Northwood News ♦ April 2018

NFCCA Hosting District 19 Delegate Forum on 11 April

By Samantha Jones

Election season is now in full swing!  Many groups around the area have hosted or are planning to host candidate forums.  There have been a number of County Council and County Executive candidate forums, but a dearth of forums for District 19 Delegate candidates.  To remedy this, the NFCCA is hosting a District 19 Delegate Candidates Forum on 11 April during the neighborhood meeting.  The event is scheduled for 7:30-9:30 p.m. and will take place at Forest Knolls Elementary School (10830 Eastwood Avenue).  All District 19 residents are encouraged to attend.

The Maryland General Assembly is divided into two houses:  the House of Delegates and the State Senate.  As the lower house in the state legislature, the House of Delegates has 141 Delegates representing 47 legislative districts across the Free State.  District 19, where the NFCCA is situated, has three delegates.  Our current delegates are:  Bonnie Cullison, Maricé Morales, and Ben Kramer.  Both Del. Cullison and Del. Morales are currently running for re-election for their seats; Del. Ben Kramer is running for the State Senate.

In total, there are 11 people running for three delegate seats in District 19 (eight Democrats and three Republicans).  With a packed race, it is hard for local residents to get a chance to meet and talk with each candidate.  The NFCCA is hosting the delegate candidate forum so that neighbors can meet each candidate and discuss their platforms in a more personalized setting.

The forum will have a “speed dating” structure where each candidate will meet with a small group of attendees for an allotted time, and then move on to meet with another small group after that time is up.  At the beginning of the forum, attendees will be split into small groups, and then one candidate will address each group at a time.  That’s right:  the candidates will come to you to hear your questions and concerns!  This structure ensures that all attendees will hear directly from each candidate, and be able to engage each candidate in discussion.

The following candidates have affirmed they will attend the forum:

• Brian Crider (Democratic candidate; www.delegatebrian.com);
• Charlotte Crutchfield (Democratic candidate;www.voteforcharlotte.com);
• Helen Domenici (Republican candidate; no website listed);
• Marlin Jenkins (Democratic candidate; www.marlinformaryland.com);
• Del. Maricé Morales (Democratic candidate; www.maricemorales.com);
• Dave Pasti (Republican candidate; www.pastifordelegate.com);
• Martha Schaerr (Republican candidate; www.marthaformaryland.com);
• Vaughn Stewart (Democratic candidate; www.vaughnformaryland.com);
• Carl Ward (Democratic candidate; www.votecarlward.com); and
• Jade Wiles (Democratic candidate; www.wilesfordelegate.com).

Please plan on joining us for what promises to be an exciting night of democracy and local politics!  If possible, please arrive a few minutes early as the forum will begin promptly at 7:30 p.m.

As a reminder, Primary Day is June 26th and Election Day is November 6th!

[Jones is an at-large member of the NFCCA Board; she lives on Glenwild Road.]   ■