Derrick Leon Davis wins hands down in special election

Democratic Nominee for the County Council Derrick Leon Davis

Third time became the charm for Derrick Leon Davis today winning hands down the Democratic nomination to replace Leslie Johnson on the Prince George’s County Council representing the 6th District. With the sixth district being heavily made up of Democrats, Davis is the favorite to win the general election later this fall when he faces off against GOP nominee Day Gardner who ran unopposed in the primary.

Davis lost the 2010 Democratic primary to Leslie Johnson who resigned from office after pleading guilty to corruption charges last summer.

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EDITORIAL- Board gives first endorsement to Davis in Special Election

Derrick Leon Davis

The people in Prince George’s County’s 6th District will have an opportunity to change direction, have a do-over, and set the direction of their community possibly for the next eleven years when the polls open to fill the seat left by Leslie Johnson after she resigned in a cloud of scandal. Three candidates have gotten most of the attention in this race but we have decided to back just one, Derrick Leon Davis.

As a former administrator in the county public schools Davis knows more than anyone the need for a greater focus by county officials on education in the county and his experience as a former employee will help identify where all of the bodies are hidden. A close ally of Executive Rushern Baker, Davis will have the potential to go into office with the same sense of urgency and message Baker did after Jack Johnson left saying to his peers, “I am here now and I need your help to do big and important things for a group of people who are demanding action fast and now.” The good thing is that at least three of his possible counterparts (Campos, Franklin and Harrison) support his campaign and likely will support his efforts to move fast at healing the wounds left by Leslie Johnson.

Davis also has made a top priority of his passage of the Economic Development Incentive proposed by Rushern Baker. As a council member who will represent many inside the beltway communities this fund is been proposed to help, Davis has the right position in our opinion, it should be passed and should be passed soon. The only way to lift up our more established communities is through jobs and development and despite what some candidates will have you to believe it will take government spending. Rushern Baker is right on with his EDI fund and he needs allies like Davis on the council sending that message.

In supporting Davis it is hard to overlook the great candidacy of Arthur Turner. The board debated the difference between the two men a lot and honestly just couldn’t come to say that Turner winning would be horrible for the county. The key factor in this decision basically came down to who Turner decided to align himself with going into this campaign and at the end Davis broke through. When most people in the county decided the only way to truly move forward was without Leslie Johnson council members Toles and Ingrid Turner stood in the way and in fact allowed their blind allegiance to friendship to overtake what was best for the county. Even after Ingrid Turner used Leslie Johnson to win the gavel in a tight election for chair of the council only to sack her later without any committee assignments, both Toles and Turner had to be pressured into finally taken the drastic actions of restricting access to staff and benefits for almost a year. Their endorsement is just one part of the problem. Turner is also supported by Sam Dean who when faced with a public rebuke over plans to publicly finance a soccer stadium sought to silence citizen input. A wise man once said you can tell the character of a man by who he surrounds himself with, Arthur Turner just has too many question marks left in our minds.

The final headliner is Mark Polk. Nothing could be worse for the council than the election of Mark Polk. Prince George’s County needs now more than ever elected officials who want to work together. The county does not need a man going to the council to be the minority vote and that is just what Mark Polk will do if he is elected. His campaign has been nothing more than one that rips apart the long records of service by Arthur Turner and relationships of Derrick Davis. He has however failed to offer any positive solutions about what he will do on the council other than fighting against what the other two will do. That just is not a message about the future of the county we can believe in.

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FROM THE EDITORIAL BOARD- Let’s Be Clear, District 6 Race is Between Two Candidates

With fourteen candidates in the race for the Democratic nomination to fill the empty District 6 council manic seat it is easy to get confused about just who are the real contenders of the race are. In fact one group in particular seems to be going out of their way to project this race between their candidate Mark Polk and the odds-on frontrunner Derrick Leon Davis. That is false.

despite what groups like People for Change and the various campaigns wish to make you believe, the real race to replace Leslie Johnson as the District 6 Council member after she resigned this summer is between Arthur Turner and Derrick Leon Davis, as it should be.

Only one of these gentlemen will win the party nomination later this month on election day and then almost surely go on and win the seat in the general election but both of them actually have the skills and talents to be great members of the council.

