First projected winners in Montgomery County Council Democratic primary
“Montgomery County is very fortunate in many, many ways,” Katz said in an interview Friday. “But we still have a lot of issues to deal with.”
González emerged as the winner in the newly formed District 6, where she competed against seven other Democrats to represent Wheaton, Glenmont, Rock Creek, Aspen Hill and Kemp Mill.
“I came to this country when I was 16 years old. I did not speak English,” González said through tears Friday. “So, winning an election in this country is just really, really special, and I am going to do my best not to let people down.”
Winners in the remaining council races — along with the county executive seat — will be projected over the coming days and weeks as election officials make their way through the mail-in ballots, which under Maryland law couldn’t begin to be counted until two days after the election.
The winners of the Democratic nominations will go on to face the Republican nominees and any third-party candidates in November, although in this deep-blue county, winning the Democratic primary is often indicative of who will win the general election.
Three council members — Nancy Navarro (D-District 4), Hans Riemer (D-At Large) and Craig Rice (D-District 2) — were term-limited this year and could not seek reelection, opening the door to a new slate of lawmakers on the council.
Montgomery County last year redrew its council district lines and added two council seats, for a total of seven district seats and four at-large ones. The two new districts were added with hopes of better representing the changing demographics of the county, which had become more racially diverse over the past four decades.
District 6, where González won, was one of those districts — now representing a population with a Hispanic plurality. González, who served as the vice-chair of the Montgomery County Park and Planning Commission, had faced seven other Democrats who were also vying for the council seat.
“I really want to make sure that Montgomery County is a vibrant place for everybody,” González said. “That includes the lady who’s cleaning houses like I did when I came to this country with my mom, and the business owner who does not speak English yet but is doing his or her best to provide for their family.”
Incumbents Gabe Albornoz, who is serving as council president, Will Jawando and Evan Glass ran again for the Democratic at-large nominations, along with District 5 council member Tom Hucker. Hucker opted to run for an at-large seat after withdrawing his bid for county executive in April.
Other council candidates include Scott Goldberg, a former chair of the Montgomery County Democratic Party; Laurie Anne-Sayles, the first Black woman to serve on the Gaithersburg City Council; Brandy Brooks, a liberal activist; and Dana Gassaway, a former biology teacher.
As of Friday, incumbent Marc Elrich and Potomac businessman David Blair still were locked in a battle for the county executive nomination. Riemer, who also ran for the seat, conceded on Wednesday.
Blair and Elrich previously faced off in the 2018 primary, which Elrich won by 77 votes.
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