Maryland Democratic Party

The Maryland Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Maryland, headquartered in Annapolis.[1] The current state party chair is Yvette Lewis.[2]

Maryland Democratic Party
AbbreviationMDDEM
ChairYvette Lewis
President of the SenateBill Ferguson
Senate Majority LeaderGuy Guzzone
Speaker of the HouseAdrienne Jones
House Majority LeaderEric Luedtke
FoundedMay 21, 1827 (1827-05-21)
HeadquartersAnnapolis, Maryland, U.S.
IdeologyLiberalism
Progressivism
Social liberalism
Social Democracy
Political positionCenter to center-left
National affiliationDemocratic Party
Senate
32 / 47
House of Delegates
99 / 141
U.S. Senate
(Maryland seats)
2 / 2
U.S. House of Representatives
(Maryland seats)
7 / 8
Statewide Officers
2 / 4
County Executives
6 / 9
County Council / Commission Seats
55 / 129
Website
www.mddems.org
Party leaders Elijah Cummings, Martin O'Malley and Michael Cryor minutes before announcing Maryland's votes at the 2008 Democratic National Convention

History

The Maryland Democratic Party is among the oldest continuously existing political organizations in the world. On May 21, 1827, a meeting of Andrew Jackson supporters organized a political structure in the state designed to help Jackson win the Presidency after he was denied victory in the 1824 United States presidential election despite winning the popular vote. The first meeting of the Democratic (Jackson) Central Committee was held at the Atheneum in Baltimore City, located on the southwest corner of St. Paul and Lexington Streets.

Twelve delegates from each county and six delegates from Baltimore City were invited to attend. The label "Central Committee" was adopted along with a "Committee of Correspondence" which functioned like the present Executive Committee. Thomas M. Forman, Cecil County, was chosen to preside with William M. Beall, Frederick County, appointed Secretary and John S. Brooke, Prince George's County, appointed as Assistant Secretary. In addition to its founding, the Maryland Democratic Party hosted the first six Democratic National Conventions from 1832 to 1852 held in Baltimore. On May 31, 1838, Maryland Democrats gathered in a state party convention to nominate William Grason for Governor. He became the first popularly elected Governor in Maryland with the help of central committees throughout the state.

After the ratification of the Suffrage Amendment in 1920, the Democratic State Central Committee added an equal number of women to its membership, a practice still embodied in National Party Rules and in the elections for Cecil County Democratic State Central Committee.[3]

The first six Democratic National Conventions were held in Baltimore, for a total of nine to date.

Historically the Democratic Party has been the dominant party in Maryland politics. The party has held continuous control of the Maryland General Assembly since 1920, the longest currently running streak of control by a single party of a state legislature in the United States.

Elected officials

Members of Congress

Democrats comprise eight of Maryland's ten-member Congressional delegation:[4]

U.S. Senate

Since 1987, Democrats have controlled both of Maryland's seats in the U.S. Senate:

U.S. House of Representatives

Democrats hold six of the eight seats Maryland is apportioned in the U.S. House following the 2000 census:

Statewide officeholders

Beginning in January 2015, Democrats control two of the four statewide offices:

County government

Until 2010, the Democratic Party of Maryland held majority power at the County level. As of 2018 the Democrats only hold control in nine out of 23 Maryland's county governments including Baltimore City.

Party organization

Party Chairs (1988-present)

Party officers
  • Party Chair: Yvette Lewis
  • First Vice Chair: Senator Cory McCray
  • Second Vice Chair: Allison Galbraith
  • Third Vice Chair: Nicole Williams
  • Treasurer: Robert J. Kresslein
  • Secretary: Robbie Leonard
  • Deputy Treasurer: Jeffery Slavin
  • Deputy Secretary: Abena Affum-McAllister

Party staff
  • Executive Director: Ben Smith
  • Political Director: Michael Bayrd
  • Fundraising Director: Jamie Conway
  • Operations Director: Morgan Murphy
  • Communications Director: Arinze Ifekauche
  • Digital Director: Patrick Fowler
  • Data & Targeting Director: Sam Hubbard

Affiliated groups
  • United Democratic Women's Clubs of Maryland
  • Young Democrats of Maryland
  • Democratic Women's PAC of Maryland
  • United Democrats of Frederick County
  • Green Dems
  • Democratic Party (United States)

See also

References
  1. "Contact". Maryland Democratic Party. Archived from the original on June 21, 2010. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
  2. Amenabar, Teddy (December 7, 2019). "Md. Democrats elect former chairwoman Yvette Lewis to lead party through 2022 elections". Washington Post.
  3. Willis, John T. "A Brief History of the Maryland Democratic Party". Maryland Democratic Party. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015.
  4. "Directory of Representatives | House.gov". United States House of Representatives.
  5. Wood, Pamela (December 7, 2019). "Maryland Democrats turn to prior leader, Yvette Lewis, to guide party through to 2022 elections". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
  6. Wiggins, Ovetta (December 1, 2018). "Maryland Democrats elect Maya Rockeymoore Cummings as state party chair". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 11, 2019. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  7. Turque, Bill (May 6, 2017). "Kathleen Matthews elected Maryland Democratic Party chair". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  8. "Chairs". Maryland Democratic Party. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015.
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