Arthur Turner until last year was a member of the Democratic Central Committee and served as the first vice-chair. He has also been the longtime chairman of the United Communities Against Poverty (UCAP) and president of the Coalition of Central Prince George’s Community Organizations. For over two decades Arthur Turner has been a loud voice for the type of development that many Prince Georgian’s have demanded for a long time and in some respect he has delivered. The problem with Turner is that he will have to fight off the image that he is apart of the old tired politics that some in the county say it is time to do away with and the endorsement from Sam Dean may not be helpful in that respect. Sam Dean as a member of the council walked lockstep in line with others like Marilyn Bland and Camille Exum to back many of the bad planning policies then-Executive Johnson supported. This shouldn’t be seen  corruption as Dean was never tied to any illegal activity but it surely wasn’t all above-board. Turner will also have to make the case to voters that if he is elected, he’ll be able to work with Rushern Baker, the popular new executive, and the rest of the council, many whom have supported his challenger. We also think that Turner needs to explain his opposition to the swift (sorta) action taken by the council to restrict the powers of Leslie Johnson before she plead guilty this summer. Despite what it was, what it looked like was someone who failed to understand the need to sideline this councilwoman who didn’t have the respect for her community to step aside before it became too much of a distraction. Instead of doing so last December and allowing the community to move forward, Johnson used her seat as a bargaining chip (even though she got none) and drew this process out for almost a year.

Derrick Leon Davis became the youngest and first African-American to chair the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund after he was appointed a trustee by Governor Martin O’Malley in 2007. The fund which provides insurance for drivers who can’t get regular insurance because of credit or driving history manages a budget of overt half a billion dollars. Before taking on this leadership role statewide Davis spent decades as an employee of the Prince George’s County Public Schools first expanding universal full day kindergarten throughout the county and then as a coordinator in the Title I office. Of all of the candidates in the race Davis has the widest breadth of knowledge about the most expensive part of the county budget, the school system. The problem with the county approach to education has been one that the council and executive always seem late to the table on this issue and two that no one really has the real working knowledge into how the system works. Davis on this issue will be ready to be a leader on the council in an area that is badly needed. With so much in his favor Davis will have to try very hard to distance himself from Rushern Baker where necessary and be the independent voice that his community needs. Baker has been pushing a very expensive Economic Development Corporation (EDC) fund that the council has asked the right questions and done the right about of work to ensure not only long-term stability but accountability, but Davis has campaign on the need to make this fund a reality which some can see as a promised vote for what Baker wants. Davis has close relationships with many of his soon to be peers like Will Campos, Mel, Franklin and Andrea Harrison but he should make sure that his community benefits as a result of it. The ties he has with people like Governor O’Malley and others like Justin Ross have to mean something to the people in Capitol Heights or else he risks just being one of the club. The youthfulness and energy Davis brings to this race is his best quality because it combined with being a lifelong resident of the county adds hope for the future.

With less than fourteen days left until the September Democratic Primary the race for the future of not only this council district but the county as whole requires an educated and informed judgement and that judgment is one of these two gentlemen to move onto the general election.

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As Mark Polk focuses on jobs his allies focus on attacks and distortion

Two days ago the self described citizen watchdog group People for Change released a scathing email to their supporters blasting the front runner for the County Council in the District 6 Special Election Derrick Leon Davis, and accusing his campaign of pay to play politics in a reference to former councilwoman Leslie Johnson who resigned after pleading guilty to corruption charges. The email also takes to task three people who would be Polk’s colleagues if he is elected. “If Polk is going to be serious about projecting an image that he will be able to hit the ground running on day one and work well with the other members to serve his district, he will have to send a clear message to this group to tone it down,” said a member of the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee from the 6th district.

