COLLEGE PARK – Former Berwyn Heights Mayor Brad Jewitt said he will likely sit out the race for Maryland’s 5th District next year, leaving Republicans for the moment with no one to challenge longtime Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer.
Jewitt, who was beaten by Hoyer in 2004, said his “main and only focus” now is a job with Maryland Department of Transportation that he started this year. He said he is aware of an exploratory committee called Friends of Brad Jewitt, but that he has no affiliation with the group.
“That’s an effort that, frankly, is going to have to prove to me that there’s enough support out there for me to give it another shot,” Jewitt said. “Going up against someone like Steny Hoyer is a huge undertaking. The landscape since the last election hasn’t changed all that much.”
Hoyer, now in his 13th term in Congress, won 69 percent of the vote to Jewitt’s 29 percent last year. He had more than $580,000 in cash on hand as of June 30, according to his last report with the Federal Election Commission.
Jewitt closed his account with the FEC in June and refunded all his remaining campaign funds, most of which had come from the candidate himself. His campaign’s Web site has been taken down and its phone line has been disconnected.
“At this point, I’m not aware of any candidates on the GOP side,” said Audra Miller, a Maryland Republican Party spokeswoman.
Vivian Castello, vice chairwoman of the Charles County Republican Central Committee, said that if Jewitt is indeed out the party will need to find someone to run in the 5th District as soon as possible.
But the Republicans will have a hard time finding a candidate, said Derek Walker, spokesman for the Maryland Democratic Party.
“I think Congressman Hoyer’s record as a leader is going to make anyone the Republicans can mount . . . think twice,” Walker said.
Hoyer, the House minority whip, is a perfect example of an “entrenched incumbent” against whom few Republican challengers can successfully compete, said James Gimpel, a government and politics professor at the University of Maryland.
“Maybe some state legislators would have a chance,” Gimpel said.
Gimpel said that Hoyer has two main options for how to spend his money with such limited competition: He can put the money in the bank or give it to other candidates.
So far this year, Hoyer’s campaign has given $185,000 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, $20,000 to the Maryland Democratic Party and $4,000 to Democratic Rep. Ben Cardin’s campaign for Senate, according to FEC filings.
Hoyer’s contributions to other campaigns and to the party come with the territory of being a part of the national Democratic leadership, Walker said.
“(Hoyer) certainly has committed a lot of his time, energy and resources to the Maryland Democratic Party and the National Democratic Party to make sure we’re robust in the upcoming elections,” Walker said.
Jewitt was appointed by Gov. Robert Ehrlich’s administration to the position of director of fleet and facility operations at the Maryland Department of Transportation in February.
“My main and only focus right now is serving the citizens of Maryland in that capacity,” he said.
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