Wicomico Democratic Central Committee (WDCC) was among many to testify at February 21st County council meeting about the request of Wicomico County Executive Julie Giordano request to replace our county’s current special legal counsel, Kevin Karpinski, with failed gubernatorial candidate, Dan Cox. 

This received a no vote by the council 6 to 1 abstain.

Please read below for our full statement.

 #Repost @cityofsby

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Megan Outten Appointed as District 3 Representative

Salisbury’s City Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Megan Outten as the new representative for District 3. Councilwoman Outten was selected in a unanimous vote and was sworn in during the City Council Meeting on Tuesday, February 21.

Outten’s addition to the Council comes after former Council President, Jack Heath, stepped down to accept a new role as Mayor for the City of Salisbury.

Outten is a native of Wicomico County, graduating from Salisbury University in 2016 with a major in Communications and a minor in Political Science. She is currently the Industry Trainer and Stakeholder Manager for the Business Network for Offshore Wind. Outten has worked as a stakeholder manager for multiple groups such as Urban Grid and Orsted, in addition to being the Community Coordinator for Skipjack Wind Farm.

Her background in community engagement includes Candidate for Wicomico County Council At-Large, Secretary for the Wicomico Democratic Central Committee, and member of Salisbury’s Sustainability Advisory Committee. Outten brings both a passion for sustainability and civic service combined with experience in collaboration and communication with various groups.

"I am honored for this opportunity to serve my community,” said Outten. “As Salisbury's newest councilwoman, my first priority is to the residents of this beautiful city we all call home. I look forward to working with the rest of the council as we strive to build a brighter future for Salisbury.”

Outten was selected as the new representative for the district after a thorough local search and interview process with all four Council members, “Our Council has made a great choice to replace Mayor Jack Heath’s District 3 seat with Megan Outten,” said City Council President Muir Boda. “Megan’s commitment to service in our community and focus on the critical issues facing our City will serve her well in this role. We are excited to have her join us.”

Our committee is fully "staffed" with officers in place and we are ready to go! #WCDCC

We are excited to announce our newest member of the WCDCC, Luc Angelot, who has filled our announced male vacancy! Luc recently ran for Board of Education in District 1 and we are looking forward to adding his knowledge and experience to WCDCC! Welcome, Luc!

Our announced vacancy on the Wicomico County Democratic Central Committee has been filled by @megan_outten! She ran a wonderful campaign for Wicomico County Council at-large, and we look forward to her energy and knowledge on the WCDCC!

Connection to the community is so important.  On Tuesday, November 22nd the Wicomico County Democratic Central Committee (WCDCC) and volunteers partnered with Mount Calvert Holiness Baptist Church to hand out and deliver 101 Thanksgiving meals to the community in West Salisbury today. Thank you to those who joined today - the hope is that the donation will bring joy to the Thanksgiving holiday.

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State central committees, county central committees and local political clubs of the Democratic and Republican parties are all part of a bewildering landscape of political party organization in Maryland. A few distinctions will provide a clearer picture.
Political parties are defined in Maryland law and state central committees are designated as their governing bodies; as governing bodies they write their own constitutions and bylaws. Maryland law also creates county central committees, specifying, among other things, that the Wicomico County Democratic Central Committee (WCDCC) has eight members - four male and four female - elected to four-year terms during primary elections in gubernatorial election years. Further, how central committees raise money and what it is spent on is regulated by law; regular financial reports are made to the State Board of Elections.

While central committees are the legal face of parties in Maryland, local political clubs, such as the Democratic Club of Wicomico County, are not based in Maryland law and membership is open to all registered Democrats. Both central committees and clubs sponsor fund raisers, organize volunteers and work to elect Democrats in the general election. In fact, in some counties clubs have more influence than central committees.

A dilemma faced by party organizations, particularly central committees, is their role in primary elections and the selection of nominees for the general election. Many political scientists believe that parties should actively recruit the best candidate and help that person win the primary. Other researchers say that parties should be neutral because supporting one candidate will anger competing candidates and their supporters and cause dissension within the party, hurting the party’s chances in the general election. WCDCC follows the second option and does not endorse candidates in the Democratic primary, but will advise equally all Democrats who seek the party’s nomination.

In upcoming election years, outstanding citizens are needed to run for elected offices, especially at the county level; please consider becoming a candidate. Elected office is not for everyone, but it’s where we need our best citizens. 

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*This essay by Harry Basehart originally appeared in “Politically Correct?” published in The Daily Times, September 22, 2013. It was revised February 28, 2017.

* Update from Michele Gregory blog post from 6/11/2017