BALTIMORE (AP) — Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, a policy consultant and wife of U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, announced Thursday that she is joining the ranks of Democrats hoping to unseat Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who is seeking a second term. Rockeymoore
BALTIMORE (AP) — Maya Rockeymoore Cummings, a policy consultant and wife of U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, announced Thursday that she is joining the ranks of Democrats hoping to unseat Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who is seeking a second term.
Rockeymoore Cummings, 46, has never run for office before.
“I am not a typical politician. In fact, I’m not a politician at all,” she said in an online video outlining her plans for Maryland. “I’m a change agent, with real-world experience.”
Claiming that Maryland is “punching below its fighting weight,” Rockeymoore Cummings said too many families are struggling economically, public schools don’t enough have resources, and violent crime continues to escalate.
“We need a leader with fresh ideas and clear metrics so that we can hold our government accountable for results,” she said.
Rockeymore Cummings, who has served as a congressional aide and as chief of staff to New York Rep. Charles B. Rangel, also has worked for the National Urban League and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. She is currently president and CEO of Global Policy Solutions, a Washington-based consulting firm she founded in 2005.
Rockeymore Cummings joins a list of several other Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls, including Krishanti Vignarajah, a former policy aide to Michelle Obama.
Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker and former NAACP president Ben Jealous also have announced their intentions to seek the Democratic gubernatorial nomination next June, along with State Sen. Richard Madaleno of Montgomery County, Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, attorney Jim Shea and businessman Alec Ross.
Rockeymoore Cummings is the first candidate to enter the race from Baltimore, the state’s largest city. Her husband’s congressional district includes a large portion of the city.
Elijah Cummings, 66, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, spent two months in the hospital and another month and a half recuperating at home after undergoing surgery for a heart valve problem in May. He returned to work last month.
