MPW On Fundraising In District 17

I just returned from leading a bipartisan candidate training seminar (more info about it here) and I was repeatedly chiding the candidates demanding they quit talking about their district numbers as if people really know where they are — people by and large have no clue what “district” they live in.

And here I am headlining an article with “District 17!” Well, mea culpa — I mean “the state legislative district that includes Our Fair City, Rockville!”

Okay, that said, our good friends at Maryland Politics Watch have done a quick analysis on the fundraising by all of the District 17 incumbents and candidates so far. It’s a nice wrap-up and is well worth the read.

District 17 Primary Features Big Fundraising

As Rockville Central readers know, Adam Pagnucco of Maryland Politics Watch, the most important political blog in Maryland, declared Rockville to be “ground zero” for state-level politics in the 2010 election cycle, as former delegate Cheryl Kagan announced a challenge to sitting state senator Jennie Forehand in District 17. Senator Forehand also has announced her intention to run for re-election. Later, Adam and his partner in crime Marc Korman have declared this race as therace to watch for 2010, in a comprehensive roundup of all the key primary races. ”Expect this to be an expensive, noisy, and exciting race,” says Korman.

Speaking of “expensive,” the state elections commission has posted the most recent fundraising numbers for Kagan and Forehand.  MPW has a comprehensive review here. Kagan outpaced Forehand in terms of money raised and has slightly more cash on hand. But, of more interest to me is the amount of money already at play in this race. The two candidates have a total cash on hand balance of $183,596.82.

That’s a lot of dough for a state level race in January!

I am not someone who thinks that money is evil and has no place in politics. On the contrary, I think fundraising results can be a good proxy for understanding where public sentiment is (not always, but sometimes), and certainly where the energy is. I see the money issue as a reflection that Adam and Marc are right: This is the race to watch.

Inauguration of Our New Mayor and Council

Yesterday the 62nd Mayor and Council were inaugurated in a packed F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre during a ceremony hosted by Eileen McGuckian, author and founder of Peerless Rockville, who sprinkled historical facts throughout her remarks. She wondered what the men who incorporated Rockville were thinking in 1860. What could they do separate from Montgomery County? But they had begun to identify as a village and embarked on the journey to establish our City.

Photo by Brigitta Mullican

As in most of our public ceremonies, musical entertainment enlivened the event. The Richard Montgomery High School Madrigals stole the show – with meaning. Director Ronald Frezzo explained their first piece was about Queen Elizabeth and “how together with the people, the rulers create a better society for us all.” Their singing of the National Anthem combined with the formality of the City Police Color Guard created a respectful introduction.

Photo by Brigitta Mullican

After Mayor Phyllis Marcuccio was sworn in, her first act was to swear in the councilmembers. After they all took the oath, she needed to have them all come back up and sign the Oath of Office. She called John Britton up and he noticed, “This is Bridget’s.” After being given another, he joked “They all say Bridget. What’s going on here?”

This, of course, set off a string of jokes about the situation.

Piotr Gajewski pretended to overly scrutinize his Oath and remarked “Name, check, date of birth, okay” then signed.

Bridget Newton signed.

Then Mayor Marcuccio said “Now I can’t possibly confuse this last one” as she called Mark Pierzchala and he responded, “Now we know why John is a lawyer.”

All the quips received laughter and I personally thought it was good to see the councilmembers interact in good spirits.

Photo by Brigitta Mullican

In her formal remarks Mayor Marcuccio said she would be putting forth a number of proposals for a citizen-driven future and she hoped they would be supported.

During her speech she outlined three groups to be formed and she invited anyone who was interested in serving to let her know.

The first is a Task Force on Finance and Budget which would spend time thoroughly reviewing the City’s finances and complete a report by the end of March 2010.

Another proposal was an Ad Hoc Committee on Communications to review how the City disseminates news by staff, Channel 11, the web, and newsletter. With all these avenues she noted that less than 17% of the voters cast a ballot, which she thought could not be explained by apathy alone.

She would like to hold council meetings beyond the official chambers in such places as Thomas Farm and Twinbrook to engage people and find out what’s on their mind.

Perhaps the biggest announcement was for a Charter Review Committee to consider the size and terms of the council. She said the council needs to expand to meet demands and the City Manager form of government needs to be clarified.

