CONFIRMED: Lobbying Firm Forming w/ Del. Justin Ross, and Former Top Aides to Sen. President Miller & Gov. O'Malley

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UGLY: Prince George's Democratic Chaos // Vacancy Process May Shift After Unelected Lawmaker's Gun Violence Revealed

Things continue to remain a little crazy in Prince George's politics. First, it should be noted that two of Councilmember Will Campos' aides just received vacancy appointments from the PG Dems Central Committee: former aide Greg Hall and Chief of Staff Alonzo Washington. Hall won a close vote to replace Del. Tiffany Alston (D24) right before the presidential election, while Washington won his appointment to Del. Justin Ross' seat (D22) with a fairly large margin last night. But the way in which these appointments are being handled is going to differ. The reason being that after Hall won the vote for Alston's seat, The Washington Post's Ann Marimow reported that the soon-to-be District 24 lawmaker was involved in a drug-dealing, gun shootout that resulted in a dead child:

WASHINGTON POST: Two decades ago, Gregory A. Hall was a 21-year-old crack dealer who took part in a gun battle that killed a seventh-grade honors student as he and his family left a church service in Capitol Heights.... County Democrats named him to finish Alston’s term, which ends in January 2015.

But Hall’s troubled past has resurfaced as Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) considers the appointment. Some local Democratic activists have said privately that Democratic Central Committee members are having second thoughts after choosing the 42-year-old in a 12-10 vote....

O’Malley has until Thanksgiving to approve Hall’s nomination, and the governor’s spokeswoman has said the administration is aware of Hall’s criminal record and that “everything is being taken into consideration.”

PG DEMS TO START SUBMITTING TWO NAMES FOR VACANCIES? - Shortly after Hall was appointed to fill Tiffany Alston's seat, the Prince George's Democrats had occasion to fill yet another seat -- that of retiring Delegate Justin Ross. Fresh off the Greg Hall controversy, it appears that the PG Dems may start submitting two names to the Governor for vacancies. The press accounts are not perfectly clear on this point, but at a minimum candidates will go through more vetting than in the past. The top two Democrats for Ross' District 22 seat were Alonzo Washington with Karren Pope-Onwukwe in second place. Check out the following report from The Gazette (excerpt below):

GAZETTE: The submission of two names to the governor is a break from tradition, said Terry Speigner, chairman of the central committee.... “The committee feels it needs to do a better job of vetting candidates,” Speigner said....

Speigner said the committee would take the top two vote-getters for the District 22 seat [Alonzo] Washington and [Karren] Pope-Onwukwe and do more thorough research into their backgrounds before submitting a name to the governor. “That’s totally different than we’ve ever done before,” he said.

The Washington Post's Miranda Spivack provided more detail on the vacancy controversies following Alonzo Washington's appointment to Delegate Justin Ross' seat (excerpt below):

WASHINGTON POST: The decision to take a closer look at Washington comes as the 24-member committee has been circulating reports that Greg Hall, 42, selected two weeks ago to replace Del. Tiffany Alston (D-Prince George’s), had a criminal history. The committee plans to do more research on its selections before sending them to the governor, beginning with Washington, said Terry Speigner, the committee chairman who had sought Alston’s seat and lost to Hall.

After Washington’s selection, committee members huddled in private to discuss Hall. Hall said he has not hidden his history and discussed some of the details as he pressed his candidacy two weeks ago during the selection meeting. Campos told The Washington Post, “It’s never been a secret. He talks about it....” The committee came to no consensus about Hall’s nomination, and Speigner said it will now be up to O’Malley. Hall defeated Speigner in a 12-10 vote on Nov. 2.

It is worth noting that the man who lost the vacancy appointment to Greg Hall was the current PG Democratic Chair himself -- Terry Speigner. This creates an obvious self-serving aura in his pursuit of complaints against his rival - but even still, there is something to be said about Speigner's view that this just looks bad. Remember that the Prince George's Democrats are filling a seat that is currently left vacant due to Del. Tiffany Alston's alleged misuse of taxpayer and campaign funds -- and they are filling that seat with someone who was involved in a gun shootout that left a child dead. No wonder Tiffany Alston is hanging around making her case! Even still, Speigner would do well to state clearly that he will not seek the D24 seat himself, and instead try to ensure a process that works for the public. This seems impossible to achieve when the person in charge is seeking the seat himself -- and it also just looks bad.

