County Republicans

Dell to address county Republicans at meeting Monday County Commissioner Donald I. Dell will speak at the monthly meeting of the Carroll County Republican Club on Monday at Kountry Kafe in Westminster. Dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m., followed by the business meeting. Dell will speak at 7 p.m., then answer questions. Dinner is $9, and reservations must be made by Saturday. Kountry Kafe is on Locust Lane. Reservations: Margie Jones, 410-795-6493. Information: 410- 781-6316.

Hours after taking the oath of office as Maryland's newest member of Congress, Rep. Andy Harris smiled broadly and summed up the import of the moment. "It's an historic day," the Baltimore County Republican said Wednesday. "We've got to get the work done here. The people agree with us. " That sense of broad-based public support is likely a new feeling for Harris. The conservative convictions that set Harris apart even from many GOP colleagues during his 12 years in the Maryland Senate should make him feel right at home in the tea party-fueled freshman class that has powered Republicans to an overwhelming House majority.

Howard County Republicans unanimously chose Gail H. Bates for appointment to a vacant seat in the Maryland House of Delegates last night, but the insurgent campaign of 28-year-old conservative Anthony C. Wisniewski has thrown the process into disarray. Although Montgomery County contains just a sliver of District 14B - and none will remain after redistricting - Wisniewski won a majority of the Montgomery County Republicans to his side at a Tuesday night meeting, creating a split between Republicans in the two counties.

Howard County Republicans are fired up, believing that those feisty tax-day tea parties promoted across the nation by conservatives and Fox News could lead to a political comeback locally and in Maryland. Protesters from the county gathered at rainy Meadowbrook Park in Ellicott City on April 15 and formed a caravan to the big Annapolis rally. The nationwide events boosted political interest and activity in the GOP, leading to a late surge in attendance at the local party's annual Lincoln Day dinner, featuring former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. and his wife, Kendel, as speakers.

FINKSBURG -- It's not a bad time to feel heady if you're a Republican in Carroll.Republicans make up the majority of registered voters in the county -- 26,015 to 25,084 -- coupled with increased GOP registration statewide. And the number of Republicans in the General Assembly is on the rise.But it's also not time to reflect on gains, a state Republican leader warned a county GOP group in Finksburg last night, especially with the redrawing of political districts looming."There's potential there for Carroll to be caught up in the crunch," said Mark R. Frazer, chairman of the Maryland Republican Party's redistricting committee.

Anne Arundel County Executive Janet S. Owens' land-use policies were challenged yesterday at the General Assembly - for the second year in a row. At a hearing on a bill that would prohibit county governments from buying land for one purpose and then changing their minds, Owens' predecessor joined a group that criticized the way she is handling a land deal on the Broadneck Peninsula. "The government created this problem," said former County Executive John G. Gary, referring to the Owens administration's plans to use part of a 12-acre horse farm for ball fields - although the former owner says she sold it with the understanding that it would be used as an equestrian center.

Carroll County Democrats repelled a last-minute Republican rally last week and won by one, the narrowest of margins. That would be a run, not a vote. Area business leaders and officials organized a spirited softball competition to put the political parties on friendly terms. The bipartisan game, rescheduled three times, finally was played Thursday evening in downtown Westminster. "We wanted to prove to everybody in the county that people can just agree to disagree and not let politics polarize us," said Josh Kohn, a Westminster business owner.

As he listened to the noisy banter of 200 Baltimore County Republicans gathered at his Fullerton fund-raiser, Allen Thompson, a political newcomer running for the 5th District council seat, couldn't help but be pleased.True, U.S. Rep. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. couldn't attend, but the congressman's wife, Kendel, told the crowd he was "off doing God's work -- defining the word 'is' " -- a not-so-subtle reference to President Clinton's grand jury testimony.With a Democratic president on the defensive and native daughter Ellen R. Sauerbrey running hard for the governor's job, county Republicans hope to add seats on the County Council and in the legislature, solidifying the gains made in recent years.

Anne Arundel County Republicans meet for breakfast every Wednesday from 7:30 to 8:30 at Middleton Tavern in Annapolis.Each breakfast features a speaker. This month, the theme will be the primary election campaign. Speakers this month include former U.S. Representative Richard Lankford (Jan. 8); Mary McNally Rose, clerk of the Circuit Court (Jan. 15); and County Executive Robert R. Neall (Jan. 29).All city and county Republicans are invited to attend. Continental breakfast is $3.50.Information: Glenn Gibbs at 266-6260.

County Republicans will honor two who helped build the party Tuesdayat the annual Lincoln Day Dinner.The evening will be a tribute to Marjorie Holt, who served in Congress from the time the 4th District was created in 1974 until her retirement in 1986.The Republican Central Committee will present the first Marjorie Holt Party Builder awards.The party also established the Aris T. Allen Lifetime Achievement Award, honoring the late state delegate from District 30.Allen was the only black Republican in the GeneralAssembly when he committed suicide in February after learning he hadinoperable cancer.

