ANNAPOLIS, Md. — With less than a year to go before the 2022 election, candidates from both major parties have declared their candidacy in the races for governor, attorney general and comptroller.
Candidates will first need to win their parties’ nominations in the June primary election.
DEMOCRATIC GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY
In the Democratic gubernatorial primary, familiar names from state and federal politics are joined by candidates from the worlds of business and philanthropy.
Comptroller Peter Franchot will seek the nomination alongside running mate Monique Anderson-Walker, a former member of the Prince George’s county council.
The Prince George’s County Board of Ethics concluded in a hearing earlier this year that Anderson-Walker committed three ethics violations, including voting on resolutions related to a foundation for which she has been a broker.
Former chair of the Democratic National Committee and former U.S. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez announced his candidacy in June.
Perez also previously served as Maryland’s secretary of labor, licensing and regulation.
Doug Gansler served as Maryland’s attorney general from 2007 to 2015 and previously worked as a prosecutor in Montgomery County.
Wes Moore, founder of educational business BridgeEdU and former CEO of anti-poverty organization the Robin Hood Foundation, launched his campaign for the Democratic nomination in June.
Former Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker announced his campaign for governor; Nancy Navarro, a member of the Montgomery County Council, is Baker’s running mate.
John B. King Jr., former U.S. Secretary of Education, is seeking the nomination; he also founded progressive policy organization Strong Future Maryland.
Ashwani Jain, program director for the Washington office of the National Kidney Foundation, is running for governor and emphasizes his work with then-Vice President Joe Biden on a cancer project on his campaign website.
Jon Baron is a former vice president of evidence-based policy at Arnold Ventures, a family foundation with a goal to “minimize injustice,” according to its website.
Baron’s LinkedIn profile also lists a variety of policy work, including on trade and small business technology with the federal government.
Mike Rosenbaum founded Catalyte and Arena, companies related to hiring and the technology sector, before he announced his candidacy in May; Rosenbaum also worked as an economist for President Bill Clinton’s administration, according to Rosenbaum’s website.
REPUBLICAN GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY
On the Republican side, Maryland’s Secretary of Commerce Kelly Schulz is seeking her party’s nomination.
Del. Dan Cox, R-Carroll and Frederick, a frequent opponent of coronavirus restrictions, is running for the Republican nomination.
Cox’s running mate, Gordana Schifanelli, is an attorney in Eastern Maryland.
Joe Werner, whose LinkedIn page indicates he is an attorney, is running in the 2022 gubernatorial primary after previously losing races for the House of Delegates and Congress.
In previous races, Werner ran as a Democrat.
The state board of elections website lists Minh Thanh Luong as Werner’s running mate.
Robin Ficker, who according to the state archives formerly served as a delegate from Montgomery County, is running on a platform of lowering the state sales tax by 2 cents.
OTHER GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES
The Libertarian Party of Maryland nominated David Lashar as its candidate for governor, alongside running mate Christiana Logansmith.
Lashar’s LinkedIn page lists him as a partner for an information technology company, while Logansmith’s LinkedIn profile indicates she owns ServiceMaster Chesapeake.
Kyle Sefcik, owner of a martial arts gym in Damascus, is running an unaffiliated campaign for governor with Katie Lee as his running mate.
ATTORNEY GENERAL CANDIDATES
In the race for Attorney General, Rep. Anthony Brown, D-Mitchellville, former Maryland lieutenant governor, will seek the Democratic nomination.
Former Montgomery County Board of Elections president Jim Shalleck is running on the Republican side.
According to the state Board of Elections, Catherine Curran O’Malley, a recently retired associate judge, established a candidate committee; she is reported to be considering a run for attorney general.
Curran O’Malley’s husband, Martin O’Malley, formerly served as governor of Maryland.
COMPTROLLER CANDIDATES
Maryland state Del. Brooke Lierman, D-Baltimore, is running as a Democrat in the race for comptroller.
Tim Adams is also seeking the Democratic nomination for comptroller; he serves as mayor of Bowie.
Barry Glassman (https://www.barryglassman.com/) is county executive in Harford and is running on the Republican side for comptroller.
More candidates may file for any of the statewide elections.
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The candidate filing deadline for Democrats and Republicans is Feb. 22, 2022.
Filing deadlines for other candidates are in July and August and can be found on the Maryland Board of Elections site.
The 2022 election is scheduled for Nov. 8.