CONCLUSION: Here's the real question for the Prince George's Central Committee -- how did it come to this? In a County of thousands, were there honestly no other Democrats worthy of appointment to the State House? Perhaps the real problem is that machine politics continue to take priority over sound outcomes. Surely there were more Democrats to consider other than political aides and members of the Central Committee itself?

If the Prince George's Democrats want to really clean this up, they're going to have to try harder to undo machine politics -- not simply replace one machine with another. I'm beginning to think this pressure is going to have to come from the outside though, unless there is a miraculous shift in mentality among politicos. In the meantime, it'll be interesting to see who runs for these seats in 2014. After all, just because someone has been appointed by insiders doesn't mean they can win an election. Maryland politics has a few examples of appointees who were unable to win their seats outright.

Fingers crossed for a #CleanSlate for Prince George's Democrats.

PG County Dems Choose Alonzo Washington (Councilmember Will Campos' Chief of Staff) to Replace Justin Ross in MD House

The Hyattsville Times reported on Twitter tonight that the Prince George's County Democratic Central Committee has chosen Alonzo Washington to replace Delegate Justin Ross (D22 Democrat) in the Maryland House of Delegates. Ross stunned politicos by announcing his departure from the House earlier this fall. Notably, The Hyattsville Times also states that Washington was who Ross wanted to replace him:

A couple of tweets from The Times earlier in the night also provided some context on the battle:

We previously talked about the race to win the District 22 appointment and noted that a few PG Democrats' names were being tossed around as possible successors. But Alonzo Washington prevailed, and notably the now defunct-Real Prince George's blog noted that he was also interested in attempting to replace termed out PG Councilmember Will Campos in 2014.

Washington is currently Will Campos' Chief of Staff. See an excerpt from the Real PG blog below:

REAL PRINCE GEORGE'S BLOG: Rumors are a number of local leaders are potentially lining up to seek that appointment including Central Committeeman Alonzo Washington, Chief of Staff to Prince George’s County Councilman Will Campos. Washington is often mentioned as a frontrunner to replace Campos on the council when he is termed out in 2014.

This outcome will likely have a mini-domino effect on the candidate field for other races in 2014. More on the emerging Prince George's political dynamics soon!

CONFLICT: Prince George's Democratic Chair Terry Speigner Campaigning to be Del. Tiffany Alston's Replacement

UPDATE: OBVIOUS CONFLICT OF INTEREST - Am I the only one that finds it strange that candidates for the D24 vacancy, have to send their materials to one of their competitors (aka PGDCC Chair Terry Speigner)? Look closely at the email below, which indicates that candidates to replace Del. Tiffany Alston need to send their applications to another candidate for the seat. Speigner tries to pre-empt this issue in the letter below, where he states:

TERRY SPEIGNER: In closing, I know some people are wondering if I can serve as the simultaneously as the Chairman of the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee and in the House of Delegates. The simple answer is yes I can do both.

Well, I'm glad HE decided he can be objective! The optics of this are just terrible, considering that the reason why there is a vacancy has to do with the appearance of impropriety.


BACKGROUND: We recently discussed how there was a looming vacancy for Delegate Tiffany Alston's District 24 House seat. We noted that Alston had copped a plea after facing criminal charges for misuse of taxpayer funds and that prosecutors insisted the agreement would trigger Alston's suspension from office. Now Delegate Alston's Prince George's-based seat is going to filled through a vacancy appointment process in the Prince George's County Democratic Central Committee (PGDCC). It also turns out that the recently re-elected Chair of the PGDCC himself, Terry Speigner, is interested in the position. This is a bit "ironic" since The Gazette just noted that Speigner would be guiding the recommendations of the PGDCC as it worked to fill the vacancies created by Alston and Delegate Justin Ross (excerpt below):

GAZETTE: As chairman, Speigner will guide the committee as it makes recommendations to fill two House vacancies in the next few weeks: one in District 22, for the seat held by Del. Justin D. Ross (D) of Hyattsville until he retires from the House on Nov. 9; and one in District 24, for the seat held by Del. Tiffany T. Alston (D) of Mitchellville until two weeks ago, when she was suspended from office after pleading no contest to a charge that she misused campaign money. Hearings to fill the two seats are scheduled for Nov. 15 and Nov. 2, respectively.

