Maryland governor candidate Dan Cox adds campaign staff, hires former Dave Brat campaign manager

Republican Maryland gubernatorial nominee Dan Cox announced Friday that he has expanded his campaign staff with several new hires. Chief among the additions is Southern Maryland native Zach Werrell as campaign manager. Werrell managed the upstart campaign of Republican Dave Brat when he ousted GOP House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in the 2014 Virginia primary, and Brat went on to win Cantor's congressional seat that November. He was only 23 when he helmed Brat's campaign, and is co-author of the book, How to Bag a RINO: The Whiz Kids Who Brought Down House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. 

Zach Werrell

Cox's other appointments include Lucy Kruse as Campaign Press Director, Kate Sullivan as Field Director, Patience Faith as Executive Assistant to Cox, Debbie Olsen to head the campaign's finance team, and Sallie Taylor as Campaign Office Director. In addition, the campaign announced captains and directors have been named for each county and region of the state.

"With our leadership and field team, we will successfully win Maryland with the issues that are most important to Marylanders: Protecting our children, community safety, and advancing a career-friendly atmosphere," Cox said in a statement Friday night. "We are here to unite all Marylanders under this banner.” Cox faces Democrat Wes Moore in the November election.

Photos via Dan Cox for Governor (top)/HowToBagARINO.com (bottom)

Surprise! Marc Elrich is still leading after another day of Montgomery County election results

Incumbent Marc Elrich ended yet another day of vote-counting ahead of challenger David Blair in the Democratic race for Montgomery County Executive on Friday. In fact, Elrich expanded his lead in the latest election results released last night. He now has 53,224 votes (39.29%) to Blair's 53,026 votes (39.14%). There are still thousands of provisional ballots to be counted when canvassing resumes at 10:00 AM this morning, at the Germantown campus of Montgomery College. That means that, mathematically, either candidate can still win.

Montgomery County police to establish "resource room" at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda will announce next week that it is providing a space for the Montgomery County Police Department at the retail center. According to a police department spokesperson, the space will include a "resource room" for officers, and a "community liaison room" for officers to interact with the public. The announcement comes after six 2nd-degree assaults were reported at the mall between May 18 and July 29, 2022.

Rockville Wegmans construction update (Photos)

Construction of the Rockville Wegmans grocery store at the corner of Rockville Pike and Halpine Road has really picked up steam since my last update. For the first time, the structure is actually rising above street level, particularly along Halpine near the Twinbrook Metro station. There, the framework is already two stories tall. Along the Pike, the first columns are rising about one story above street level.

Rockville liquor store broken into

Montgomery County police responded to a report of a break-in at a beer and wine store in Rockville early yesterday morning. A burglar alarm was triggered at a store in the 4000 block of Norbeck Road at 1:15 AM Wednesday. Officers found evidence of forced entry at the scene. Beer & Wine International is located on that block of Norbeck.

Maryland governor candidate Dan Cox meets with Latino pastors in Montgomery County

Dan Cox, the Republican nominee for governor of Maryland, met with a group that represents over 350 Latino pastors across the state Tuesday evening in Montgomery County. Following the event in Derwood, Cox said in a statement that the Hispanic pastors "are embracing family values with our campaign." Cox, who is endorsed by President Donald Trump, has continued his outreach to diverse faith communities this week in a state where African-American and Latino voters hold significant electoral power. Earlier Tuesday, his campaign posted a photo of Cox praying with African-American pastors at a National Night Out event in Baltimore.

Photos courtesy Dan Cox for Governor campaign

Rockville native James Wood joins Washington Nationals in Juan Soto trade

The change of scenery for one of the San Diego Padres prospects obtained by the Washington Nationals in the Juan Soto trade will be a familiar one. Rockville native James Wood, who grew up in Olney and attended St. John's College High School in Northwest Washington, is coming back to the DMV in a big way. The 6'7" outfielder was drafted out of high school by the Padres in the second round of the 2021 Major League Baseball draft.

Wood has shown great power hitting potential in his career so far, with 10 home runs at Class A Lake Elsinore this season. He is also an all-around athlete, having played several sports at St. John's, and now showing speed on the basepaths with 15 steals this season. Athletic skill runs in Wood's family: his father, Kenny Wood, was a star basketball player at the University of Richmond, and is the founder of GameFinder365. James Wood starts his Nationals career this week with the team's Class A affiliate, the Fredericksburg Nationals.

Photo via Lake Elsinore Storm Twitter