1st District

Waving enthusiastically at cars that whizzed by on a busy Anne Arundel County thoroughfare last week, state Sen. Andy Harris looked every bit the genial doctor-turned-politician. With each honking horn - and there were quite a few - he offered a thumbs-up and a broad smile as he stood next to his black Ford pickup, just in front of a glaring yellow sign promoting his candidacy for Maryland's 1st Congressional District. But the eager grin fixed on his face didn't keep him from unleashing a barrage of critiques of his main rivals in Tuesday's Republican primary.

Traditionally, presidential candidates have spent little or no money on local TV advertising in advance of the Maryland primaries. By the time the day of voting arrived, there was usually little drama left. But in this year that is unlike any other in the history of national politics, the money is starting to flow to area TV stations - and in ways that it has never flowed before. Democratic candidate Barack Obama reserved advertising time in Baltimore before Super Tuesday, while representatives for Hillary Clinton started making her buys over the weekend.

From suicide and scandal to Robert E. Bauman's coming out of the closet, Maryland's 1st Congressional District has had its share of eye-opening moments. But at least throughout the years, the various congressional candidates have maintained a reasonable decorum - until now, that is. Never before has a 1st District Republican primary had a greater and more repugnant ado about little more than the misleading mailings and TV ads that have plagued the electorate for months.

TODD POINT -- Phil Spedden is a regular on the "liars bench" next to a roaring wood stove where locals have gathered daily for nearly 60 years in John Lewis' Grocery. They gossip, swap stories, sip coffee and wrangle over politics as somebody throws another log on the fire. This year, the talk is often about the unusually lively race in Maryland's 1st Congressional District, where two state legislators are trying to oust Rep. Wayne T. Gilchrest in the Republican primary. Spedden, a retired farmer, said various views can be heard about that among the wood-stove gang here in Dorchester County.

The rough-and-tumble Republican primary in Maryland's 1st Congressional District got wilder yesterday with the entry of a second state senator in the race against incumbent Wayne T. Gilchrest. Sen. E.J. Pipkin, a second-term Republican from the Eastern Shore, officially announced his candidacy yesterday, bringing a maverick streak - and a personal fortune earned on Wall Street - to a race that has gained national attention. Sen. Andrew P. Harris has been running since the spring, raising more than $500,000 this year and pulling in the support of national conservative advocacy groups, as well as former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. Pipkin said his campaign will focus on cutting taxes, reducing federal spending, stopping illegal immigration, and reforming the nation's utility regulations.

Barbs are flying in the 10th District City Council race where three candidates are criticizing incumbent Edward L. Reisinger's relationship with area business owners. "The incumbent claims to be there for the people," said Terry F. Hickey, one of the Democrats campaigning for the South Baltimore seat in the Sept. 11 primary election. "What I see him doing is creating a rift and slowing the process of real conversation between community and developers. He obviously has close ties to developers, builders and fund raising companies."

Republican Baltimore County Council candidate George T. Kapusinski is an information technology manager with no political experience to speak of, hoping to unseat a well-financed, 12-year incumbent. He knows it won't be easy, and that's why this summer he got hold of a pamphlet, How to Win a Local Race. A central tenet: Knock on as many doors as possible. "I've worn out three pairs of shoes," he said at his office last week, adding that he's lost 10 pounds since the start of his campaign.

One is a physician. Another, an attorney with 10 years' experience as an aide on Capitol Hill. And the third, a businessman who lost a run for the same seat two years ago. The three Democrats are competing in Tuesday's primary for the chance to represent Maryland's 1st Congressional District. But the real test won't come until November - taking on eight-term incumbent Wayne T. Gilchrest, the lone Republican candidate. The sprawling 1st District includes the Eastern Shore and small pieces of Anne Arundel, Harford and Baltimore counties.

The Baltimore City Council's 1st District has traditionally been known as the "fighting First," thanks to old rivalries among Democratic clubs. The council's realignment from six three-member districts to 14 single-member areas has rendered the old 1st District obsolete. But its namesake in the Nov. 2 general election has one major issue -- development -- that should maintain its pugnacious reputation for years to come. The Southeast Baltimore district is home to some of Baltimore's hottest waterfront neighborhoods -- Fells Point, Canton and the Inner Harbor's east side.