Below you can see that Terry Speigner is now actively seeking the appointment for the District 24 House vacancy. An anonymous Maryland Juice reader forwarded us a copy of the email Speigner is sending to activate his supporters. Check out his action campaign below -- it also happens to include instructions on how District 24 residents can apply for the vacancy themselves:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Terry Speigner 
Date: Monday, October 29, 2012
Subject: URGENT REQUEST: I personally need your help this week
To: Terry Speigner <speigner@ngen.com>

Hello neighbors,

As you may recall, Delegate Tiffany Alston was suspended from the Legislative District 24 Maryland House of Delegates on October 9, 2012. The Maryland Constitution requires that the Central Committee submit a name to the Governor within 30 days to fill a vacancy. This could be a temporary appointment or an appointment to complete her unexpired term through December 2014.

I am writing to let you know that I am seeking the appointment of the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee to fill the vacancy in the Legislative District 24 Maryland House of Delegates.

For many years, together we have worked to make District 24 and our County a place where our children, our seniors, schools, safety, economic prosperity and high community standards are priorities. I am running because I want to continue the great work we have done and with your support I will continue our work in Annapolis, where I along with Senator Joanne Benson and Delegates Carolyn J.B. Howard and Michael Vaughn can bring back money and resources to our communities.

The vacancy public hearing for this process will take place on Friday, November 2, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. at the Glenarden City Hall – Goldroom. I am asking you to attend and to show your support for my candidacy.

How can you help? You can send a letter of support via email to me as soon as possible before Friday, November 2, 2012. Please address the letter to: PGCDCC| 4725 Silver Hill Road, Suitland, Maryland 20746 (Please remember to email your letter of support to me).

Ways You Can Help District 24 and Terry Speigner:

1.       Write a letter of support for me. What do you put in a letter of support?

·         I know Terry through his involvement with….

·         Terry will serve us well because….

·         He is committed to his community…..

2.       Please attend the hearing on Friday, November 2^nd @ 7pm to testify for me or to just show your support.

In closing, I know some people are wondering if I can serve as the simultaneously as the Chairman of the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee and in the House of Delegates. The simple answer is yes I can do both.

Please see the information below on the public hearing for the vacancy appointment hearing.

Please call me should you have any questions at 202.550.2782. I thank you in advance for your support.

Best Regards,   Terry L. Speigner 9907 Rosa Vista Court | Mitchellville, MD 20721
202.550.2782 – Cell

Contact: Terry Speigner, Chairman Phone: (202) 550-2782

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

24^th District House of Delegates Vacancy appointment PUBLIC hearing

Suitland, MD, October 21, 2012:  The Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee (PGCDCC) will hold a hearing on Friday, November 2, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. for the purpose of filling a vacancy in the Maryland House of Delegates for Legislative District 24. The hearing will be held at the City of Glenarden Municipal Center – Goldroom, 8600 Glenarden Parkway, Glenarden, MD 20706.

Legislative District 24 residents interested in being considered for appointment to this vacancy must follow the instructions below:

1. Submit a letter of interest and resume to the PGCDCC no later than Wednesday, October 31, 2012 by 11:59 p.m. (letters received after this date and time will not be accepted)
2. Include a copy of your voter registration card. Only registered Democrats will be considered for the vacancy.
3. Include evidence that you currently live in Legislative District 24 (copy of utility bill and one of the following; copy of apartment lease or copy of property tax bill or record)
4. Bring 24 copies of your complete package to the hearing on November 2, 2012 (one copy for each PGCDCC member)

Please email, fax or mail your complete package as follows:

