By Adam Pagnucco.
A source called me this morning with a question I have not heard before.
“Is it customary for Montgomery County politicians to visit homicide scenes?”
I thought about it. I did not remember this happening in the past. That does not mean it didn’t happen. We do not have a lot of homicides in the county. Crime has not been a big issue in most of our elections although it was one this time.
The question arose because there was a fatal shooting in White Oak last night and Council Member Kristin Mink, whose district includes the area, showed up and spoke to the press. She told WJLA, “I live right around here. My parents live right around here. I’ve always felt safe moving around here, but clearly, we need to do more and we will.”
Bravo for Mink. I don’t live in her district but I want the people who represent me to care about my safety. Mink got some love for this on Twitter and rightly so.
And then the other shoe dropped. Check out this tweet.
Jeremiah Pope is no ordinary constituent. He was one of eight candidates in the District 5 primary last year which also included Mink. He finished third in the voting, second in fundraising (with $41,000 in loans from himself) and he was endorsed by the Washington Post. The Post wrote:
Jeremiah Pope, long active in his Hillandale neighborhood’s civic associations, is keenly aware of the challenges facing east county residents, and his experience, as a political consultant and chief of staff to a Maryland delegate, equips him in getting those needs addressed.
So Pope is a serious fellow. There is also a lot of history here that goes back long before Pope and Mink were players. The Route 29 corridor, which comprises the backbone of District 5, has been the Black Democratic heartland of the county for decades. It was one of the earliest bases of power for the legendary Ike Leggett when he was running for county council at-large, and he expanded from it to become the dominant politician of his generation. In the most recent redistricting process, District 5 was designed to be a Black-plurality district that was intended to elect a Black council member. But that did not happen as 5 of the 8 primary candidates were Black and Mink, who had few endorsements but ran the best campaign, won the race going away.
In my column on this primary, I wrote:
Mink ran against five Black candidates who collectively received 48% of the vote, 6 points more than her total. What happens if Mink gets one strong Black opponent next time? I wouldn’t bet against her – she has demonstrated her talent and work ethic, and given her strong progressive bent, she should have a ton of progressive endorsements as an incumbent. But if she wants to minimize any opposition in her next race, she will need to build her support in the Black community.
Here is another prediction. Over the next couple years, an informal primary will develop to find the strongest Black challenger to Mink. And if one person rises above the rest, there will be an effort to consolidate support around that person. Maybe it will be Pope. Maybe it will be someone else. But it’s going to happen and I bet there are conversations going on right now – even though Mink has not been in office even for a week.
I love East County politics. You should too. Let’s keep watching it together.