It is a time for healing and reorganization for Howard County Republicans -- a process under way last week at a political picnic at grassy Spring Meadow Farm in Glenwood. Still stung by a poor showing in last year's state and local elections, not to mention nationally, the county's GOP also has internal rivalries and sore spots to deal with before the next round of local elections in 2010. Republicans were successful last year only in the western portion of the county, electing incumbent state Sen. Allan H. Kittleman and Dels.

Democrat Dennis E. Beard, who finished a close fourth for Carroll County commissioner, said he knows how Lt. Gov. Michael Steele feels. That's what he told Steele at a groundbreaking event in Howard County just weeks ago. "I said, `You know, sir, you're hoping that someday you're going to see the true two-party system in the state of Maryland,' " Beard recalled. "I said, `As a Democrat, I would love to see the two-party system in Carroll County.' He smiled, `cause I think he knew what I was talking about."

Lt. Clarence W. Bell Jr. recalls his first assignment as a rookie state trooper in St. Mary's County - going undercover to buy cocaine at a bar - and how that led to his being the target of a hit man. Later, as a SWAT team sniper, he spent 18 hours on a Baltimore roof during a standoff with inmates who had taken prison guards hostage. And when he rose to command one of the agency's suburban barracks, he came up with a plan that he says has reduced the number of traffic deaths on Howard County roads patrolled by the state police.

Three days before the filing deadline, Baltimore County Republicans are left without an established candidate for county executive, after their top choice said yesterday he won't run. GOP leaders say several people are considering the race against incumbent James T. Smith Jr., and they are hopeful at least one will step forward before Monday's deadline. But some expressed surprise that at such a late date, the only Republican in the race for the highest office in Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s home county is a maintenance worker with no political experience.

Option 2 plan is not pro-Democrats We are finally having the public debate about the county commissioner districts we should have had before our state officials voted. Unfortunately, this discourse is poorly served by the letter written by Ralph Shewell, husband of Del. Tanya Shewell. According to Mr. Shewell, the Democrats were "successful" in the 2002 elections for county commissioner. The last time I checked, we have three Republicans in office. As mayor of Hampstead, I have worked closely with our current county commissioners.

Two Howard County Council members, Republican Christopher J. Merdon and Democrat Ken Ulman, said yesterday that they are running for county executive next year -- both vying to become the county's youngest-ever top official. With two-term County Executive James N. Robey prevented by law from running again, Howard is likely to see a lively contest for the open executive's seat. A second Democrat, political novice Harry Dunbar, 61, announced earlier as a slow-growth advocate, and more candidates may join the race.

Baltimore County Republicans have picked four finalists to fill Towson's seat in the House of Delegates, left vacant in August when Del. James M. Kelly took a job with the Bush administration. Kelly's wife, Melissa, now holds the seat, but county Republicans plan for her to resign and be replaced for next year's legislative session by someone they choose after soliciting applications, reviewing resumes and conducting interviews. The finalists are Corinne D. Becker, 41, a county government employee and community activist, and three lawyers: Edwin S. MacVaugh, 46, who ran against Kelly in the 1994 primary; Emil B. Pielke, 59, who has worked on many Republican campaigns; and Francis A. Pommett III, 32, who moved to Essex to run for the House of Delegates four years ago and moved back to Towson after he learned of the vacant seat.

A FUNNY THING happened to Gail Bates on her way to assuming the Howard County Council seat being vacated by one of her closest political friends. She ran into a challenge from a longtime ally who has perhaps the most respected surname among county Republicans.Allan Kittleman's announcement last week that he would challenge Ms. Bates for the 5th District seat on the county legislative body is another sign of the growth of the Republican Party in a jurisdiction once dominated by Democrats.Until recently, only Democrats dueled in local primaries.

IF HOWARD County Republicans could win two more delegate seats in the county's eight-member General Assembly delegation, it would greatly increase the GOP's political clout, and it could tip the delegation's political balance, party leaders believe. That is why conservative Democrats James E. Malone Jr. and Steven J. DeBoy Sr., two delegates who represent Elkridge, as well as part of Catonsville in Baltimore County, are feeling targeted in next year's elections, "We are targeted. We are absolutely targeted," DeBoy said.

Underdog optimism: Even though Republicans greatly outnumber Democrats in Carroll County, the county's underdogs maintained a buoyant attitude as they gathered to watch the early returns at Johanssons Dining House in Westminster on Tuesday night. "I was so impressed by the Democratic Party in Carroll County," said Anita Riley, an Eldersburg resident and president of the South Carroll Democratic Club. "It's an uphill battle for Democrats in Carroll County. ... But they have their act together.