The email which was sent to the more than 30,000 homes People for Change claim to represent bashed Davis for accepting campaign donations from employee unions (who People for Change call “special interest”) and endorsements from political leaders like Rushern Baker, Del. Justin Ross, and more. “Maybe someone should ask if Mark Polk had been offered these endorsements would he had turned them down, he did accept their endorsement and the majority of the group don’t live in District 6,” the same Democratic Central Committee member said. The email also blasts council members Will Campos, Mel Franklin, and Andrea Harrison. The attacks on Franklin ignited passionate responses from supporters of Franklin who condemned the attacks from People for Change on listserves, twitter, and facebook. “One of the biggest problems we have in this county is people thinking they are going to do something and don’t need to work with other people. Endorsements by leaders of a body you plan to work with are very important. The member from District 6 can’t get anything done with votes from at least four of his peers. This is just another example of the extremes that this group promotes and why Polk, if he wants to be seen as a serious candidate, should put them in their place,” a member of Polk’s HOA Board (where he is president) who is leaning toward voting for Arthur Turner said.

Mark Polk is running for the vacated seat on the Prince George’s County Council from District 6 on September 20th against fourteen other candidates including Derrick Leon Davis and Arthur Turner.

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Read the full People for Change email below and let us know either in the comments or on Twitter and Facebook about your thoughts.

THERE IS A CANDIDATE IN THE RACE WHO IS BOUGHT AND PAID FOR. (See attachments on his campaign finance reports — it will be a shocker!)

We can not  talk about ethics and accountability and allow our County officials to be involved in this District 6 race.  THIS IS NOT THEIR SEAT!  IT BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE!

 So why did three council people give $1,000 each to a candidate in the District 6 race?  Ask Andrea Harrison, Will Campos, and Mel Franklin!

Why are outside interests coming into our county trying to buy a candidate? (see attachments)

Why are our state legislators trying to buy this candidate?   One legislator donated $62,500 to the Progressive Alliance slate.  The other delegate donated $11,338. (see attachments)

THIS CANDIDATE  DOES NOT HAVE TO ANSWER TO THE PEOPLE.  WHY? BECAUSE WE ALLOW THIS.  WE CAN NOT CONTINUE TO VOTE SOMEONE IN OFFICE WHO IS BOUGHT AND PAID FOR.  WE DESERVE BETTER IN PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY!

To learn about this candidate visit: http://www.coalitionforchangepgc.org/DavisPaytoPlay.asp

Sandy Pruitt

Leader, People for Change

www.pfcpgc.org

301-808-1492

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People for Change Endorses Mark Polk

Putting to rest rumors we heard that People for Change was gearing up to endorse former Democratic Central Committee Vice-Chair Arthur Turner, today People for Change announced they would make the same decision they made last year and instead back Mark Polk, President of the Prince George’s County Library Board. Polk ran for the County Council in 2010 against Leslie Johnson, Derrick Leon Davis, Arthur Turner, Venus Bethea, and Abdul Abdullah where he finished 5th with 900 votes behind Johnson, Davis, Turner and even Bethea who wasn’t included in the People for Change candidate’s forum.

Full Press Release from Sandy Pruitt

Hello All,

The District 6 Coalition and People for Change had a vetting process in which we interviewed the top three candidates.  In addition, we held a candidate debate and looked at campaign finance reports as well as public records on the candidates.

After this process, Mark Polk was selected by the group to represent the constituents of District 6 which covers (South Bowie, Upper Marlboro, Mitchellville, Largo, Kettering, District Heights, Forestville, and Capitol Heights).   Attached is a link to the endorsement.

We look forward to supporting Mark Polk and, if you are interested in helping with the District 6 campaign, please contact me.  Also, visit our website for more information on the District 6 Race. 

Sandy Pruitt

Leader, People for Change

www.pfcppgc.org

www.coalitionforchangepgc.org

301-808-1492

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Who watches the political watch dog? Is People for Change guilty of what they charge others with?

Last week the community activist and political watch dog group People for Change announced that a group of their members had met in secret to interview the candidates running to replace fmr. County Councilwoman Leslie Johnson in a special election later this fall. The announcement noted that from those interviews they had selected the top three who would be invited to the debate. People for Change who had blasted this type of backroom dealing from other political groups and leaders opened the door charges of cronyism and corruption, things they are more use to throwing at their opponents than receiving.