During the forums, the candidates were asked if changes to the council were merited in light of our increased population. Various opinions on expansion have been proposed. Rockville voters have repeatedly rejected longer terms.

The new Mayor saluted former Mayor Susan Hoffmann for all her contributions to the City. She emphasized that her green initiatives were forward thinking and added she was committed to follow-up on her efforts.

Eileen McGuckian commented that Mayor Marcuccio’s speech was a nice way of “looking to the past and looking to the future.”

For the final performance of American the Beautiful by the Madrigals, Maestro Piotr Gajewski, was welcomed as guest conductor. His son, a former member, joined the Madrigals to sing too. Of course the entire audience sung the first and last verses ending on a musical note together.

The first Mayor and Council meeting for this newly-inaugurated body is tonight at 7 PM in City Hall.

Inauguration Of New Mayor And Council: Nov. 22, 2009 at 1:00 pm

This from the City of Rockville:

The inauguration for the newly elected Mayor and Council is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 22, at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 603 Edmonston Drive.

Eileen McGuckian, Rockville historian, will be the master of ceremonies. The event will include the formal induction of the mayor and council, the presentation of colors by the Rockville City Police Department and a performance by the Richard Montgomery High School Madrigals.

Brenda Millette, Chief Deputy Clerk of the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, will administer the formal oath of office. She will swear in Mayor-elect Phyllis Marcuccio for her first term as mayor. Marcuccio served two terms as a council member before the election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

The mayor will then administer the oath of office to the four council members: John Britton and Piotr Gajewski, who were both elected to their second terms; and Bridget Newton and Mark Pierzchala, who were both elected to their first terms.

Rockville Channel 11 will broadcast live the inauguration ceremony, air it throughout the end of November and December, and will make it available On Demand on the City’s Web site, www.rockvillemd.gov.

The inauguration is free and open to the public. A reception will follow. No tickets are necessary.

Once again, Rockville Central congratulates the winning candidates and thanks all the candidates for their service.

Election Analysis From Greater Greater Washington

Yesterday, Rockville Central friend David Alpert, who blogs over at Greater Greater Washington, stepped into our little corner of the beltway to offer up some election analysis. Typical topics on Greater Greater Washington include smart growth, transit, public space, and traffic, so he writes about the election having a major repercussion on growth.

In the article Rockville votes for change: no change, he states that Phyllis Marcuccio built her political base on opposing most development in the City. He recounts a history of the Beall’s Grant II proposal and notes that opponents were against increased density in general, even in the center of Rockville.

He stipulates that Marcuccio wasn’t the only anti-change candidate noting wins by Bridget Newton who won the most votes overall, and Mark Pierzchala, who took the last seat on the Council.

Here’s a bit from his piece:

Naturally, the Rockville election hinged on many more issues than just development and the Beall’s Grant II project in particular. Pierzchala rides his bike to Metro year-round and ran primarily on a platform of open government. He also endorsed mixed-use development. Candidates talked about civility on the Council and the city’s budget.

David attended some of our Rockville Pike revisioning sessions and wonders if our new mayor and council support the Rockville Pike Plan. Perhaps some of our readers or newly-elected officials can help him out in the comments on his post.

Sentinel Interview with the Mayor-Elect Marcuccio

This week the Sentinel published an interview with Phyllis Marcuccio entitled Newly-elected Mayor of Rockville hits the ground running. Written by Glynis Kazanjian, the piece asks a dozen questions.

Here are some brief exerpts from the article to give you an idea of some of the topics covered in the interview. As this is a Sentinel article, I can’t reproduce it in it’s entirety but rather can only pass along some quotes. You can read the complete answers from Mayor-elect Marcuccio on their website.

When asked whether the city was running in a deficit, she answered “It depends on how you look at the term deficit.”

As to whether City Manager Scott Ullery will stay in place and if he does, will his job change, she responded, “I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t stay in place.” When discussing his responsibilities, she said “He and I talked very frankly about the fact that maybe he was put in the position of making decisions or recommending through his own initiative, or his staff’s, aspects of our policies that perhaps really belong within the Mayor and Council.”, and also, “ I do not feel there is any necessity to do anything independent of the council. That is inappropriate.”

