ANNAPOLIS | House of Delegates Minority Whip Kathy Szeliga, one of the most powerful Republicans in the state legislature, announced Tuesday she will run for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat next year, giving the GOP a high-profile candidate in a very Democratic-leaning state.
At a news conference in Annapolis, Ms. Szeliga said she was hopeful that a Republican could win the seat being vacated by longtime Democrat Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, who is retiring at the end of next year. State GOP officials say Gov. Larry Hogan’s upset win last year makes them hopeful they can win again in a state where Democrats have a 2-to-1 voter registration advantage.
“The people are looking for new representation. They’re not looking for career politicians,” she said. “They know it’s time for new faces and new voices, not business as usual.”
Two Democratic members of the state’s congressional delegation, Rep. Chris Van Hollen and Rep. Donna F. Edwards, are already locked in a battle for their party’s nomination. Mr. Van Hollen has a fundraising advantage, but Ms. Edwards has the support of liberal national groups like Emily’s List and has steadily been climbing in the polls.
Ms. Szeliga, 54, said her top priorities in the Senate would be national security and improving the country’s education system.
She has been a rising star for Republicans, becoming minority whip in the House of Delegates in 2013, only two years after she joined the General Assembly. She is now the highest-ranking Republican woman in the Maryland legislature.
Describing herself as an “average person,” she said she wanted to go to Washington to try to help break the partisan gridlock.
“Here we are with a paralyzed government incapable of solving even our most basic needs,” she said. “I for one can no longer stand by waiting for those we’ve sent to Washington to solve our problems, because they haven’t.”
Before representing Baltimore and Harford counties in the House of Delegates, the businesswoman was a construction contractor who graduated from Towson State University when she was 32. She taught as a substitute teacher for a year in Baltimore and then served as chief of staff to now-Rep. Andy Harris for six years while he served in the state Senate. She also served as his campaign manager for the 2012 congressional race.
Mr. Harris has expressed strong support for Ms. Szeliga, and had been encouraging her to run.
“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,” he said in a statement.
Also seeking the GOP nomination are Chrys Kefalas, an openly gay attorney who worked for former GOP Gov. Robert Ehrlich; Navy veteran Anthony Seda; and former Pentagon official Richard J. Douglas.
The primary is scheduled for April 26.
• Anjali Shastry can be reached at ashastry@washingtontimes.com.
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