Qiana Johnson, founder of Courtwatch PG advocacy group, elected court clerk

A criminal justice reform advocate who drew national media attention for her work monitoring court cases and jail conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic has ousted the incumbent Prince George’s County clerk of the circuit court.

Qiana Johnson, the founder of Courtwatch PG, received nearly 52% of about 70,500 votes in the countywide race, defeating Mahasin El Amin, who was first elected to the clerk’s office in 2018.

On Thursday, Johnson claimed victory online, thanking county residents “for believing in a new vision for our courts.”

Some had questioned Johnson’s background in her first run for office. She was convicted of two felonies stemming from a housing fraud scheme and spent 2 1/2 years in prison, according to media reports.

But Johnson said her experience in the criminal justice system led her to advocate for court and jail reforms, which made her uniquely qualified to improve the office.

Johnson has been studying Prince George’s County courts since she founded Courtwatch PG in 2017. It was her group’s advocacy that led to better testing protocols and the release of nonviolent offenders during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Johnson said.

“Court watching has drastically changed the trajectory of and the culture of Prince George’s County courts,” she said in an interview Thursday.

She added: “Now I have the background knowledge of the injustices, but I also have a platform.”

The clerk of the circuit court, who handles administrative functions, has typically been a bureaucratic post, sometimes seen as a stepping stone for other political offices.

Johnson said she plans to improve the office’s responsiveness and engage the community in legal literacy.

“People have a hard time getting access to records,” she said. “And that is what I’ve encountered as a leader in our community, helping other people navigate the court system.”

It was unclear Thursday evening whether there were mail-in ballots left to be counted.

El Amin, who had been endorsed by Attorney General Anthony Brown, U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and several local mayors, did not post about the election to any of her public social media pages.

Johnson said El Amin had not called her to concede around 5 p.m. on Thursday.

Other races finalized

Elsewhere in the county, Victor Ramirez received 60% of the vote, defeating challenger Daniel Armando Jones, for the Democratic nomination for the District 2 County Council seat.

Danielle Hunter, who was endorsed by County Executive Aisha Braveboy, defeated Joel Peebles Jr., receiving 46% of the vote in the Democratic primary for District 6. Peebles received 39%.

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