• Via email to: Nora E. Carmichael (nec872@aol.com); Alonzo T. Washington (atwashington@gmail.com) and Terry L. Speigner (terry@ngen.com) – Send email to all three.
•  Via mail delivery: PGCDCC | 4725 Silver Hill Road, Suitland, Maryland 20746
•  Via fax: 301-531-9722

-End-

Best Regards,   Terry L. Speigner Chairman | Prince George's County Democratic Central Committee 4725 Silver Hill Road Suitland, Maryland 20746 202-550-2782 - Cell http://www.pgdems.com terry@ngen.com

RUMORS // Surprising Candidates Emerge to Replace Retiring MD House Members: Delegates Justin Ross & Liz Bobo

Adam Ortiz

TRIPLE-UPDATE: Another Maryland Juice reader adds a name to the list of possible candidates for Del. Justin Ross' District 12 House seat:

• Kisha Brown, a staff member of the Attorney Generals office

DOUBLE-UPDATE: A Maryland Juice reader adds one more name to the list of possible candidates for Del. Liz Bobo's District 12 House seat:

Jason Booms, a pollster and former Republican turned Democrat

UPDATE: An anonymous source adds one more name to our list of possible District 22 appointees. Our source is hearing some buzz around the following name :

Adam Ortiz, the former Mayor of Edmonston and a member of P.G. County Exec. Rushern Baker's staff.

DISTRICT 22 HOUSE CANDIDATES: Last week, Delegate Justin Ross stunned Maryland politicos by announcing his mid-term retirement from the Maryland House. The Prince George's County Democrat's departure will now trigger an appointment process to fill his District 22 House seat for the remainder of his term. A knowledgeable source has informed Maryland Juice that several Prince George's Democrats' names are now circulating as possible appointees to replace Justin Ross in the legislature. Maryland Juice found this list a bit surprising at first, but upon second thought it makes sense. See further discussion below:

• Will Campos, Prince George's County Councilmember (District 2)
• Alonzo Washington, Will Campos' Chief of Staff
• David Sloan, Maryland Democratic Party Executive Director
• Adam Ortiz, former Edmonston Mayor

Note that Will Campos is facing term limits for his County Council seat in 2014. Even more interesting is that Campos currently lives in District 22, but after the 2014 redistricting kicks in, he will be moved to District 47B.


APPOINTMENT PROCESS FOR D22 VACANCY: Because Delegate Ross is not finishing out his full four-year term, there is over a year until voters will next elect a District 22 House member. In such an instance, the Prince George's County Democratic Central Committee will appoint a temporary House member to replace the vacant D22 seat.

Under Article III, Section 13, of the Maryland Constitution, the Governor is responsible for filling the legislative vacancy within 30 days after the vacancy is created (November 9). The Prince George's Democratic Central Committee shall submit a name to the Governor for the vacancy within the same 30 day period. If the Central Committee doesn't act by the deadline, the Governor will appoint a Democrat within 15 days.

Some are asking whether the new legislative districts or the old lines will be in place for the appointment. Sources indicate that the old lines will be likely used (pending confirmation from attorneys). If this is correct, Will Campos would have to move in order to run for re-election, should he be selected to replace Justin Ross.


JUSTIN ROSS RESIGNATION HIGHLIGHTS STAGNANT HOUSE LEADERSHIP DYNAMICS: Ever since Justin Ross announced his sudden resignation from the Maryland House, numerous legislators have privately blasted the stagnant leadership dynamics in the State legislature. The Washington Post's John Wagner made the following observation when announcing Ross' retirement (excerpt below):

WASHINGTON POST: Though Ross attributed his decision to leave mid-term to his family and business situations, some colleagues noted that other leadership opportunities in the House have been limited. That is due in part to several veteran committee chairmen whose continued service in the chamber has limited upward movement among younger delegates....

