Skip to main content
Government & Politics

All-Star Cast of Dems Raising Money for Ron and Karen Young

Maryland’s two U.S. senators, a former U.S. senator, two former governors, Attorney General Brian Frosh (D) and U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D) have penned a fundraising appeal for a new committee set up to raise money for state Sen. Ron Young (D) and his wife, state Del. Karen Lewis Young (D), who represent the Frederick area.

The solicitation comes from “Western Maryland Progressives,” a fundraising entity that Ron Young set up in August to benefit himself and his wife. Kathy Rossen, who is the treasurer for the senator’s campaign committee, doubles as the treasurer for the new fundraising vehicle. Ron Young’s seat is one of half a dozen Senate districts that Maryland Republicans have targeted this election cycle, as they seek to prevent the legislature from overriding Gov. Larry Hogan’s (R) vetoes should Hogan win a second term.

RonYoung

State Sen. Ron Young

In addition to Raskin and Frosh, who are former colleagues of Ron Young’s, the letter is signed by U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, former U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski, and former Govs. Parris Glendening and Martin O’Malley. It appears to be being mailed to Democratic households throughout the state.

The appeal reads:

Dear Friends,

We are writing to ask your financial support for two excellent candidates. Ron Young is the only progressive Senator in the Maryland General Assembly from outside the major urban areas of the State. Karen Lewis Young is one of only four progressive Maryland Delegates from outside the major urban areas.

Both representatives, but particularly Senator Young, are targets of the Maryland State Republican Party and the Governor. The Governor wants to make the Maryland General Assembly veto-proof. Eliminating Senator Young will leave the Senate short of the 29 necessary votes regularly needed in the Senate. Eliminating the progressives in the House will weaken veto opportunities in that chamber.

These two are excellent legislators that represent the State and their districts well. If you examine the record of these legislators they are among the hardest working, most productive, and respected members in the legislature. We urge you to join us in supporting them to ensure that Maryland stays strong.

Once again, that is Ron Young for State Senate and Karen Lewis Young for House of Delegates. We would appreciate your help to whatever extent possible. Contributions can be made payable to Western Maryland Progressives at P.O. Box 724, Frederick, MD 21705 or online at SenatorRonYoung.org.

Two Republicans are currently seeking the GOP nomination to run against Sen. Young: Businessman Craig Giangrande and Frederick County Councilmember Billy Shreve.

Karen Lewis Young represents a smaller subdistrict that mostly takes in Frederick city, which is becoming a Democratic stronghold. So she is considerably less vulnerable than her husband in a general election.

Ron Young, who turns 77 on Thursday, is seeking his third term in the Senate. His political career dates back to 1970, when he was elected to the Frederick City Board of Aldermen. He also spent 16 years as Frederick mayor, and served as Glendening’s Planning secretary.

Karen Lewis Young, 66, is seeking her second term in the House. She also served on the Frederick Board of Aldermen.

REPUBLISHING TERMS

Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.

If you have any questions, please email [email protected].

To republish, copy the following text and paste it into your HTML editor.

License

Creative Commons License AttributionCreative Commons Attribution
All-Star Cast of Dems Raising Money for Ron and Karen Young