Latest news with #DemocraticCentralCommittee
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ulman to step down in June as Maryland Democratic Party chair
Maryland Democratic Party Chair Ken Ulman. (Photo by Emily Condon/Capital News Service) Maryland Democratic Party Chair Ken Ulman, a longtime player on the state political scene, announced Wednesday night that he plans to resign effective June 13. Gov. Wes Moore (D) intends to nominate Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman (D) to replace Ulman when the state Democratic Central Committee next meets at its regularly scheduled meeting late next month — shortly after the state party holds its annual fundraising gala June 12 in Baltimore County. The party's first vice chair, Charlene Dukes, does not intend to seek the top job but will remain in her current post. Ulman, a former Howard County executive, has told top Democrats that he wants to return full time to his development consulting company, Margrave Strategies, which is involved in several high-profile economic development projects across the state. He has served as state party chair since November 2023 Ulman announced his intention to resign in a Zoom call Wednesday evening with county chairs, before sharing it during a meeting with the state party's trustees — an advisory group of top donors. 'I am grateful to Ken for his willingness to lead us through an intense and demanding election,' Moore said in a statement. If Pittman is elected state chair — and he is unlikely to be the only candidate for the position next month — he too would split his time between his full-time gig as county executive and the state party post. Moore called Pittman 'the right leader for this moment.' Pittman is termed out of office in December 2026 and has been pondering his next political move. Heading the state party would enable him to stay in the political arena — though he has also been mentioned as a possible candidate to succeed veteran U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-5th) whenever Hoyer decides to end his 60-year political career. 'With an all-out assault on our state and our values underway from Washington, D.C., I know Steuart Pittman will put his experience and his moral clarity to work to defend our state, fight back against the Trump administration, and ensure Democrats win elections,' Moore's statement said Ulman and Pittman did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. The state party in the 2026 election cycle will be preoccupied with reelecting Moore – who could face a tough race, especially if former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) runs again – and other statewide elected officials, who should be on firmer political ground. Party leaders are also determined to field a strong challenger against the state's lone Republican member of Congress, Rep. Andy Harris (R-1st); Jake Day, the secretary at Maryland's Department of Housing and Community Development, is actively exploring a bid. Ulman's looming departure from the Maryland Democratic Party ends a short-lived reentry into the state political fray. Ulman, 51, was considered a rising political star after four years on the Howard County Council and eight years as county executive. He was the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor in 2014, losing in an upset to a Republican ticket headed by Hogan Ulman launched his development firm shortly after that election and, before becoming state chair, worked on the fringes of politics, using his contacts to firm up development projects. As state chair, Ulman helped now-U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D) win her first term in 2024, kept the Democrats' 7-1 advantage in the state's congressional delegation, helped defeat several conservative school board candidates throughout the state, and raised more than $5.5 million for the state party. Pittman was a political novice when he ran for Anne Arundel executive in 2018, when better-known Democrats chose to skip the race. He ousted Republican incumbent Steve Schuh in an upset. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX A former community organizer in Chicago, where he met a young Barack Obama, and in Des Moines, Iowa, he has proven to be an unconventional politician but has also been an effective messenger on policy and big-picture political matters. The state party is having its annual gala on June 12 at Martin's West, a catering hall that regularly hosts political events. U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), who, like Moore, is a potential presidential candidate in 2028, is the featured speaker. Hoyer's annual bull roast is scheduled for the next night in Mitchellville. Attendees may be looking for clues as to whether the congressman, who turns 86 the next day, will decide to seek a 23rd full term in 2026.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Canaries in the chair: Frequent party leadership changes could be sign of deeper issues
Columnist Randy Stapilus suggests (Getty Images) In recent weeks, both of Oregon's major political parties have changed leadership, under very different circumstances. Party leadership is only a small part of what makes the candidates under their banner successful, but it can be a coal mine canary of sorts, an indicator of underlying issues or strengths. Over the last generation, Democrats have been faring gradually better in Oregon, and Republicans less well. What might we learn from a look at party leadership? Start with the Democrats. They have had three chairs in this decade. Carla 'KC' Hanson, following five years leading the Multnomah County Democrats, was elected to two-year terms in 2019 and 2021. In 2023, she departed and the party's vice chair, Rosa Colquitt, who also had worked for years in various positions in the party organization, was elected to the top spot. This year, the state Democratic Central Committee met in Corvallis on March 16 and in a contested election replaced her with a new chair, Nathan Soltz, who at age 27 happens to be the youngest person to hold that job. He isn't a newcomer to the party organization, however. Soltz started work with the Democrats in Jackson County (one of Oregon's most competitive) a decade ago, has worked in labor organizing and in the Legislature and was elected state party secretary two years ago. There's something to be said for injecting new blood in leadership positions from time to time (and Soltz may well provide some of that). But party organizations also can benefit from leaders who know how things work and understand how to get along with the various interests and groups that make up a large party, and manage to avoid conflict and controversy (other than when directed at the opposition). Over to the Republicans. Six people have led the Oregon Republican Party since 2020. These years opened with a period of some stability under Bill Currier, a mayor of Adair Village who had worked in various party positions for years before his election as chair in February 2015. Six years later, shortly after releasing a statement (that many party leaders had backed) saying the Jan. 6, 2021 attempted insurrection in Washington, D.C. was a 'false flag' operation (drawing complaints from within and outside the party), he lost a re-election bid to state Sen. Dallas Heard of Myrtle Creek. After serving just over a year, Heard departed after complaining about conflict within the party, including 'communist psychological warfare tactics.' (Others in the party said a flashpoint was debate over whether to open the party's primary to non-Republicans.) The vice-chair, former legislator Herman Baertschiger, served as acting chair for about four months but then quit. The job next went to Justin Hwang, a Gresham restaurant owner and former legislative candidate who had become vice-chair of the state party only three months before. He held the job until February of this year, providing some stability. During Hwang's tenure, Oregon Republicans won in 2022 — and then lost in 2024 — a second congressional seat and legislative races that temporarily ended Democrats' supermajority control in the House and Senate. When the post came open for election early this year, a range of candidates contended, including former Senate candidate Jo Rae Perkins (the incumbent party secretary), Washington County Republican leader Gabriel Buehler, as well as a legislative candidate and a city councilor. It was won from outside: A Columbia County pastor and insurance agent, Jerry Cummings. He prevailed after saying the party should focus less on hot-button issues to 'reach beyond the Republican base and do a better job of presenting a message that makes us contenders around the state.' But on April 8, the Oregon Journalism Project reported on court records from a long-running divorce and custody case and more recent lawsuits filed by creditors. The legal records included accusations from Cummings' ex-wife that he engaged in sexual violence, allegations Cummings denied. He soon resigned, and the job once again went to the party's vice chair, Connie Whelchel of Deschutes County. Considering that the party chair takes the lead in party organization, hiring, planning for campaigns and more, these rapid-fire turnovers, frequent controversies and overall lack of stability could have contributed to the party's gradual weakening in the state during the last couple of decades. That's not all, of course. A great deal of political strength in the party is held by people and groups outside the Oregon voting mainstream. But problems with stable leadership aren't helping the party either. They may do well to consider why the job seems hard to fill with the kind of leaders they need. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats endorse candidate challenging incumbent St. Louis mayor
ST. LOUIS – The St. Louis Democratic Central Committee officially endorsed Alderwoman Cara Spencer for St. Louis mayor in a rare move that shows support for a challenger against an incumbent of the same party. The committee voted to throw its support behind Alderwoman Cara Spencer over current St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones, who made history in 2021 when she took office as St. Louis' first Black female mayor. Spencer's endorsement comes following the St. Louis City Primary Election, which saw Mayor Jones finish as a distant second behind Alderwoman Spencer. Of the 28 members from all 14 wards who met with the Democratic Central Committee, 15 voted for Spencer and 9 for Jones, while two abstained from voting. Additionally, in the vote for St. Louis Comptroller, the committee showed support for current comptroller Darlene Green over challenger Donna Baringer in a 19-6 vote. Local Gold Star parents speak out after terrorist behind deadly attack captured After the committee announced their support for Spencer, Mayor Jones shared that she was disappointed by the endorsement but not surprised. 'This is an attempt by their organization to create relevance and power for themselves,' said Jones. 'The last thing our city needs is an untested and inexperienced executive with a history of avoiding hard conversations and quitting when the going gets tough.' St. Louis residents will be able to decide the race for St. Louis mayor in the general election on April 8. St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones and Alderwoman Cara Spencer are set to face off in a St. Louis Mayoral Debate on FOX 2 AND ST. LOUIS 11 on March 13 at 7 p.m. If you have a question you would like to have answered during the debate, you can submit it by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
