Making History, Delegates Elect African-American Woman as Speaker
Speaker Adrienne Jones | General Assembly website
The Maryland House of Delegates made history Wednesday by selecting its first African American, and its first woman, to lead the chamber.
Delegate Adrienne Jones, a Democrat from Baltimore County, won an election held because of the death of former speaker, Michael Busch, on April 7.
Gov. Larry Hogan had convened a special session of the General Assembly April 18 so the House could choose a new speaker.
Jones had been serving as speaker pro tem, the number two position in the House. She led the body through much of the end of the 90-day 2019 session because of Busch’s illness. Although Busch had been visibly ailing for about two years, he ultimately died of pneumonia.
Democrats were assured of selecting the next speaker because the party holds a 99-to-42 majority.
The selection wasn’t without drama, however.
Jones had been a candidate for the speakership, along with Delegate Dereck Davis of Prince George’s County and Delegate Maggie McIntosh of Baltimore city. Jones took her name out of contention on April 26, forcing a head-to-head matchup between Davis, who is also black, and McIntosh, who is openly gay.
Republicans had pledged to vote for Davis, which meant he only needed 29 Democratic votes to win.
Democrats met for hours Wednesday to select a candidate, concerned that a new speaker, elected with the aid of Republicans, would be beholden to the opposition.
When the Democrats emerged from their caucus meeting, they announced they were supporting Jones.
The final vote was 139-0, according to the General Assembly website.
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