Moore Replaces Campaign Treasurer in Wake of Labor Dispute at Her Bookstore

Democratic gubernatorial contender Wes Moore has replaced his campaign treasurer, who has been embroiled in a labor dispute with the workers at a bookstore she owns.

Moore is announcing on Tuesday afternoon that Mary Tydings is becoming his new treasurer. She’s a longtime executive at a national business executive search firm and the daughter of the late Maryland U.S. Sen. Joseph D. Tydings (D).

“I’ve seen Mary Tydings in action on the Eastern Shore,” Moore said in a statement. “She is a deeply experienced leader in Maryland politics and an incredible addition to our team, and I am grateful to have her as our campaign treasurer.”

Tydings, a senior director at the firm Russell Reynolds Associates, said Moore “presents a once-in-a generation opportunity to govern inclusively and change the trajectories of families across this state.”

What Moore, a best-selling author and former nonprofit executive, is not saying in his public statement is that he has parted company with his previous treasurer, Lissa Muscatine, the co-owner of the Politics & Prose book store in Washington, D.C.

Several employees at the store are attempting to unionize the workforce, a move the owners are resisting, according to a recent Washington Post article.

Asked whether the labor dispute was a factor in the campaign’s decision to change treasurers, a Moore spokesman provided a statement to Maryland Matters.

“Wes Moore comes from a union family, his running mate Aruna Miller was a proud union member for over a decade, and we are honored to have the support of the labor community in this campaign,” the campaign said. “Wes has a long history of supporting workers in their fight to collectively bargain, secure fair wages and establish safe working conditions. We strongly support every worker’s right to organize and speak with one voice.”

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