State Roundup, June 25, 2014

Here are some of the top primary stories. We’ll have more in tomorrow’s roundup.

BROWN, HOGAN WIN: Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown claimed victory in the Democratic nomination for governor Tuesday after early returns suggested a landslide win, report Erin Cox and Michael Dresser in the Sun. “It’s about where we’re going. It’s about what next,” Brown said in a victory speech as he led with three times as many votes as his closest competitor. He is positioned to become Maryland’s first African-American chief executive. In the Republican race, former Ehrlich administration official Larry Hogan accepted the GOP nomination after Harford County Executive David R. Craig, conceded defeat.

• Jenna Johnson and John Wagner in the Post summarize the contests.
• With a showdown set, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown and Larry Hogan in primary election victory speeches Tuesday night laid out two options, Alex Jackson reports in the Capital.

FROSH OVERCOMES CARDIN: Brian E. Frosh, a veteran state senator from Montgomery County who championed gun control and environmental protection, defeated two opponents to win Tuesday’s Democratic primary for Maryland attorney general, Jeff Barker reports in the Sun. Frosh, 67, held a commanding lead over Baltimore County Del. Jon. S. Cardin — the nephew of U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin — and state Del. Aisha N. Braveboy of Prince George’s County.

• Frosh swept to a come-from-behind victory Tuesday after trailing badly just four months ago in the three-way contest for the Democratic nomination for Maryland attorney general, writes Arelis Hernandez in the Post.

ESTABLISHMENT WINS: It was a good night for Democratic incumbents in the legislature and the Democratic establishment throughout the state as favored candidates from top to bottom did well in Tuesday’s primary. There were only nine State House incumbents who lost, while newcomers backed by incumbents won, reports MarylandReporter.com. The Republican establishment did not fare quite as well, losing two incumbent senators. This article contains a rundown of scores in contested primary contests.

LEGGETT VICTORIOUS: Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett, who asked voters for a chance to govern in better times after two-terms of recession-spawned austerity, was victorious Tuesday in the Democratic primary, Bill Turque reports in the Post.

SHUH BEATS NEUMAN: The appointed Anne Arundel county executive, Laura Neuman, finally conceded the race after midnight to Del. Steve Schuh, report Reman Rahman and Jack Lambert in the Capital. Neuman says she won’t run for another office.

• The seeds of Laura Neuman’s defeat were there all along, but her dazzling personality, compelling back story and the prospect of an outsider claiming Anne Arundel’s biggest political prize prevented her ardent supporters from seeing them, writes Rick Hutzell in a Capital analysis. From the clarity of early Wednesday morning though, he gives five reasons why Neuman lost.
• The Capital has a gallery of election night photos with emphasis on the executive race.

FREDERICK EXECUTIVE: Commissioners President Blaine Young was poised to glide through the Republican primary for Frederick County executive Tuesday, setting him up for a general election showdown with Democrat Jan Gardner, Bethany Rodgers reports in the Frederick News-Post.

HOUGH DEFEATS BRINKLEY: A conservative Republican who allied himself with the tea party defeated one of his own party’s top leaders in the Maryland General Assembly, even as several other veterans easily survived spirited opposition from inside their own ranks in Tuesday’s primary election. Fred Kunkle reports in the Post.

SIMONAIRE DAUGHTER NOMINATED: Public life indiscretions may have finally caught up with Del. Don Dwyer, who will not appear on the November ballot as one of two potential Republican candidates for a north county district race, the Capital reports. His waning support made way for political newcomer Meagan Simonaire to surge ahead of the pack of eight Republicans vying for the seats in District 31B, putting her closer to following in her father State Sen. Bryan Simonaire’s political footsteps.

ARUNDEL COUNCIL RACES: County Councilman Dick Ladd lost his seat Tuesday night as an ultra-conservative presidential candidate appeared headed for a close victory in the District 5 Republican primary, Sarah Hainesworth reports in the Capital. Ladd said he began picking up campaign signs as the results made it clear he would be the only incumbent councilman to lose in the primary. He said he was disappointed but declined to comment further.

ARUNDEL CHOICES: Rick Hutzell in the Capital presents Anne Arundel County voters with some of their choices in the November election.

MOSBY DEFEATS BERNSTEIN: Marilyn J. Mosby defeated Baltimore City State’s Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein on Tuesday after criticizing him for failing to live up to promises he made four years ago to win the office., Ian Duncan reports in the Sun. He recaps other courthouse offices.

LOW TURNOUT EMBARRASSING: Sun columnist Dan Rodricks says the low turnout is embarrassing, and runs through the excuses.

CALVERT CANDIDATES’ BIG BUCKS: As Tuesday’s primary election drew closer, candidates for Calvert County commissioner, sheriff and school board raised — and spent — thousand of dollars on their campaigns, reports Sarah Fleischman in The Calvert County Recorder.

• Fleischman and Sara Newman from the Recorder also summarized the Calvert County Board of Education results.

ST. MARY’S PRIMARY RESULTS: Steve Waugh of Lusby won a second chance through Tuesday’s Republican primary, according to unofficial results, to challenge state Sen. Roy Dyson (D) in this fall’s general election, writes John Wharton in the St. Mary’s County Enterprise. Waugh, who narrowly lost his bid in 2010 to unseat the now five-term incumbent, defeated two GOP challengers this week, St. Mary’s County commissioners Larry Jarboe and Cindy Jones.

• Matt Morgan tallied more than 45 percent of the vote in a three-way Republican primary contest on Tuesday, soundly defeating his two opponents in his bid to succeed a longtime northern St. Mary’s County member of the Maryland House of Delegates, Wharton also wrote.

SLUGGISH VOTING: Charles County precincts reported tepid turnout during the morning hours of the 2014 primary election Tuesday, though poll workers were otherwise pleased that voters who did turn out to cast ballots were able to do so without issue, Jeff Newman reports in the Maryland Independent.

BROWN & HIGHER EDUCATION: Over the past seven years, tuition at Maryland’s public colleges and universities has grown at an average rate of 3.3 percent per year, and the state’s institutes of higher education have dropped from the 10th most expensive to the 24th least, opines the Diamondback’s Editorial Board. Anthony Brown has promised more of the same.

HOWARD COUNTY PRIMARY:  Howard County Executive Ken Ulman cleared the first hurdle to the State House on Tuesday night as he and gubernatorial running mate Anthony Brown clinched the Democratic nomination with about 50 percent of the vote, writes Amanda Yeager for the Howard County Times. With the team’s victory Tuesday, Ulman becomes the Democratic contender for lieutenant governor in Maryland’s November general election, and, given the state’s solid Democratic base, has strong potential to be the first Howard Countian to serve in the office.

• With four retiring legislators and three more running for a different seat this election cycle, Howard County’s State House delegation will be filled with fresh faces when session starts in January, Yeager also reported.

COLBURN OUT: The tides have turned with the District 37 Senate race, because Del. Addie Eckardt beat current seat-holder Sen. Richard Colburn in the Republican primary after the unofficial results were released, reports Josh Bollinger for the Star Democrat. Colburn, 64, has been the senator for District 37 since winning the race in the 1994 general election. Now, District 37 will get a new senator following the outcome of the 2014 general election in November.

• In District 36, Incumbent Sen. Stephen Hershey clinched the Republican nomination, topping challenger Richard “Dick” Sossi by about 1,300 votes. Hershey will face Democrat Ben Tighman in November, writes Angela Price with the Bay Times.