When Johnny Olszewski ran for Baltimore County Executive two years ago, he won with more than 173,000 votes.
His successor needs only four.
The five people who are vying to be Baltimore County’s next leader each made their case before the County Council Monday night before a near-capacity crowd in Council Chambers.
Each of the candidates got 15 minutes to talk about specific issues, like the county’s budget, public safety, education and affordable housing.
The candidate with the most visible support in the audience was Yara Cheikh. Some people were wearing green, and a sticker with her name on it.
Cheikh is the president of the board of trustees for the Baltimore County Public Library and a longtime community and education activist. She told the council that she knows how the school system works and that its budget needs to be more transparent.
“So we know how the dollars are being spent in our school houses to support student achievement,” Cheikh said.
Former State Sen. Jim Brochin said if he is the county executive, all county agencies will be subject to budget cuts except for public safety and code enforcement because a bleak budget picture is being forecast.
Brochin also pledged not to raise taxes.
“In my administration there will be no tax or fee increase, period,” Brochin said.
Brochin was in the State Senate for 16 years. He did not run for reelection in 2018, choosing instead to run for county executive. He lost to Olszewski by 17 votes in a bruising Democratic primary.
State Sen. Kathy Klausmeier touted her nearly 30 years in the state legislature, telling the council this is not the time for Baltimore County to coast.
Klausmeier said, “Larger than my resume is my commitment to showing up every day on behalf of our constituents.”
Klausmeier said public safety is her top priority and that she wants to do something about aggressive driving.
Also in the running, Barry Williams, who worked in the county government from 2003 to 2019 as director of workforce development then as head of recreation and parks.
“I have a casual relationship with all of the contiguous county executives and the mayor of Baltimore City,” Williams told the council. “I also have a good relationship with our governor.”
Not to mention his sister is Maryland House Speaker Adrienne Jones.
The fifth finalist is George Perdikakis Senior. He is an engineer and has held multiple government jobs including heading the county’s environment and resource management department.
Perdikakis told the council he came to this country from Greece in 1966 with $50 in his pocket, and now he is asking them to make him county executive.
Perdikakis said, “This is the only country that allows someone to be able to do that.”
12 people applied for the position.
WYPR reported November 21 that the County Council did not plan to publicly release the names of the candidates. The council quickly reversed itself following that report.
The council picked the five finalists following a public hearing last week.
Council members say they want a county executive who will agree to not run for a full term in 2026. Three members of the council, Izzy Patoka, Julian Jones and Pat Young, all Democrats, are considering running in two years for executive. They don’t want to run against an incumbent.
Former councilman Tom Quirk took issue with that at that public hearing last week, saying the council cannot afford to put someone in the position to keep the seat warm until 2026.
“The council needs to select the best applicant, regardless of if they want to run two years from now or not,” Quirk said.
Council Chairman Patoka said the council will make that selection on January 6.
“Stay tuned,” Patoka told the audience at the end of the public interviews of the candidates.
Olszewski is stepping down to take a seat in Congress. The county charter states it falls to the seven-member council to name his replacement, who will finish the final two years of Olszewski’s second term.
