Mike Pantelides

Annapolis Alderman Ross Arnett insists the City Council's decision to take another look at making the mayor's job a more ceremonial role has nothing to do with party politics. But if the Democrat-majority council acts to remove the mayor's power, the timing will coincide with the election of Annapolis' first Republican mayor in nearly two decades, Mike Pantelides, who defeated the incumbent Democrat, Mayor Josh Cohen, last week. "I think that's the right system," he said of the council-manager style of government being considered.

An Annapolis woman has been charged with witness intimidation related to an attempted murder case involving the mayor's cousin. Stacie E. Roberts, 33, was charged Tuesday with threatening to harm a witness, soliciting someone to harm a witness and obstructing justice, according to charging documents. Anne Arundel Police said in charging documents that a confidential informant was contacted by Roberts, who wanted to harm a witness in the case against Savvas Pantelides. Roberts is Pantelides' girlfriend, police said.

Annapolis voters can question mayoral candidates Josh Cohen and Mike Pantelides at a forum Wednesday. The League of Women Voters of Anne Arundel County will sponsor a mayoral forum at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation Kneseth Israel, 1125 Spa Road. Cohen and Pantelides are expected to discuss their issues and field questions from the audience. Cohen, a Democrat, is seeking a second term as mayor of Annapolis. Pantelides, running for office for the first time, defeated two other candidates to win the Republican nomination.

Sam Brice, a senior engineer who works for the city of Annapolis, told the mayor and city council Monday that residents expect a high level of service from local government. That, he said, requires employees who cost money. "Your employees are your most valuable asset," Brice said. "You have to cherish them and take care of them. " His comment came at a hearing on the first budget proposed by the new mayor, Mike Pantelides - a $96.6 million operating plan that proposes 13 layoffs, eliminates 20 vacant positions and imposes furloughs for all employees.

     Brian Griffiths had the temerity to ask if a swimmer is a hero.      Red Maryland endorsed Mike Pantelides in Annapolis.      Texas Governor Rick Perry comes to  Maryland, and Change Maryland 's Larry Hogan joins us to discuss the visit.      Convicted former Anne Arundel County Councilman Daryl Jones returns.      A parent is arrested at a Common Core forum for daring to question the wisdom of implementing this regime.

An Annapolis woman has been charged with witness intimidation related to an attempted murder case involving the mayor's cousin. Stacie E. Roberts, 33, was charged Tuesday with threatening to harm a witness, soliciting someone to harm a witness and obstructing justice, according to charging documents. Anne Arundel Police said in charging documents that a confidential informant was contacted by Roberts, who wanted to harm a witness in the case against Savvas Pantelides. Roberts is Pantelides' girlfriend, police said.

Four men and one woman are vying for perhaps the trickiest job in Annapolis: mayor. The state's capital has been buzzing in recent months over proposals to adopt a new plan to guide future development at City Dock and to rezone key waterfront properties downtown. Meanwhile, residents have raised concerns about a major development proposed for the edge of town, and the city is still recovering from the economic downturn. “Much of these last four years, I've been trying to fix a lot of things that weren't right,” said Mayor Josh Cohen, a Democrat who is seeking re-election.

After elections officials spent more than 24 hours reviewing and counting absentee and provisional ballots, Republican newcomer Mike Pantelides was named winner of the Annapolis mayoral election Friday night. Going into the count of provisional ballots Friday, Pantelides held onto a 50-vote lead over incumbent Democratic Mayor Josh Cohen. When the 65 provisional ballots were run through a scanner as an anxious crowd watched, 37 were for Pantelides and 28 were for Cohen, making Pantelides the winner by 59 votes out of nearly 8,000 cast.

Annapolis Alderman Ross Arnett made a proposal last weekend that made waves from the capital city across the country: to change the city's form of government to give the mayor less power. Many conservatives - including radio host Rush Limbaugh - criticized Arnett's proposal as a cheap shot from a Democrat trying to steal power from the Republican mayor-elect, Mike Pantelides. Arnett said that he has been badly misunderstood and that he has supported this idea for years, even during the terms of the past two Democratic mayors.

Minutes after being sworn in as the new mayor of Annapolis on Monday, Mike Pantelides vowed to be a watchdog on city finances, and also to work on issues facing the state capital from crime to a sluggish business climate. In his inauguration speech at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, Pantelides offered few specifics on those broad issues, but did promise to hold open sessions once a month to listen to concerns of Annapolis residents, and repeated a refrain from his campaign, that "God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason" - saying people should spend twice as much time listening as talking.

