Who wants what from Will Jawando?

Will Jawando, who won the county executive primary in June, has had months to plan for a new administration.

The Associated Press called the race at 1 a.m. Wednesday. The Democrat and longtime at-large County Council member trounced Republican Esther Wells in deep-blue Montgomery County.

At an election watch party in Bethesda Tuesday night, Jawando ticked off promises.

“Everyone should have a great school in their neighborhood. Everyone should have a safe neighborhood,” he said. “Everyone should be able to retire with dignity. Everyone should have a job that pays a livable wage. Those are the things we fight for in Montgomery County.”

The Banner asked Jawando Tuesday night about his priorities as he tries to fulfill those promises. We also asked other community leaders what they would put at the top of his agenda.

Jawando’s list

Jawando said his first priority is building a “really smart” executive team, including a new police chief. Former Chief Marc Yamada was asked to resign in September after the release of a critical report from the county’s Office of the Inspector General.

At the helm of county government, Jawando will propose the county’s next budget in the face of a growing deficit. “I’m going to be developing a budget that prioritizes education, affordable housing, protects our seniors,” he said.

On the council, Jawando has supported increasing funding for Montgomery County Public Schools, a source of tension during budget deliberations in recent years. Critics argue against such increases in light of declining enrollment.

Jawando, who supported legislation that placed an 18-month moratorium on data center development in July, will have significant influence on how the county moves forward as data center development increases nationwide. He told The Banner Tuesday that he plans to introduce changes to county tax policies that would impact data centers.

Others’ asks

Here is what some community leaders said Jawando should focus on as he takes the helm of county government.

D. Reed of Silver Spring, the Maryland policy director for Greater Greater Washington, said Jawando needs to carefully address data centers.

“We know data centers are necessary, and we need to figure out where the appropriate places are for them to go,” Reed said. “We cannot simply let data center development go unchecked. We’ve seen what the consequences of that look like, especially our neighbors in Virginia.”

Reed also said they hope Jawando will work with Gov. Wes Moore on his state housing production targets.

“Montgomery County is on tap to produce like 46,000 homes by 2030 to address its share of the state’s housing shortage. It is ambitious, but I believe that Will is up to it,” Reed said.

Demitrius Henriquez, an organizer with Housing Justice Montgomery, said Jawando could “effectively end homelessness in Montgomery County.”

It’s possible, Henriquez said, if Jawando pushes the Housing Opportunities Commission to establish a homelessness preference for turnover vouchers and to fully fund budget recommendations for homelessness services in the county.

Cindy Douglas, a leader with Action in Montgomery, a nonpartisan community organizing group, said the group will ask Jawando to support different types of housing, including duplexes and townhomes within a mile of transit stations, and fund legal representation for residents detained by ICE.

Ron Halber, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, said he hopes Jawando will double the amount of funding available for religious groups and other eligible nonprofits through the security grant program, which helps vulnerable groups pay for cameras, guards and other protective measures.

“I hope personally one day those funds will no longer be needed,” Halber said. But as antisemitism persists, “the need for security for the Jewish community has become more pressing than ever before.”

Phillip Alexander Downie, executive director of the MoCo Pride Center, said he plans to press the administration to increase funding for the center’s popular programs, including LGBTQIA+ wellness, HIV prevention and testing, and transgender legal and identity-document assistance.

“These services require sustained public investment,” Downie said. “We cannot continue expanding access, addressing unmet needs, and supporting our most vulnerable neighbors without the financial resources necessary to maintain and grow this infrastructure.”