Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks will become a member of the United States Senate in January. If she waits to give up her current job until right before then, her successor would be chosen from among the county council members eyeing a promotion.
Her successor might come from the county council, but it’s likely that whoever finishes out her term will do so by winning another special election next year. It’s expected that Alsobrooks will be giving up her job as county executive sooner rather than later, setting off a special election likely to stretch into at least early summer.
If that happens, Chief Administrative Officer Tara Jackson would fill in as county executive until that election is held and certified, although she’s not expected to be a candidate for the full time job. though.
So who is?
The names mentioned the most include two current members of the county council: the county’s top prosecutor, and someone who held the job once before. That includes State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy, who is in her second term as the county’s top prosecutor.
As a former state delegate who represented the central part of the county, she could be considered the most progressive of the names being mentioned as candidates so far. She would likely get the backing of the more progressive groups in the county should she run, which is expected.
At-large councilmember Calvin Hawkins is a charismatic figure on the council, but one who has had his scrapes with his more progressive colleagues during his six years in office. He’s been working to heal some of those wounds over the last year.
Prior to his election to the county council in 2018, he was a senior advisor to former county executive Rushern Baker. He’s also close with Alsobrooks and her family. Hawkins has been holding several events around the county aimed at bolstering his name at the grassroots level.
At-large councilmember Jolene Ivey, who currently chairs the council and just won a special election for a county-wide seat, is also expected to run for county executive. While her husband just won a second term in Congress, Jolene Ivey is just as well-known in county politics too, having served as a state delegate for several years before running statewide for Lt. Governor in 2014.
She almost ran against Alsobrooks for county executive in 2018, before running for and winning the District 5 seat on the county council instead.
Baker’s name is also getting mentioned as a possible candidate. He served two terms in Prince George’s County, from 2010-2018, and then ran for governor in 2018 and 2022, failing to advance out of the primary each time.
Baker pushed hard for major economic development projects when he was in office, including MGM National Harbor and the relocation of the FBI Headquarters to Greenbelt – a project that seems likely to be scrapped by the incoming Trump administration.
If a special election is held, a primary isn’t likely to occur before early spring, pushing a special general election into at least the early summer. It’s possible even more names could come into the mix between now and then.
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