Friday, October 21, 2011

CD6 Candidates Float Trial Balloons: Doug Duncan, Mark Shriver, Chris Shank, A Tea Party Activist & More!

UPDATE:  OOPS! Maryland Juice completely misread Maryland Reporter's follow-up to our article below. They correctly noted that Sen. Nancy Jacobs is running against Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger in CD2, not against Bartlett in CD6. In the excitement of the morning roundup, I incorrectly dragged her into Rep. Bartlett's nightmare. Also, Steve Silverman says he is definitely not running for CD6 -- especially as he has just been re-drawn into CD3.

Earlier, another reader noted that, "Doug Duncan attended the Montgomery County Chapter of the Maryland Municipal League meeting with the Montgomery County Council last night, and he stayed the whole time of a very long meeting." Interesting. More on a possible Duncan candidacy soon.

Lastly, Maryland Reporter also noted that Sen. Brinkley lives in CD8 and therefore may not go through with a challenge to Rep. Bartlett. Be that as it may, its not stopping some politicians from starting rumors. But let me clarify the post below -- these are potential candidates who are being discussed in MD politico circles right now. I expect many will not ultimately run, but I do believe that it is not unlikely that we will get at least one non-CD6 candidate in the race (note: you don't really have to live in the District before you run for Congress). I also believe there is a 0% chance that Rep. Bartlett gets an easy GOP Primary Election.

Yesterday, Maryland Juice began crafting a list of candidates for Maryland's new 6th Congressional District. We mentioned a few obvious names like Sen. Rob Garagiola and GOP Chair Alex Mooney, but within hours former Montgomery Councilmember Duchy Trachtenberg surprised observers with an announced CD6 bid. Now, the floodgates are open and numerous politicos are floating trial balloons.

Former County Executive Doug Duncan's name is now being whispered by insiders, along with former Delegate Mark Shriver. On the GOP side, things are about to get crazy, as it looks like multiple officials are "supporting" Bartlett while weighing whether to try and take him down. We summarize the chaos below and end with a simple list of the potential candidates.

Doug Duncan & Mark Shriver: First, the potential return of Doug Duncan to electoral politics is probably the biggest story here, as we assume he can still raise money and may have lots of residual name ID leftover from his eight twelve years as Montgomery Executive. Capitol Hill's Roll Call had this coverage:
State Democratic sources said former Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan is seriously considering a run for the Congressional nomination. Insiders also said former state Del. Mark Shriver, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2002, is the subject of a great deal of speculation and that some activists are hoping that he runs in the reconfigured district. However, his level of interest remains unclear.
Notably, the article also mentions the potential return of Kennedy-clan member, former Del. Mark Shriver (who lost the CD8 Congressional Primary to Rep. Van Hollen -- back in the day). Mr. Shriver would be another major addition to the race, but in poking around, I haven't yet heard that he's actually thinking about this.

Republicans Challenging Bartlett: As predicted, Rep. Bartlett is unlikely to have an easy GOP Primary Election. These Congressional seats rarely emerge even once during a politician's career -- so speak now or forever hold your peace! According to the Washington Times, that sentiment may also be shared by State Senator Chris Shank:
State Sen. Christopher B. Shank, Washington Republican, said state party members will support Mr. Bartlett “with every fiber of their being,” but acknowledged Western Maryland GOP leaders are watching closely to see whether he stays in the race. 
Mr. Shank said he has not ruled out running for Congress if Mr. Bartlett retires. He also said several other state legislators could also be up to the task, including Sen. David R. Brinkley of Frederick County, Delegate LeRoy E. Myers Jr. of Washington County and Frederick Board of County Commissioners President Blaine R. Young.
Lastly, Republicans also appear to be getting a Tea Party activist in the CD6 GOP Primary. Robert Coblentz, the Vice President of the Washington County GOP club has announced a bid for the CD6 GOP nod. The Hagerstown Herald Mail notes that he was recently an unaffiliated voter, but added:
Coblentz said he also agrees with the tea party movement's criticism of excessive government spending and bailouts for failing industries.

Potential Democratic Candidates
  • State Senator Rob Garagiola (launched exploratory effort)
  • former Montgomery Councilmember Duchy Tracthenberg (announced campaign)
  • former County Executive Doug Duncan (trial balloons)
  • former Delegate Mark Shriver (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • Montgomery Councilmember Phil Andrews (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • former Montgomery Councilmember Mike Knapp (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • former Montgomery Councilmember Steve Silverman (insider name-dropping/rumor)

Potential Republican Candidates
  • Incumbent CD6 Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (announced campaign)
  • State Senator Chris Shank (announced exploration)
  • MD GOP Chair Alex Mooney (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • State Senator David Brinkley (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • Delegate Neil Parrott (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • Delegate LeRoy E. Myers Jr. (insider name-dropping/rumor)
  • Frederick County Commissioners President Blaine Young (insider name-dropping/rumor)

    Anyone else? Please email me your juice: david@marylandjuice.com.

    1 comment:

    1. Doug Duncan was County Exec from 1994-2006. That's 12, not 8, years.

      ReplyDelete