Former school board member ekes out a win in the crowded register of wills race

Jocelyn Route, a former Bladensburg council member and at large member of the Prince George’s County board of education, eked out a victory in an 11-candidate primary battle to run a quiet corner of local government: register of wills.

The lesser-known elected office is responsible for largely administrative tasks such as processing wills, appointing personal representatives to handle estates and serving as the clerk for Prince George’s County Orphans’ Court.

Route’s 20% of the vote was just enough to defeat 26-year-old law student Kayla Bryant, who was ahead by about 1,200 votes after the day of the election despite receiving no political endorsements. (Gov. Wes Moore’s endorsed candidate, Antwan C. Brown, finished third with 13% of the vote.)

Route, a social worker, death doula and mother of five, was elected to the Bladensburg Town Council in 2019 before she was appointed to the board of education in 2023.

But it wasn’t until 2024, following the death of her father, that Route said she became aware of the office she will now hold or its function.

“It hit me, I was the oldest and I had to execute what my father wanted,” Route said. “That was when I was introduced to estate planning and end-of-life care. It was through my own lived experiences.”

During her campaign, Route leaned on her political connections.

She appeared on sample ballots and slates alongside established political leaders, including state Sen. James Rosapepe, Sen. Malcolm Augustine and Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk. She also received the maximum allowed $6,000 contribution from County Executive Aisha Braveboy’s campaign committee.

Route says she would use her term to educate residents about the probate process, how to register a will and end-of-life planning more broadly.

“I am interested in bringing the register of wills office to the community,” Route said. “I envision some type of mobile unit that we can use to go into communities, because there are transportation issues. There are people who just can’t get down to the courthouse.”

Bryant, a first-time candidate and former register of wills employee, boasted intimate knowledge of the office’s inner workings and experience in estate planning. She didn’t have a campaign manager and instead, she said, leaned on her church family to get the word out.

“Last year, I heard that Ms. Lee was going to be retiring,” Bryant said of the current register of wills, Cereta Lee, who was elected in 2006 and is serving her fifth term. “I sat and I spoke with her about it, and she told me, go for it. When she ran, there were naysayers saying, ‘You’re not going to win.’ And she won.”

Bryant said the large field of opponents initially made her anxious. But that feeling faded as she looked closer. To her, many candidates looked like “chefs trying to work on a car.”

“That position and that office specifically, you have to have a heart for the people,” Bryant said. “You have to have a heart to serve. You can’t just get in that position and think that it’s sweet and I don’t have to do anything. … The office could definitely use some enhancement.”

For Bryant, the sting of the loss is fresh. For now, she’s preparing for what she’ll do next after finishing law school.

“What I can do and what I can offer individuals in estate planning and estate administration is beneficial,” Bryant said. “I think I may take the route where I am practicing: drafting wills, drafting trusts and taking people through estate administration, while also doing my little community outreach on the weekends to educate the community. … I’m still figuring it out.”

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