The Endorsement and Charges of Vote tampering with the Straw Poll Results

Later today People for Change is scheduled to announce their endorsement in the race to replace Leslie Johnson who resigned last month after pleading guilty to charges of corruption. There are 15 candidates in the race to succeed her on the County Council from District 6. According to a press release sent out by the group leader Sandy Pruitt, the endorsement will follow the results of a straw poll taken at last weeks debate, but some residents in the district who attended the debate are challenging the results. “If on election day election officials took the ballots and held them for days out of the view of the public and then just announced a winner would People for Change say it was a fair vote? They’d be out on the court-house steps demanding the resignation of somebody. I mean where have the ballots been for these last few days? How do we know everybody who wanted to vote and voted got their vote counted? Are we supposed to just believe it because they say so?,” said a senior member of one of the campaigns who did participate in the debate.

Challengers Open Fire on People for Change

When we contacted the campaigns of those excluded from the debate they held back little of their fire on the organization that touts itself as being of the people.

Lynwood Leach called his exclusion a travesty and claimed that People for Change in fliers about the event had billed it as a farewell to Leslie Johnson who Sandy Pruitt said should not had been forced to step down before she is sentenced in October.

Christine Osei who did attend the debate and despite not being invited by People for Change sat in a seat and required them to allow her to participate blasted the group for “being out to destroy Derrick Davis” and create their own political machine. In another blog about the event it was noted that upon entering the room guests found an unflattering flier on their chairs attacking Derrick Leon Davis for taking union and pac money to fund his campaign. The blog PGC Blog also noted that the moderator and leader Sandy Pruitt read the flier and attacked Derrick Leon Davis from the podium after she noted he had informed her he would not be attending the forum because of a previous engagement. “I mean how dare she attack him for not attending the event after she didn’t even invite all the candidates,” an attendee of the event noted.

Wanda McKnight said while she understood that with so many candidates in the race it might be hard to present a forum with all of them, she felt that organizations could hold an event that had one group of candidates one day and another group another day. She pointed out that this decision was made from the start as she had never received any communication from People for Change to either interview or attend the forum.

Sherine Taylor called it a missed opportunity and stressed that she hoped the voters would join her and the other candidates in one of the other more inclusive forums being organized.

Does People for Change engage in the crime they Charge Others For?

In our research for this article we discovered that a lot of elected officials and community leaders had opened their minds to People for Change for a variety of reasons but became turned off after the group showed it was not about representative democracy but creating the type of political structure they often attack. One member of the county council said the group often appears to bash it for backroom dealing but no one can explain how their leadership is decided or who gets to vote on the People for Change leaders. His comment was echoed by a member of the House of Delegates who said she personally was aware of “members” of People for Change who point out that the issues they support or oppose aren’t decided by the “members” but by the “leaders” who no one is aware of but Sandy Pruitt. “I mean is that the type of democratic process we want”?

As People for Change gears up to enter the special election with their endorsed candidate one challenger pointed out to us that in 2010 none of the endorsed candidates the group supported who were not incumbents even came close to winning. As they noted “this is a group that is more about smoke than they are about fire.” Rumors are already leaking out that the leadership had decided as far back as three weeks ago to back Arthur Turner for the vacant seat which could be why Derrick Leon Davis skipped the event. Turner who formerly served as Vice-Chair of the Democratic Central Committee has had his share of run-ins with People for Change so this would be a very surprising development.

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Washington Post Endorses Derrick Leon Davis for Vacant Seat on Council

The Washington Post Editorial Board on one of the worst news making days of the year announced they had endorsed Derrick Leon Davis to fill the vacant seat on the County Council in next month’s Democratic Primary. Davis who is running against fourteen other challengers hopes his third bid for the sixth district seat will be a successful one has the backing of Executive Rushern Baker and much of the political establishment. So what do you think? Tweet us @realpgcounty or leave a comment below with your thoughts…does Derrick Leon Davis deserve the endorsement?

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PRINCE GEORGE’S County Council member Leslie Johnson’s guilty plea on corruption charges capped a dismal chapter in county history, but it offers an opportunity. In addition to sending a clarion message that Ms. Johnson’s unscrupulous behavior is unacceptable in elected office, it also positions the council for a qualitative upgrade.

