 56,736 Republicans, 51,390 Democrats, 24,432 Unaffiliated and the remaining several thousand are various "Others".

If successful in the petition drive, Mr. Bickel would appear on the November 2 General Election ballot.

Incumbent and popular Frederick County Sheriff; Republican "Chuck" Jenkins has indicated he will be filing for reelection.

---

To receive "Daily Email Updates" from Air-it-Out with George Wenschhof, click on "Subscribe to this feed" below or use the sign up box located in the upper right hand margin.