Political Appointees Fill Elected Offices
The Montgomery County delegation
to the Maryland General Assembly has 32 members. With
the recent appointments
of now Senator Will Smith and now Delegate Jheanelle Wilkins due to the vacancy
created by the election of former Senator and now Congressman Jamie Raskin that
number has risen to 37.5%[i] or
more than 1 in 3 of our elected officials in Montgomery County having arrived
in ‘elected’ office through a non-democratic appointment process instead of
being elected. 12
members of the current delegation arrived there through appointments without
having been directly elected to office by their constituency. So in our great
democracy, one-third of our representatives were not chosen democratically by
the people they are meant to represent.
The appointment process is
doubly damaging in Maryland since we are one of five states that has a four
year term for the lower house in the state legislature. In effect, delegates
appointed a year into a four year term are able to serve in elected office for the
equivalent of what would be a term and a half in any of the 45 other states
that only have two year terms for the lower house.
Even if we are disconsolate over
low voter turnout, even lower informed voter turnout, and the gradual
disappearance of local press who once held these 'elected' officials
accountable, it seems that even those who do show up to the polls on election
day only have a chance to elect 2 out of every 3 of their elected officials.
Add to this federal
gerrymandering that disenfranchises Marylanders by carving districts that elect
an individual that does not represent most of the geographic area.
Then take note of our reality
where there are no limits to self-financing campaigns such that wealthy
individuals can essentially purchase elected office and then note that campaign
contributions are not limited to the universe of constituents that the
candidate is seeking to represent. If public financing of elections were
extended beyond statewide offices to state legislative races, limitations on
the source and amount of contributions could begin to be enforced for those who
choose to participate.
What chance then does our
Democracy have if our government has already either been bought or stolen and
no one knows about it because no one is reporting on local or state government
anymore?
The game is rigged and citizens
ought to be outraged.
In the 2016 election a
referendum was passed that now would require a special election for the statewide
offices of Comptroller or Attorney General become vacant. There has additionally
been legislation that has been previously introduced that calls for providing
voters with an opportunity to fill the vacant seat at the next regularly
scheduled election without waiting for the four year term to expire.
This legislation ought to go
even further, asking that all candidates for appointments
foreswear running for office in the next special election when the vacancy would
be filled by direct election. This has precedent in the appointments of
Karen Britto to fill the seat of Delegate Bill Bronrott of District 16 and of
Cheri Branson to fill the seat of Councilmember Valerie Ervin. Such a pledge
would enable fair and competitive elections to transpire that would not be
eclipsed by the power of incumbency.
[i] There have been 57 appointments to the Maryland House of
Delegates in the last 19 years since 1997: http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/06hse/html/hseapp.html.
11 of these vacancies were in Montgomery County, 8 of whom are still in office.
Montgomery County has 8 districts with 3 delegates each amounting to a total of
24 delegates.
There have been
21 appointments to the Maryland Senate in the last 19 years since 1997: http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/05sen/html/senapp.html.
5 of these vacancies were in Montgomery County, 4 of whom are still in office.
Montgomery County has 8 districts with 1 senator each amounting to a total of 8
senators. 50% or half of Montgomery County's current senators have been
appointed into office.