Election wins secure Democratic supermajority in Howard County government

With Democrats winning both of the contested races in Howard County, it means all of the county's elected leaders will be from the same party.

The wins also made history, with Vanessa Atterbeary becoming the first African-American woman to serve as Howard County Executive.

"You can do whatever it is you want to do, don't let anybody tell you that you aren't able to do that," Atterbeary said.

Cat Carter will be the first woman to serve in Howard County Council's District 5 seat, which represents the western part of the county.

Kevin Chin, Jessica Nichols and Janssen Evelyn won council seats in the June primary election, since no Republicans ran in their races.

In interviews Thursday, Atterbeary and Carter tried to quell worries of the supermajority, committing to the needs of their constituents and the county -- not a party affiliation.

Moving into the roles

In the days after their wins, Atterbeary and Carter have already been thinking about how to hit the ground running when their terms officially start.

Atterbeary has had some time to think about this, as she initially was going to run unopposed when she won her primary in June. But, Nater Kane turned it into a contested race when he filed to run as the Green Party candidate.

Now that she's the county executive-elect, Atterbeary said her job is about uniting the communities as one. 

She's used to pushing policy as a longtime state delegate, but now she's going to be pushing hard to address the needs.

"We're talking about growing the economy and bringing businesses here. We're talking about tackling the deferred maintenance problems in the schools. We're talking about building a model of customer service for the administration," Atterbeary said.

Part of Atterbeary's transition process is figuring out the goalposts for all of those things. She said the plan is to hire someone to keep her administration accountable.

"I don't know [who that will be] yet. We're working through all of the things, but there will be a position where that is their job," she said.

Carter said she has a list of things to tackle after knocking on doors for nearly a year and a half.

"Investing in our schools, protecting our greenspaces and our farms... lowering costs," Carter said. "When I look at what I need to do, that is what I"m standing by because that's why people said they voted for me."

Supermajority concerns

Carter's win flipped the one Republican seat in the former Howard County Council, turning all of Howard County government leadership blue. But Carter and Atterbeary said their handling of issues will go beyond party lines.

Atterbeary pointed to her work in Annapolis as proof.

"I have been there and done that, just because you're in the same party, you still see things through different lenses," she said. "What I hope is that our common denominator that brings us together [is] our values, [is] how we see the county."

Carter points to her record of advocacy, not only locally with education issues, but also with Congress on issues with military service members and veterans.

"Whether you voted for me or not, I represent [my district]. My whole role, and the best way I can serve you, is to listen," Carter said.

Atterbeary, Carter and the other new councilmembers will be sworn in on Dec. 7.