To replace Ms. Johnson, who resigned from the council and is awaiting sentencing in federal court, no fewer than 14 candidates are running in a special Democratic primary Sept. 20. The winner will represent District 6, which includes all or parts of Bowie; Capitol Heights; District Heights; Forestville; Largo; Kettering; Mitchellville; and Upper Marlboro. (The top Democratic vote-getter will face a lone Republican, who stands virtually no chance in the overwhelmingly Democratic district, on Oct. 18.) Of the 14 candidates, two stand out as savvy, substantive and serious contenders who would bring broad experience as well as integrity to the council.

One is Derrick Leon Davis, who spent years in the county schools working for Head Start and is now Chairman of the Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund, the state’s car insurer of last resort. The other is Mark Polk, a longtime law enforcement officer who, after retiring as a captain in the county police force, put himself through law school and has helped homeowners facing foreclosure.

Both men ran last year in the Democratic primary won by Ms. Johnson. Mr. Davis finished a strong second; Mr. Polk, a distant fifth. Last year, we endorsed Mr. Polk, while also identifying Mr. Davis as a strong choice. This time, we think Mr. Davis is the better candidate.

We make the switch partly because of Mr. Davis’s much stronger performance in last year’s primary. He showed a convincing ability to connect with District 6 voters.

We also favor Mr. Davis this time because the county’s political stars are realigned. Mr. Davis is backed by (and himself supports) County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, who, since taking office in December, has brought a badly needed dose of honesty, decency, transparency and good government to Prince George’s.

By contrast, Mr. Polk has been critical of Mr. Baker and a number of his proposals, including the Economic Development Initiative, a measure currently stymied by the council that could help attract quality development and jobs. It’s an honest disagreement; we happen to believe Mr. Baker is right.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of the shift underway in Prince George’s since the departure of Mr. Baker’s predecessor, Jack B. Johnson, who, like his wife, Leslie, faces prison time following a guilty plea on federal charges. After eight years of pay-to-play corruption by an executive who regarded the public with contempt and taxpayer dollars as a slush fund for personal use, Mr. Baker is remaking the county’s image, political culture and governance. It’s critical that he have allies in that endeavor. Mr. Davis would be a valuable one.

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Fmr. District 6 Councilman Sam Dean throws support (again) behind Arthur Turner

Former County Councilman Samuel Dean

Former Prince George’s County Councilman Sam Dean and his wife/political adviser Donna today announced their support for former Democratic Central Committeeman Arthur Turner in the race to succeed Leslie Johnson when she steps down at the end of the month. Turner who before running for the county council last year and being beaten by both Leslie Johnson and Derrick Leon Davis (who also will be a candidate) represented much of the 6th district on the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee where he was the first vice-chairman.

In an email announcing their support the Dean’s wrote, “Donna and I feel very strongly that Arthur Turner, who will be a candidate, without question, is the best qualified person for the position of Council Member for District 6. He has our unquestionable support.”

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Happening Today- Johnson could be on way out as Davis prepares to run

Derrick Leon Davis is expected to announce campaign for County Council if Johnson steps down

Prince George’s County Councilwoman Leslie Johnson is expected to plead guilty to obstruction of justice charges today in federal court. The charges stem from actions she took as FBI agents closed in on her husband in a wide-ranging pay to play scheme. If Johnson, who was elected to the council representing district 6 last fall, does plead guilty, than under state law she will be forced to step down and with that a lot of eyes have turned to the person she beat just a few months ago.

Over the last few weeks members of Team Davis or Derrick Leon Davis’ campaign have been busy organizing online and sparked a lot of attention when they launched http://www.teamdavis2011.com/. Davis, who also ran for the council seat against former councilman Sam Dean in 2002 lost to Johnson by 9 percentage points but outpaced his over rivals by more than 19 points. Should Johnson plead guilty and step down from office as is expected today, a special election will be ordered to fill her unexpired term and could be set by next week.

Other candidates rumored to be also considering a run in the special election include Arthur Turner a former member of the Democratic Central Committee and Betha Venus who both also ran against Johnson last fall. It is also rumored that former termed out councilman Sam Dean who ran for executive against Rushern Baker is also considering a run. The county charter prohibits members from serving more than two consecutive terms but since Johnson was elected last fall it opens up the option for Dean to return if he runs and wins.

Leslie Johnson is expected in federal court in Greenbelt at 10:00AM this morning.

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