By Adam Pagnucco.
Below are the top ten stories on Montgomery Perspective in September 2024, ranked by page views.
1. Three MCPS Principals Report a “Gun-Involved Incident.” What Happened?
2. Evans Counters Stewart with Endorsements of Her Own
3. MCPS Planning Massive Boundary Review Contract
4. Elrich Wants Us to Be Like Virginia. Really?
5. Fight Between Delegate and Former Opponent Leads to Peace Orders and Assault Charge
6. Police Provide More Information on Glenmont Juvenile Shooting
7. Stewart Announces Endorsements for School Board
8. Republicans, Anti-CRT Group Promote Diaz for School Board
9. How Elrich’s Staff Tried to Save Him from Term Limits, Part Two
10. County Democrats Oppose Term Limits on Sample Ballot
No one subject dominated last month, as MCPS, the school board race, term limits, the county executive and brawling politicians all competed to draw attention. Of these stories, MCPS’s boundary review looks like the one with the most staying power. The countywide PTA association has expressed concern about its tight timeline. Boundary analysis was a major issue in 2019-2020, but here is what has changed since then: there is now MUCH more concern about school security and public safety in general. That threatens to make public ire even more intense than it was a few years ago, and back then, it was hotter than a steel smelter.
The other story that is hitting its stride is term limits. With rival ballot issue committees established, there could be a battle at the ballot box rivaling the four-question war of four years ago. (Here are links to the websites that are pro-term limits and anti-term limits.) County Executive Marc Elrich’s time in office is on the line, and he knows it. So does the coalition of real estate groups seeking to knock him out. But the bigger question is structural and really should be considered by voters: is the county better off with more mandated turnover in the county executive’s office? Readers, that’s for you to decide.
On to October!