U.S. Senate Candidate Kathy Szeliga with Delegates Matt Morgan and Deb Rey in front of Ye Olde Towne Cafe in Leonardtown.
Leonardtown, MD — Maryland’s Republicans have another hat in the ring for the upcoming U.S. Senate primary next year. Delegate and Minority Whip Kathy Szeliga announced Nov. 10 her candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Barbara Mikulski [D].
Szeliga started the day with a formal announcement in Annapolis and then traveled to St. Mary’s County to make an announcement in front of Ye Olde Towne Café in Leonardtown. Delegates Matt Morgan [R -District 29-A] and Deb Rey [R – District 29-B] organized the event and posed for pictures with Szeliga after she spoke.
Szeliga is second in command in GOP floor leadership in the Maryland House. She was first elected in 2010 and represents Baltimore and Harford counties. She is a graduate of Towson University and a former small business owner. She is a teacher and foster parent. Szeliga was chief of staff for Senator Andrew Harris from 2004-10. She is married and has two sons.
Szeliga, in her talk in Leonardtown, said she, like Morgan and Rey, knows how to work across the aisle, noting that Republican, Democrat and Independent Marylanders contributed to Gov. Larry Hogan’s victory last year.
“The people we send to Washington to fix our problems aren’t getting it done,” she said. She observed that at one time Congress did work together, but now, “It has gotten out of hand – it is too gridlocked.” She added, “They chip away our liberty.”
Szeliga said she came to Southern Maryland on the day before Veteran’s Day because of the area’s tradition of military. She said as an Army brat she understands that.
She also stood up for the police. “Things seem to be upside down,” she stated about the attacks on police. “They are being treated as the bad guys,” she said. And that stance included a hard line on crime – “We need to insure violent criminals go away for a long time and find ways to rehabilitate non-violent criminals.”
And Szeliga added emphatically to her support for the military – “I am very upset and disturbed with what is happening at the Veterans Administration. It’s a failure of epic proportions.”
Szeliga also talked about the failure of the schools. “I believe that our schools have become like factories for four-year colleges.” Instead she feels there also should be a focus on education in the trade. She said the pressure is on the parents to get their kids into college. “They feel they have to put them in a four-year college and get out with a degree and then they can’t get a job.” She said kids need options for careers, college or the military.
Szeliga said she is realistic enough to know if she’s elected, “I can’t ride in on a white horse and wave a wand.” It will involve hard work on both sides of the aisle.
But she concluded, “I believe in the power of the American dream. We know that America is exceptional.” She added, “I want to serve in the U.S. Senate to champion those forgotten Americans.”
In a press release sent out after her announcement in Annapolis, Anne Arundel County Executive Steve Schuh said of the candidate, ““Kathy Szeliga is real and authentic. She’s an outsider to politics who raised a family, created a successful small construction business with her husband, and has proven to be a leader who fights for what is needed to improve the quality of life for Maryland families.”
Her former boss and now Congressman Andy Harris, M.D. said of Szeliga, “I’ve known Kathy for many years and I know her to be a tough, smart woman from Baltimore who’s not afraid to take on the political establishment to get real results for Maryland families. Kathy Szeliga is exactly who we need fighting for us in the U.S. Senate to give power back to everyday people who feel like the government is no longer on their side.”
The other Republicans who have filed to run for the position are Richard Douglas and Anthony Seda. The Democratic candidates include current members of Congress Rep. Donna Edwards and Rep. Chris Van Hollen.
Contact Dick Myers at dick.myers@thebaynet.com