7th District

Two-term Del. Bobby A. Zirkin appeared to be on his way to winning a hard-fought primary contest for a state Senate seat last night, and former Baltimore County Councilman Douglas B. Riley took a step toward returning to elected office. Zirkin had a more than 2-to-1 lead over Owings Mills physician Scott Rifkin for the Democratic nomination for the state Senate seat in a district that includes Pikesville and Owings Mills.

MARYLAND'S congressional races this year demonstrate clearly what a disservice the most recent redrawing of the district boundaries was to representative government. The map drawn after the 2000 Census made it easy for Democrats to claim two districts long held by Republicans, enlarging party ranks in what had been an evenly divided eight-member delegation. But the contortions of district boundaries required to achieve that goal sliced through communities and neighborhoods, often combining a hodgepodge of urban, suburban and rural voters with little in common.

Antonio P. Salazar, a Republican from Ellicott City and deputy general counsel for Provident Bank, plans to announce tomorrow his candidacy for Maryland's 7th District congressional seat - held by Baltimore Democrat Elijah E. Cummings. Salazar has scheduled announcements in Northwest Baltimore at 10:30 a.m., in Catonsville at the Candle Light Inn restaurant at 1:30 p.m., and in Columbia at the Swansfield Neighborhood Center at 4:30 p.m. The 7th District covers most of West Baltimore, western Baltimore County and Howard County from Ellicott City to Lisbon and the North Laurel area.

The race for the council seat in Baltimore's 7th District is a wide-open field -- both literally and figuratively. The district stretches from predominantly African-American areas as far west as Walbrook to primarily white neighborhoods in North Baltimore around Hampden. It includes all of Druid Hill Park. Of the 14 City Council districts, it is one of just three without an incumbent running in the Sept. 9 primary election. Councilwoman Catherine E. Pugh would have been the incumbent had she not chosen to run for the citywide post of council president.

Undaunted by repeated rejections by the county executive and a strong community backlash, an eastern Baltimore County legislator continues to press for a plan to allow private developers to construct housing on a 52-acre site where a public park is planned. In his latest effort, Del. Richard K. Impallaria, a Republican representing the 7th District, sought legal guidance from the state attorney general on his proposal to build houses at the former site of the Villages of Tall Trees, a troubled, World War II-era apartment complex demolished last year.

REP. ELIJAH Cummings, Baltimore's 7th District congressman, finds himself talking to a lot more people these days. Ascending to the chairmanship of the Congressional Black Caucus will do that for you. On Thursday afternoon around 4:30, Cummings found himself in a conference call with members of the Trotter Group, an organization of some of the finest newspaper columnists in the land who happen to be black. Of course, being chairman of the CBC means you have to be Democrat and liberal.

A proposed shelter site in Joppa for Harford County's homeless was withdrawn yesterday in response to strong community opposition, likely restarting a search process that has been several years in the making. Faith Communities and Civic Agencies United, a consortium that has sought a shelter site since the 1990s, announced its withdrawal last night at a community meeting at Prince of Peace Roman Catholic Church in Edgewood. The group withdrew the proposal after witnessing the public display of opposition from both the community and the area's 7th District legislative delegation.

A proposed shelter site in Joppa for Harford County's homeless was withdrawn yesterday in response to strong community opposition, likely restarting a search process that has been several years in the making. Faith Communities and Civic Agencies United, a consortium that has sought a shelter site since the 1990s, announced its withdrawal last night at a community meeting at Prince of Peace Roman Catholic Church in Edgewood. The group withdrew the proposal after witnessing the public display of opposition from both the community and the area's 7th District legislative delegation.

Early returns showed Republican Robert L. Ehrlich with a commanding lead in the governor's race in Baltimore County, but it was unclear whether his performance would translate into gains for his party in legislative races. Republican Sen. Andrew P. Harris, who found himself in an almost completely unfamiliar district thanks to last-minute redrawing of lines by the Maryland Court of Appeals, was ahead of challenger Del. Diane DeCarlo in the 7th District, which includes Cockeysville, Middle River and parts of Harford County.