The Baltimore County Council will look dramatically different when its new members take office in December.
On the dais will likely be a Black woman, a Gen Z member, two far-right Republicans and progressive Democrats who made it through a bruising primary.
A typically moderate, bipartisan group of seven, the new council will consist of nine people who don’t have history together, may not agree on much and are unlikely to follow the old rules.
Here are five takeaways from Tuesday’s primary.
More diversity
Former school board chair Makeda Scott held a commanding lead Wednesday over four other Democrats vying to represent District 3, which includes parts of Randallstown and Owings Mills. If she holds on, she will be favored to win the general election in the heavily Democratic northwest district and would become the county’s first Black councilwoman.
Only five women and two Black members have served on the council since it was established in 1956.
Two other Black women could join Scott, although they face steep odds in November: Sharonda Dillard-Huffman held a wide lead in the Democratic primary to represent Essex, Middle River and White Marsh. Democrat Arkia Wade was locked in a tight contest in her Dundalk district.
Candidates of color were also leading along the county’s western border. Ruben Amaya, who would be the first Latino elected to the council, and Lawrence Williams, who would be the council’s third Black member, were virtually deadlocked in the Democratic primary.
The election also ushered in a generational shift.
Law student Karson Kamenetz, the 25-year-old son of former County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, won the Democratic primary in District 4, which spans Pikesville, Lochearn and Milford Mill. If Amaya, also 25, serves alongside Kamenetz, the council would have two Gen Z members.
Is bipartisanship dead?
In Towson, bipartisanship has ruled the day.
Among the significant laws that moved through with Democratic and Republican support: expanding the council, barring an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility from moving to the county, creating a Department of Agriculture and strengthening the office of the Inspector General. The moderate members generally keep matters civil.
The new crew may not follow suit. Dundalk’s Tim Fazenbaker, the presumptive Republican nominee in District 9 and an acolyte of President Donald Trump, has been censured by his own party for online harassment. Former state delegate and recently appointed Councilman Nino Mangione introduced legislation in Annapolis to ban certain books and gender-affirming care — divisive issues that other local councils nationwide have taken up but Baltimore County has not.
Dillard-Huffman, who has been campaigning for the seat for two years, regularly ridicules council members on social media for their votes, calling them “The Real Househusbands of Towson.” Paul Dongarra, the winner of the Democratic primary in District 1, has irritated establishment voices with his push for “smart growth” policies and his promise to vote against projects that tax existing infrastructure.
After an ugly campaign, Dongarra said he wants to put aside acrimony.
“The developer machine painted me in a light that is not fair and engaged in an online smear campaign,” Dongarra said Wednesday. “My hope is that my colleagues will see me as a resource.”
Fazenbaker, too, insists his opponents made him out to be something he is not. “This tenor will continue,” he said of his memes and occasional accusations on Facebook. “But with more professionalism.”
Public financing worked
In 2022, Dongarra raised about $30,000 for his run against Pat Young. He raised the same this year but with a key difference. He became the first candidate running for council to qualify for public financing.
Including taxpayer funds, he raised almost $110,000, enough to run a seven-week digital campaign, send out 10 mailers, run a texting outreach program and buy online ads.
“It was unbelievable, the notion of what we were able to do with the money,” Dongarra said.
Under a law passed in 2021, council candidates were eligible for taxpayer funds if they raised $15,000 in small-dollar donations. They were barred from accepting money from businesses, political action committees, unions or other special interests.
Though some said the bar to qualify for public financing was too onerous, those who qualified generally performed well.
Scott, a publicly financed candidate, was leading in District 3. She received $45,114 in public funds. Amaya, a front-runner in District 2, also participated in the program.
A huge fight is coming on housing
Karson Kamenetz lives with his grandmother. Like most young county residents, he says he can’t afford a home. But he’s planning to push for more affordable housing.
“Everybody is feeling the squeeze right now,” he said. “And that really is a demand from the voters, the stakeholders, for us as the leaders, to step up and make life more affordable.”
Fazenbaker feels adamant that Dundalk has borne the brunt of the affordable housing push. He may find common cause with Dongarra and also with Republican David Marks, who has downzoned more property for open space than any other council member.
Another ally against more housing would be conservationist Josh Sines, a Republican running against Huffman in the District 8 general election.
A debate on ‘councilmanic courtesy’
Councilmanic courtesy, the practice each council member has of not voting against projects in one another’s district, has long been a controversial practice. If a Pikesville council member supports a project a Towson colleague opposes, they may stay silent for fear of retaliation on future votes.
Dongarra says he’s “not a fan” of councilmanic courtesy. Fazenbaker said he’s taking a wait-and-see approach.
He likes advocating for his constituents but thinks it has been abused when developers influence members to change zoning on certain properties.
“I don’t have a full stance now on how it may need to be adjusted,” he said.
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