Baltimore County to release names of county executive candidates
Rona Kobell
The Baltimore Banner
November 21, 2024
Public has an opportunity to weigh in on process on Dec. 10
Baltimore County will release the names of those applying to become county executive on Dec. 2.
The application period for the the two-year position will close Nov. 29. The position is becoming open because Johnny Olszewski Jr., who has been county executive since 2018, is leaving Jan. 3 to become a congressman for the 2nd District. The executive will serve until Dec. 6, 2026, and oversee a county budget of $5 billion. The salary for the position is $192,000 annually.
The names of eight candidates who expressed interest before the portal opened have been made public, and the councilmen have held meetings with many of them already. Council Chairman Izzy Patoka said only one applicant in the portal the council created on Nov. 5 was not already known publicly. But he expected more would apply before the deadline.
“People are trying to put their best application forward,” he said. “Many have never applied for a position like this so they are modifying their CV.”
The County Council is holding a public hearing on the opening at 6 p.m. on Dec. 10.
Councilman Julian Jones, a Democrat, said that it would be helpful for the public to know the names before the hearing so they can do their own research and bring issues to the council that the members may not know about the candidates.
“We don’t have to make this decision in a vacuum,” Jones said. “We welcome — or at least I welcome — public input, and public vetting.”
The county executive is the most powerful position in Baltimore County. He or she will preside over Maryland’s third largest county, and one that is grappling with population loss, an affordable housing crisis, an aging population and schools that constantly need updates.
If the council does not choose a candidate by Jan. 3, the charter specifies that the chief administrative officer, D’Andrea Walker, will serve until one is chosen. The job announcement does not specify a closing date, but urges interested candidates to apply promptly.
Several council members have expressed a desire to see a woman or a person of color in the top job. The council is all male, and Jones is the only member who is not white. Every county executive since the county government became established in this form since 1956 has been a white man. Meanwhile, the county is 33% Black, with growing populations of Latino, Arab American and Asian residents.
Three of the applicants are women. They include Sen. Kathy Klausmeier, who has represented Baltimore County in the General Assembly for 30 years; Tara Ebersole, an administrator and professor at the Community College of Baltimore County; and Yara Cheikh, a longtime community activist and businesswoman who is chairwoman of the county’s library board.
One, Barry Williams, is Black. Williams, who served as the director of Recreation and Parks under Olszewski, also has considerable leadership and board experience inside and outside government. He is also the brother of House Speaker Adrienne Jones.
The remaining four are white men. They include former state Sen. Jim Brochin, who lost to Olszewski in the 2018 race for county executive by 17 votes; state Del. Jon Cardin, who is the nephew of Maryland’s retiring U.S. Senator Ben Cardin; former County Executive Dennis Rasmussen; and Aris Melissaratos, former Maryland secretary of business and economic development under Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich. A one-term governor, Ehrlich left office in 2006.
Jones, who plans to run for county executive in 2026, said he wishes the council would appoint one of its own to run government for the next two years. That’s likely what will happen in Prince George’s County, where County Executive Angela Alsobrooks was elected to the U.S. Senate. If she resigns before Dec. 3, the county will hold a special election. But if it’s after, then the council will appoint a member.
Baltimore’s County Council opted not to appoint one of its own because it did not want to give any one member an advantage in the upcoming race. In addition to Jones, Patoka and Pat Young, both Democrats, have expressed interest in the permanent position.
Blended Public Affairs, an Annapolis public relations firm, conducted a survey with names of previously known candidates and asked residents what they wanted to see from a future executive. Inflation and cost of living and crime/public safety were identified as top concerns. Nearly half of respondents surveyed said they would support an infrastructure fee to upgrade schools, libraries and fire stations.
Blended found that while Klausmeier led the pack in name recognition, most voters did not know enough about her or any of the other candidates to have an opinion.