When asked if she thought the criticisms of Councilman Gajewski were fair during the election she responded, “They weren’t strong enough in my estimation.”

When asked about crime, she said “There are some pockets of problems. Twinbrook has a little bit of edge to it right now, especially when it comes to the immigrants.” and “Because King Farm is one of the newest parts of the city, you would expect it to be squeaky clean and not have any issues. But some of the areas, we made – I think – a blunder by putting some of the low-cost housing in a pocket, the MPDU’s [(moderately priced dwelling units)] that were required when KF was developed. They are in an area and as a result, there is maybe a draw to the area from individuals that are kind of unsavory and they have caused trouble.”

Looking ahead she talks about her dream of a Science Center and a long-term goal of bringing the voice back to the citizens in the decision-making.

For the full article, visit the Sentinel.

Slideshow From Phyllis Marcuccio Victory Party

There is a terrific conversation going on at this post, picking apart some of the implications of yesterday’s Rockville city election. More analysis will be forthcoming from some of our favorite observers.

In the meantime, though, here is a slideshow taken by Rockville Central friend Chas Hausheer at mayor-elect Phyllis Marcuccio’s victory celebration last night. Enjoy!

Marcuccio Defeats Hoffmann For Mayor; Britton, Gajewski, Newton, Pierzchala On Council

The election results are in and there will be a new mayor of Rockville. Phyllis Marcuccio has defeated incumbent Susan Hoffmann in the race for mayor.

In the campaign for City Council, the winners are: John Britton, Piotr Gajewski, Bridget Newton, and Mark Pierzchala.

We will have more election numbers, analysis, and more in the upcoming days.

For now, a hearty congratulations to the winners from your friends at Rockville Central!

Election Day Details: You Can Still Register to Vote

Perhaps you are reading all of our election coverage on Rockville Central and you want to vote but you have never registered. Don’t fret! The Rockville Ordinance allows eligible residents to register ON Election Day. So on Tuesday, November 3, 2009 you can go to City Hall, 111 Maryland Avenue and cast your vote.

You must:

• Be a US Citizen
• Be at least 18 years old by November 3rd
• Bring proof of Rockville residency
• Bring photo identification such as a driver’s license or state ID card. If the ID does not have an address, a document from a corporation such as a lease, utility bill, student ID, or current real estate tax bill will be accepted.

So if you have just moved to Rockville or never did get around to registering – just do it!

If you are already registered then be sure go to the proper polling place. Two of the polling locations have changed. Voters in District 2 will now vote at Rockville Swim and Fitness Center, 355 Martins Lane, (previously Beall Elementary School) and voters in District 8 will now vote at Thomas Farm Community Center, 700 Fallsgrove Drive, (previously Lakewood Elementary School).

You can view a map of all the voting districts on the City’s website.

If you physically can’t access the voting room in the polling place, you can vote at the curbside. Simply arrive at the polls in a car and have a companion notify an election judge in the voting room of the need for assistance.

The results of the 2009 election will be available through Rockville Channel 11, the City’s Web site and at City Hall. Results on November 3rd but they’re not official until Tuesday, November 10th.

I hope you are going to join me at the polls!

Guess Who’s 18 Years Old Today

As you may have heard, Rockville City Council Candidate, Waleed Ovase, is a senior at Richard Montgomery High School. Today is his 18th birthday! So although he has been 17 while running for office, he will be old enough to be on the ballot this Tuesday, November 3, 2009.

His age has stirred up some media coverage for Rockville and our City Election.

He was interviewed by WUSA9 on video:

Teenager Hopes for City Council Victory for Birthday

and they have a story too.

He also by interviewed by WAMU Radio:

17 Year Old Hopes Voters Elect Him to Rockville City Council

and by the Kane Show on Hot 99.5 where they say “18 Year Old Running For City Council. This kid better at least get into a sweet college over this”.

Obviously, his campaign has been considered newsworthy beyond our local Rockville scene, so we thought our readers would like to know about the coverage.

And, I’d like to take this opportunity to wish him a “Happy Birthday!”

Rockville Central does not endorse candidates. We are encouraging towards all people who choose to run for office the city and try our best to make ourselves open to all. We actively encourage candidates to submit opinion pieces and other news. We don’t include every last bit, but we try to be fair to all and give useful information about what is happening.