Davis Takes Over as Treasurer: ‘We’re Just Going to do Great Things’
Dereck E. Davis (D) was sworn in as Maryland’s 24th treasurer at high noon Friday, surrounded by family, friends, colleagues and some of the highest-ranking elected officials in the state.
“We’re just going to do great things,” he told several dozen dignitaries who came to the House of Delegates chamber to see the transfer of power between Nancy K. Kopp (D), who held the job for just shy of 20 years, and Davis. He was sworn in twice ― once by House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County) and then by Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City).
The General Assembly selects the treasurer; Davis won the post on Dec. 9, weeks after Kopp announced her intention to retire from state government.
>> RELATED: Treasurer Nancy Kopp, a Trailblazing Fiscal Watchdog, Reflects on 50 Years in Annapolis
Davis is a 27-year veteran of the House of Delegates, first elected in 1994 when he was just 27 years old.
“He was the prodigy child who started when he was just 3,” Jones joked.
Davis recalled Kopp’s first election as treasurer, in 2002, when she had served in the House for 27 years.
“I remember thinking, ‘there’s no way I’m going to be here 27 years,'” he said.
New state Treasurer Dereck E. Davis (D) takes the oath of office Friday from House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D). Also pictured, from left to right: Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R), Senate President Bill Ferguson (D), outgoing Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp (D), Davis’ son, Dereck Jr., and wife Monique. Photo by Josh Kurtz.
Well-wishers in the House chamber included Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R), who will serve on the Board of Public Works with Davis, Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford (R), U.S. Rep. Anthony G. Brown (D-Md.) ― who got his political start as a campaign aide for Davis ― Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy (D), and more than two dozen members of the General Assembly.
“A life of service is a life of great reward, as Dereck Davis knows,” Kopp told the audience. She added that Davis as treasurer will be able to see the human stories behind the number he’s crunching.
Ferguson noted that Davis takes over as treasurer at a time when Maryland will have a new governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and comptroller come January 2023, and called him “a stabilizing force.”
“In this moment of transition for our state, today is a symbol of what our state can and should represent,” Ferguson said.
Moments after being sworn in, Davis paid tribute to Kopp. He said he’s been shadowing her for several days and was struck by how many responsibilities the office has. Later, he quoted from the Steve Wonder classic, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours.”
In an interview, Davis said he planned to visit the staff in the Treasury Building on Friday afternoon, finish cleaning out his delegate office on Saturday, and then “come in bright and early Monday morning and hit the ground running.”
Davis is the first Prince Georgian to serve as state treasurer and will be the second Black treasurer in state history after the late Richard N. Dixon (D), who served from 1996 to 2002. Davis acknowledged that he may be seen as a role model in his new post, and a symbol of opportunity in a changing state.
“I absolutely want to bring equity and fairness to the job,” he said. “But honestly, I want to meet the standard set by Treasurer Kopp.”
New Del. Linda K. Foley (D-Montgomery) takes the oath of office Friday from House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County). Photo by Josh Kurtz
New delegate
Davis’ event wasn’t the only swearing-in in the House chamber Friday. Later in the afternoon, Jones administered the oath of office to new Del. Linda K. Foley (D-Montgomery), who was appointed by Hogan recently to replace former Del. Kathleen M. Dumais (D) in the 15th District. Dumais resigned to become a judge.
Foley, a former journalist and union organizer, will serve the remainder of Dumais’ term, through the end of 2022 ― though she’s expected to seek a full four-year term next year.
“I’m so looking forward to sitting in this chamber and passing legislation that improves the lives of the people of Maryland,” Foley said, moments after being sworn in. “People asked me why I wanted to do this. That’s why.”
Josh Kurtz
Founding editor
Founding Editor Josh Kurtz is a veteran chronicler of Maryland politics and government. He began covering the State House in 1995 for The Gazette newspapers, and has been writing about state and local politics ever since. He was an editor at Roll Call, the Capitol Hill newspaper, for eight years, and for eight years was the editor of E&E Daily, which covers energy and environmental policy on Capitol Hill. For 6 1/2 years Kurtz wrote a weekly column on state politics for Center Maryland and has written for several other Maryland publications as well. Kurtz regularly gives speeches and appears on TV and radio shows to discuss Maryland politics.
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