Dishing with Dems: Recent Episodes
Harford County Democratic Action Committee
Discussions with Harford County Democrats about current issues, upcoming elections, and why it's important to vote Democrat in Harford County.
Wini Roche is running for Harford County Council President. A longtime resident of Havre de Grace Wini is the former Tourism Manager for Harford County Government and City of Havre de Grace.
Since 2003 when she joined the tourism program for Havre de Grace; to 2015 when she launched Visit Harford , the visitor’s bureau for Harford County; to 2021, when Wini founded the nonprofit We Coalition of Maryland and Willow House charity shop in Aberdeen – Wini has devoted her talent and energy to making Harford County thrive and improving the lives of people who live here.
Steve Johnson, who has served as Delegate for District 34A since 2019, is running to hold his seat which represents the most populous communities in Harford County; Havre de Grace, Aberdeen, Belcamp, Abingdon and Edgewood.
As Delegate Mr. Johnson is a member of the Health and Government Operations Committee, Public Health and Minority Health Disparities Subcommittee as well as the Government Operations and Health Facilities Subcommittee. Johnson is a prolific lawmaker, with 34 of his sponsored and cosponsored bills being either enacted or approved by the Governor during this year’s legislative session alone. His bills focus on affordable and accessible healthcare, vocational training, professional opportunity and economic development.
Jacob Bennett is running for Harford County Council District F. He grew up in Harford County, when through Harford county public schools and now lives in Havre de Grace. Bennett has been a teacher in Harford County public schools for 7 years and currently teaches sixth grade at Magnolia Middle School.
Candidate Jacob Bennett is endorsed by the AFL-CIO, Protect Perryman Peninsula, The Harford County Educators Association, The Sierra Club, Progressive Harford, Mom’s Demand Action ,the Harford County Municipal Lodge #128 of the Fraternal Order of Police and most recently, the Mayor of Havre de Grace, Bill Martin.
Jacob is also the youngest County Council candidate in recent memory, he missed the Gen Z threshold by a single year!
Today I’m speaking with Gillian Miller candidate for Delegate, District 34B. A resident of Harford County for over 20 years, and a pro-choice mother of seven and grandmother of four, Miller is running for Delegate in District 34B because she believes change is needed in Harford County. Her platform is broad albeit focused on improving the lives of all of Harford’s citizens;
· Accessible public transportation,
· Improved public school curriculum to increase reading levels for our children
· inclusion for our vulnerable populations
· Assuring clean water and air for all citizens
· and policies that foster financial equity and opportunity
Gillian’s campaign for Delegate 34B is endorsed by Mom’s Demand Action, Progressive Harford County and the Maryland State Education Association.
Andre Johnson, who has served as County Councilman for District A since 2018, is running for Delegate District 34A, which includes the most populous communities in Harford County; Havre de Grace, Aberdeen, Belcamp, Abingdon and Edgewood.
Since winning his Primary in July Andre has teamed up with fellow Democrat and current Delegate Steve Johnson against their Republican contenders for the two Delegate seats available in District 34A.
Mary-Dulany James, a Havre de Grace native and fifth-generation farm owner, is running for Maryland Senate District 34. James previously served as our Delegate representing Harford County. As Delegate she served on the House Appropriations Committee, Vice Chair of the Transportation and Environment Subcommittee, Chair of the Health and Human Resources Committee as well as the Joint Committee on Pensions, and was a member of the Oversight Committee for Program Open Space and Land Preservation.
During her tenure, Mary-Dulany brought back record amounts of money for school construction, resulting in six new modern high schools. She prevented money from being diverted from the state’s nationally-recognized land protection programs created by her late father Senate President William S. James, and brought Towson University to Harford County so that no one in the county would have to leave home to get an excellent and affordable 4-year college degree.
As the only legislator from Harford County in the past 25 years to serve on a Budget Committee, Mary-Dulany ensured that Harford County received its fair share of public investment. She supported local projects touching all communities in the county, including the Humane Society, the Havre de Grace Opera House, Maritime Museum, the Hosannah School, and the Edgewood Community Center on Route 40.
Mary-Dulany’s endorsements include the unions IBEW 24, Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 486, Steamfitters Local 602, the AFL-CIO and the Maryland State Educators Association.
Retired US Army Colonel Bill Montgomery is running for Harford County Council, District E - which includes the communities of Aberdeen, Bel Air, Churchville and Fountain Green.
Bill served as a US Army Officer for over 30 years, retiring in 2014. He is currently a federal contractor serving as a Technical Project Manager in support of the Program Executive Office, Enterprise Information Systems, based on Aberdeen Proving Ground.
In 2016, Bill was nominated to the Harford County Commission on Veterans Affairs where he advocates for local veterans and their families, connecting them to resources through outreach and education. In 2019, he joined Harford Community College as an Adjunct Professor in the Business & Applied Technology Division, teaching classes in Business Administration and Entrepreneurship.
Bill lives in Aberdeen with his wife Maria, who is also a US Army veteran and small business owner. They have two children who graduated from Aberdeen and Edgewood High Schools. Bill and Maria are members of the Maryland Food Bank Hunger Action Council, which ensures that everyone in Maryland has access to nutritious food.
Dave Harden is running for US Congress, Maryland District 1. Dave Harden wants to beat Andy Harris, so Dishing with Dems wants to meet Dave Harden!
Harden is a multi generation Marylander, raised on a farm in Westminster. He joined the Peace Corps at 22, which inspired a 17-year career in the Foreign Service, working in the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia and Africa. In 2016, President Obama nominated Harden as the Assistant Administrator for the US Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance. In 2019, Harden was awarded the Presidential Award for Distinguished Service, the highest award in the Foreign Service for “sustained extraordinary accomplishment in the conduct of the foreign policy”.
Dave Harden’s platform, which can be found on his website hardenforcongress.com, is moderately progressive, concerned with:
· Living wage job creation;
· supporting small businesses and Main Street communities;
· investing in public education including universal pre-school;
· expanding the ACA , or Obama Care, to include a public option;
· investing in renewable energy infrastructure;
· a bipartisan fix to our broken immigration system; and
· Foreign policy that addresses the global threat of authoritarianism.
Steve Johnson is running for a 2nd term as Delegate for District 34A, which includes the most populous communities in Harford County; Havre de Grace, Aberdeen, Belcamp, Abingdon and Edgewood. Delegate Johnson has represented District 34A since 2019, serving on the Health and Government Operations Committee, Public Health and Minority Health Disparities Subcommittees as well as the Government Operations and Health Facilities Subcommittee. Johnson and his wife own Johnson Family Pharmacy in Aberdeen, where he has also served as an auxiliary police officer. Steve Johnson has lived and worked in Harford County since 1980.
Since taking office in Annapolis in 2019 he is the primary sponsor of 20 bills and has cosponsored 167 bills, of which 82 have been signed into law. In 2022 alone, Johnson was the primary sponsor of 10 bills, six of which passed in both houses are now law.
His endorsements include the Maryland State Education Association which is the largest union and professional association in Maryland; the Service Employees International Union, The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, The Sheet Metal Worker’s International Association; the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, and the Public Interest Podcast.