GRAYING LEGISLATIVE LEADERS CLINGING TO POWER: Indeed, most members of leadership in Maryland's House and Senate have served for decades in the same positions. Occasionally some of the smaller leadership positions have changed hands and legislative leaders have sometimes invented fake leadership positions to placate the rank and file. But the reality is that the top spots have been occupied by the same gang of graying party bosses for many years. Given that not a single top legislative leader has decided to retire, talented Democrats are dropping off like flies, just so that leadership can cling to power for another four years. In fact, both Senate President Mike Miller and House Speaker Mike Busch shored up their re-election prospects in the last round of redistricting. Those line changes caused a lot of groaning among their colleagues.

And now veteran lawmakers who have been loyal to leadership for years are all packing their bags. Meanwhile, younger, ambitious legislators are become increasingly frustrated with the lack of upward mobility in the Maryland Assembly. Just look at the number of legislators who are contemplating leaving to run for another office in 2014. After Justin Ross' resignation, Maryland Juice received a number of private complaints about these dynamics from politicos. The truly disappointing aspect of this problem is that nobody seems to want to do anything about it. Instead everyone seems to be giving up and is content to leave things be. They seem to not see the massive turnover in both the House and Senate that is possible in 2014....


UPDATE ON DISTRICT 12 HOUSE CANDIDATES: A few weeks ago, Maryland Juice wrote about District 12 Delegate Liz Bobo's planned retirement from the Maryland House. Unlike Delegate Ross, Bobo plans to finish out her term until the next election. But already, a number of names are circulating as potential candidates for her seat in 2014. See a quick round-up from the rumor-mill below:

• Mary Kay Sigaty (Howard County Councilmember)
• Janet Siddiqui (Howard County Board of Education member)
• Alan Klein (ran against Sigaty in 2010 in primary; backed by Bobo and lost)
• Terri Hill (Doctor Ethel Hill's daughter. Ethel is president of HoCo Thurgood Marshall group)
• Dylan Goldberg (works for HoCo delegate in Annapolis, Young Dem)
• Lee Richardson (Chair of the Town Center Community association) 
• Anne De Lacy (HoCo Board of Education candidate)
• Jahantab Siddiqui (former Mikulski aide, nephew of Janet Siddiqui)
• Clarence Lam (Doctor, HoCo Community Action Council Chair, HoCo Dem Central Committee member, DNC Delegate, President of HoCo Young Dems, community activist)
• Jason Booms (pollster and former Republican turned Democrat)

Delegate Justin Ross to Resign from Maryland House // Prince George's Democrat to Vacate District 22 Seat on November 9

Sources are buzzing that Delegate Justin Ross is apparently resigning from the Maryland House of Delegates as of November 9th. Ross is a Democrat who represents House District 22 in Prince George's County. A reader forwarded us the following email announcement:

Del. Justin Ross

JUSTIN ROSS: I am writing to tell you that after 10 amazing years representing you in the Maryland House of Delegates that I will be retiring on November 9th to spend more time with my lovely wife, my 4 beautiful children, and to concentrate on giving back to Prince George’s County as a private citizen and as a member of the business community. Words cannot possibly express the gratitude I feel for the opportunities that you have given me. Representing my hometown in the legislature over the past decade has truly been a dream come true. 

Together, we have been part of some important political battles back in Prince George’s County, as well as some truly historic votes in Annapolis. I have had the pleasure of meeting some of the most committed neighborhood activists around, as well as serving with some of the most honorable public servants, Democrats and Republicans. The experience was a true gift, in every sense of the word, so please allow me just a couple of thoughts that I would like to share.

BREAKING: Prince George's Officials to Back Derrick Leon Davis for County Council

UPDATE: Today's canvass-rally has been re-scheduled from SAT 8/26 to SAT 9/10. Irene!

Tomorrow, numerous Prince George's elected officials are expected to back Derrick Leon Davis for County Council. Davis is running for the District 6 seat which is currently up for a special election (voting info here).

The dates for the Special Primary Election and the Special General Election are September 20, 2011 and October 18, 2011, respectively. The polls for each election open at 7:00 A.M. and close at 8:00 P.M.

Mr. Davis hails from Mitchellville, Maryland and is a former O'Malley appointee and Chair of the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund. According to an invitation leaked to Maryland Juice, tomorrow Davis is hosting a morning rally-canvass featuring the following special guests: