Comptroller Brooke Lierman captured the moment well yesterday when speaking to the Central Maryland Chamber of Commerce Economic Summit. She said that we all feel like we’re not in control of our destiny, that so much about our economy and our lives these days is being determined by directives from Washington that are outside our control and impossible to predict. That’s a bad thing when you’re running a business - or a local government.
Howard County Executive Ball and I had just done a “fireside chat” in which we reflected on the sudden job market shift as a result of federal layoffs, deportations, and the uncertainty of tariffs.
In recent days, the courts ruled that Trump’s refusal to pay SNAP benefits is illegal. Trump agreed to pay half. Governor Moore allocated $62 million - in addition to the $10 million for food banks - to pay the other half for November. Then Trump threatened to withhold the money from states that vote for Democrats.
On Tuesday we announced that the first $500,000 of the $10 million we set aside in our budget for response to federal attacks on our people would be invested in food boxes that will be distributed over the next four weeks. They’ll be put together by the dream team at Anne Arundel County Food Bank, and distributed at four senior centers. We’re doing this because, even if SNAP benefits do go out, the furloughed federal workers are showing up at our food pantries in large numbers, and we need to respond. Go to aacounty.org/federal-impacts for times and locations.
The world watched closely as Americans went to the polls Tuesday night in Virginia, New Jersey, New York City, California, and elsewhere. It was a major temperature check to see which political party was attracting more support in these cruel and chaotic times.
Democrats overperformed everywhere, decisively.
Zohran Mamdani in New York beat Trump-supported Andrew Cuomo by an 8.8 point margin. Despite being a 34-year-old Muslim immigrant with no connections to the city’s power structure, he won with a message of economic justice and dignity for all people. He paid for his campaign with small dollar donations and public matching funds and brought new people into the electorate who had checked out of politics in the past, winning voters under 30 by a 70% margin.
Abigail Spanberger won the Virginia governor’s race by 15 points, winning voters under 30 by 40%. Her party’s 51-49 majority in their House of Delegates grew to 64-36, and swept all the statewide races.
Mikie Sherrill for Governor in New Jersey was the one that some polls showed within the margin of error, but she won by 13%, and won voters under 30 by 2 to 1.
The California redistricting proposal to create five more Democratic districts passed by a 30 point margin. It was presented as a response to President Trump’s demand that Texas pass legislation to create five more Republican districts.
President Trump has without evidence called the California election rigged. “All ‘Mail-In’ Ballots, where the Republicans in that State are ‘Shut Out,’ is under very serious legal and criminal review. STAY TUNED!” His grammar and punctuation, not mine.
In Annapolis, we seem to be able to transfer power peacefully and responsibly, although the results demonstrate clearly that voters chose to stay the course in terms of policies and priorities. All of the incumbents on the ballot were re-elected, and the newcomers were all endorsed by electeds.
Why am I writing about election results in a government-issued weekly letter? Because election outcomes tell us how voters are feeling and what government policies are likely to be coming. It’s information that people who run businesses, manage local governments, or are simply trying to plan a future consider carefully.
The message that I read from Tuesday night, and the exit polls bear this out, is that Americans want an end to the economic policies of the last ten months. They want to restore order in our nation.
So maybe, just maybe, members of Congress, judges, public servants, military commanders, and business owners will look at these results and side with the people in support of democracy, liberty, and justice for all.
As for Annapolis, I look forward to the December 1 inauguration of Mayor Littman and a new City Council, and working with them to steward the magical city that is the favorite place to visit in Anne Arundel County.
Until next week…