Who's Asking the Questions?
In 2024, two civic organizations hosted MD-06 candidate forums. In 2026 — with a higher-stakes race — neither has scheduled one. I'm asking publicly why.
Two years ago, voters in Maryland’s 6th Congressional District had real opportunities to see congressional candidates side by side, answer hard questions, and make their case in public.
The League of Women Voters of Frederick County ran four separate forums for MD-06 candidates ahead of the May 14, 2024 primary — splitting 16 Democratic candidates alphabetically across three sessions, with a separate forum for Republican candidates. All were live-streamed and recorded.
The Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club hosted a forum on April 28, 2024 at Seneca Valley High School in Germantown, drawing ten candidates just days before early voting opened.
It was, by any measure, a serious civic infrastructure built around a serious race.
The 2026 primary is nine weeks away. I have looked at both organizations’ publicly announced schedules. LWV Frederick County has forums planned for Board of Education candidates, a State Delegate District 4 forum, a Sheriff forum, and a County Council forum. The Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club has announced nothing for MD-06.
Neither organization has scheduled a congressional candidate forum.
This is worth naming directly.
I want to be careful here about what I am and am not saying. This is not an attack on either organization. The League of Women Voters of Frederick County and the Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club both did commendable work in 2024. I am raising this precisely because their 2024 record is worth defending — and because the silence in 2026 is conspicuous enough to deserve a public question.
There is a pattern worth understanding in competitive primaries with incumbents: the institutional impulse, conscious or not, tends toward fewer forums, not more. Incumbents benefit from name recognition and don’t need the stage. Challengers do. Civic organizations don’t set out to tilt the playing field — but when they pull back on the forums they ran in an open-seat year, the effect is the same regardless of the intent.
Voters should be able to hear from every candidate before June 23. That includes me. And I commit, on behalf of my campaign, to participating in any forum either organization chooses to host.
Today I am sending both organizations an open letter making that ask publicly.
Those letters are below in full.
An Open Letter to the League of Women Voters of Frederick County
April 18, 2026
Dear League of Women Voters of Frederick County,
I am writing as a candidate in the Democratic primary for Maryland’s 6th Congressional District to respectfully ask whether your organization plans to host candidate forums for this race before the June 23 primary.
I ask because your 2024 record on this is exemplary. Ahead of last cycle’s May 14 primary, LWV Frederick County hosted four separate forums for MD-06 candidates — splitting 16 Democratic candidates alphabetically across three sessions on April 11, April 16, and April 23, with a fourth forum for Republican candidates on April 18. All were live-streamed and recorded for public access. It was a serious, substantive commitment to voter education in one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country.
I have reviewed your publicly announced 2026 forum schedule. It currently includes three Board of Education forums, a State Delegate District 4 forum, a Sheriff forum, and a County Council District 1 forum. There is no MD-06 congressional forum listed.
The 2026 MD-06 Democratic primary now features a sitting incumbent, a former three-term congressman who has publicly stated his intent to spend heavily to reclaim the seat, and multiple additional candidates — including me. By most measures, this is a higher-stakes race than 2024, not a lower one. Frederick County voters deserve the same opportunity to hear directly from congressional candidates that they had two years ago.
I understand forum logistics are demanding and that your organization runs on volunteer capacity. I want to be clear that this letter is not a criticism of your mission or your work — it is the opposite. LWV Frederick’s 2024 forum series set a standard worth defending. I am simply asking publicly whether that standard will be upheld.
If forums are being planned but not yet announced, I encourage you to make that public as soon as possible. With the primary nine weeks out, the window is narrow. If forums have not yet been planned, I urge you to reconsider — and I commit, on behalf of my campaign, to participating.
Voters in Frederick County, Washington County, Allegany County, Garrett County, and Montgomery County are paying close attention to this race. They deserve a public forum.
An Open Letter to the Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club
April 18, 2026
Dear Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club,
I am writing as a candidate in the Democratic primary for Maryland’s 6th Congressional District to respectfully ask whether your organization plans to host a candidate forum for this race before the June 23 primary.
I ask because your 2024 record on this is strong. On April 28, 2024, just days before early voting began in that cycle’s May 14 primary, the Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club hosted a forum for MD-06 Democratic candidates at Seneca Valley High School in Germantown — drawing ten candidates and a room full of engaged voters from across northern Montgomery County. It was exactly the kind of event that gives voters a direct look at who is asking for their support.
The 2026 MD-06 Democratic primary is, by any measure, a higher-stakes race. It features a sitting incumbent, a former three-term congressman who has publicly committed to spending heavily to reclaim the seat, and multiple additional candidates — including me. The portion of the district that falls within Montgomery County will again play a decisive role in the outcome.
I have not seen a 2026 MD-06 forum announced by your organization. With the primary nine weeks away, the window to organize something meaningful is narrow but not closed.
I want to be clear: this letter is not a criticism of the Club’s work — it is a recognition of it. Your 2024 forum served Montgomery County voters well. I am simply asking publicly whether you plan to do so again.
I commit, on behalf of my campaign, to participating in any forum you choose to host.