By Adam Pagnucco.
Dawn Luedtke carried a well-known surname and a boat load of endorsements to victory in eastern Upcounty’s District 7 last year. Let’s look at who else her voters supported.
The chart below shows how Luedtke voters voted in the county executive primary.
County Executive Marc Elrich lost in District 7’s most populated areas, including Gaithersburg, Olney, Montgomery Village, Damascus, Brookeville and Derwood. So why did he win among Luedtke winners? One theory is that Elrich and Luedtke shared many progressive endorsements, thereby encouraging voters to support both of them. In any event, the Elrich-Luedtke correlation was not a strong one.
Now let’s look at how Luedtke voters voted in the council at-large primary.
Luedtke voters picked the four winners although they ranked Gabe Albornoz ahead of Will Jawando. It’s worth noting that Jawando finished third in Upcounty as a whole and fourth in Damascus.
District 7 is a combination of parts of former Council Member Mike Knapp’s Upcounty District 2 and State Legislative District 14, which Dawn’s husband Eric once represented. That suggests a combination of the Luedtke network and moderate politics will help Dawn Luedtke keep a firm hold on the district going forward.