By Adam Pagnucco.
Note: This article has been updated.
Back in July, I reported that the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA), wielder of the mighty Apple Ballot, planned to issue early endorsements for friendly incumbent members of the General Assembly. There was a catch, however: MCEA noted that appointees who had not previously been through their endorsement process were not eligible for early endorsements. Those appointees, along with other candidates, might still be endorsed later.
True to their word, the teachers have now endorsed most of MoCo’s incumbent state legislators. Here is their list.
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District 14
District 15
Delegate David Fraser‑Hidalgo (D)
District 16
District 17
Delegate Julie Palakovich Carr (D)
District 18
Senator Jeff Waldstreicher (D)
District 19
Delegate Charlotte Crutchfield (D)
District 20
Delegate Lorig Charkoudian (D)
Delegate Jheanelle Wilkins (D)
District 39
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None of the appointees appear on the above list. That includes Senator Sara Love, who was appointed to her current seat but earned the Apple Ballot when she ran for delegate in 2022. Love currently has no opponent so it’s hard to imagine that she won’t be endorsed by MCEA and virtually every other group that plays in MoCo state legislative politics.
A few notes.
The District 9 state legislators (Senator Katie Fry Hester and Delegates Chao Wu and Natalie Ziegler) represent a district that is shared with Howard County. As a result, their endorsement process is not yet complete.
District 17 Senator Cheryl Kagan and District 15 Delegate Lily Qi have not yet completed the endorsement process but, like the District 9 legislators, they may be endorsed in the future.
It’s noteworthy that MCEA endorsed Delegate Gabe Acevero. That’s no surprise because Acevero is a progressive who earned the Apple Ballot in both 2018 and 2022. This must be displeasing to his colleagues – Senator Nancy King, Delegate Lesley Lopez and appointed Delegate Greg Wims – who have teamed up with Gaithersburg City Council Member Robert Wu to defeat him. Unless MCEA issues four delegate endorsements – an unusual act – the teachers won’t be endorsing the full anti-Acevero slate. Acevero has to be happy about that.
The Apple Ballot will be a major factor in determining the fate of appointed delegates and open seats. It will be especially influential in District 14 (where Delegate Pam Queen is retiring and state teachers union staffer Matt Post is running hard), District 16 (where appointed Delegates Sarah Wolek and Teresa Woorman are facing Tazeen Ahmad) and District 39 (where Acevero is once again at war with his colleagues). Anyone who follows MoCo politics knows to closely watch the Apple Ballot, so we will return to this topic when more endorsements come in!