     Brian Griffiths had the temerity to ask if a swimmer is a hero.      Red Maryland endorsed Mike Pantelides in Annapolis.      Texas Governor Rick Perry comes to  Maryland, and Change Maryland 's Larry Hogan joins us to discuss the visit.      Convicted former Anne Arundel County Councilman Daryl Jones returns.      A parent is arrested at a Common Core forum for daring to question the wisdom of implementing this regime.

Minutes after being sworn in as the new mayor of Annapolis on Monday, Mike Pantelides vowed to be a watchdog on city finances, and also to work on issues facing the state capital from crime to a sluggish business climate. In his inauguration speech at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, Pantelides offered few specifics on those broad issues, but did promise to hold open sessions once a month to listen to concerns of Annapolis residents, and repeated a refrain from his campaign, that "God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason" - saying people should spend twice as much time listening as talking.

Josh Cohen says he was at the sink doing dishes when his mind began to wander. His thoughts landed on Annapolis' failing dam at Waterworks Park. Should it be repaired? Should it be breached to allow water to flow through into a stream? As he contemplated the options, it suddenly dawned on him: The dam isn't something he needs to worry about any more. "It hit me," Cohen recalls. "I'm not going to be mayor. " After 12 years in public office, the last four as mayor of Annapolis, Cohen will leave office Monday as Mike Pantelides is sworn in as the capital city's next mayor.

Leaders in the Maryland Republican Party are promoting the recent win in the Annapolis mayoral race as evidence the GOP can secure victories in Democratic strongholds. Upbeat party members gathered Saturday in the state capital for their fall convention. Some said upsets such as the city mayor's race could be repeated if the party is strategic and can devise ways to reach communities whose voters usually cast ballots for Democrats. "We have to be aggressive, and we may have to do some things that we're not comfortable with as a party to win," Senate Minority Leader David Brinkley of Frederick County told the crowd of 250. "We do have a bright future, and we may have to employ some strategies that we haven't looked at before.

Annapolis Alderman Ross Arnett made a proposal last weekend that made waves from the capital city across the country: to change the city's form of government to give the mayor less power. Many conservatives - including radio host Rush Limbaugh - criticized Arnett's proposal as a cheap shot from a Democrat trying to steal power from the Republican mayor-elect, Mike Pantelides. Arnett said that he has been badly misunderstood and that he has supported this idea for years, even during the terms of the past two Democratic mayors.

Mike Pantelides can't go anywhere these days without being stopped. Walking down Main Street to a meeting, he meets people offering ideas. At a post-workout stop at the drug store, someone wants to talk to him. In the Market House, a merchant offers a fresh fruit smoothie - on the house. That's what comes with being mayor of Annapolis, population 38,620. It's a city small enough that residents get to know their politicians on a first-name basis, and they aren't shy about voicing concerns.

Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen captured victory over a political newcomer in the capital city's Democratic primary Tuesday. Cohen defeated Bevin Buchheister, a downtown civic activist to win the Democratic nomination, 1,774 votes to 1,332 votes. "This was a hard-fought campaign," Cohen told a roomful of supporters at the Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge after Buchheister called to concede the race. Cohen will face the winner of the Republican primary, Mike Pantelides, in the general election in November.

The Annapolis mayoral election won't be decided until at least Thursday, when elections officials tally votes from a problematic voting machine and from absentee ballots. The unofficial results from Tuesday's election — not counting the broken machine — had Republican challenger Mike Pantelides up 84 votes over incumbent Democratic Mayor Josh Cohen, 3,728 to 3,644. Pantelides' supporters believe there may be at least 100 votes on the problematic machine, which was used at the Eastport-Annapolis Neck Library.

Annapolis Alderman Ross Arnett insists the City Council's decision to take another look at making the mayor's job a more ceremonial role has nothing to do with party politics. But if the Democrat-majority council acts to remove the mayor's power, the timing will coincide with the election of Annapolis' first Republican mayor in nearly two decades, Mike Pantelides, who defeated the incumbent Democrat, Mayor Josh Cohen, last week. "I think that's the right system," he said of the council-manager style of government being considered.

After 19.5 hours of reviewing ballots, more than 20 official challenges and numerous questions about signatures and postmarks, Annapolis voters still did not know who their next mayor would be when elections officials called it quits at 4:35 a.m. Friday after a marathon meeting. The Annapolis Board of Canvassers will resume their meeting at noon Friday, when they'll review more than 100 provisional ballots that were cast on Election Day on Tuesday. Heading into that meeting, Republican mayoral candidate Mike Pantelides held on to a 50-vote lead over incumbent Democrat Josh Cohen.