Meet the Democratic Senate candidates not named Trone or Alsobrooks

Tired of the skirmishing between the leading Democratic contenders for U.S. Senate, U.S. Rep. David Trone and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks? Looking for alternatives in the May 14 primary?

Democratic voters do have other choices — eight to be exact. While their messages have largely been crowded out by the millions being spent by the two frontrunners, here are some things to know about the other Democrats seeking to replace departing U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D):

Michael Cobb Sr.

Cobb, a roofer, said he’s running to change the Democratic Party, which, he says has gotten “too progressive.”

The Middle River native criticized the party’s stance of slowing oil drilling and banning fracking for natural gas. He also wants to prevent the use of wind farms.

As senator, Cobb said he’d aim to increase the number of domestic oil drilling jobs and enforce gun control laws. The candidate hopes to bring “accountability” to Congress and care for the average American.

“I never wanted to get into politics,” Cobb said. “But somebody has to stand up for the regular working class.”

Marcellus Crews

Crews, a business owner and IT specialist, said he’s running because he’s “fed up” with existing crime and welfare policies. Crews said that none of those problems can be solved without a robust education system.

“Education is a vehicle that gets us as a nation back on the road of us leading the world,” Crews said.

The Prince George’s County resident decided to run after joking about doing so with his wife and employees. Afterwards his wife sat him down and convinced him to join the race.

Crews said he hopes to establish professional certifications as a different pathway to jobs outside of a college degree. As senator he’ll seek to improve Maryland’s education system to develop the state’s workforce. mitigate losses due to dropout rates and rehabilitate returning convicts. Crews hopes to distinguish himself by having a clear vision guiding his policy decisions.

“It is time that our society gets back to the fundamentals,” he said.

Crews has lived in Maryland for nearly 37 years, residing in Upper Marlboro. He founded CREWSING Technology in 2009 and has served as its managing director since.

Brian Frydenborg

Fryenborg said he was surprised by Cardin’s retirement last year and wondered who would replace him. Inspired by the book “Dismantling Utopia: How Information Ended the Soviet Union” by Scott Shane, and by a desire to shape policy, Fryenborg decided to run for Cardin’s seat.

While he’s impressed with the frontrunners — Trone and Alsobrooks — he worries they might not be able to beat Hogan. The candidate pointed to recent polls suggesting Hogan is ahead.

Frydenborg said his top priority is to prevent former President Donald Trump’s reelection and the “existential threat” the former president poses to democracy. Fryenborg said if elected he’d introduce legislation providing federal tax credits for renters earning less than $70,000, improving maternal health and addressing credit card debt.

The self-described “policy nerd” hopes to serve as a third option for voters, as he has nearly 25 years of experience researching and writing about policy, including foreign policy and humanitarian aid. He’s worked as an independent journalist founding his own site, Real Context News, and his work has been featured in other publications such as Newsweek and Business Insider. He’s also been cited in NATO’s Cyber Defense Reports and the international media organization Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s

Fryenborg said he would be the type of person a senator hires to write policy. “I say let’s cut out the middle man,” he said.

Scottie Griffin

Griffin is a long-time educator running who believes her background in policy development and implementation will be valuable in the Senate. Griffin has served as a leader of the Women’s Democratic Club of Montgomery County and an international team leader at the National Presbyterian Church, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Though she’s had an interest in politics, she said the timing wasn’t right to run for any elected office until she completed other career goals.

Griffin has over 12 years of experience as an educator in various positions including academic coordinator for the Juvenile Services Education Program in the Maryland Department of Juvenile Service. As senator, she wants to increase access to higher education for underprivileged youth through scholarships and grants, and reduce the tax rate for those earning less than $50,000 a year. Griffin also wants the state to retrain law enforcement officers to reduce the use of lethal force and increase racial sensitivity.

Robert Houton

Houton is running to stop the fentanyl crisis. Fentanyl overdoses in the state increased 108% from 2018 to 2021, Houton said. His children have friends who died from overdoses.

Houton says he helped politicians create legislation to combat fentanyl usage, the Fentanyl Safe Testing and Overdose Prevention Act in the U.S. Senate and its companion bill, the STRIP Act, in the House of Representatives. The Senate bill would amend the Controlled Substances Act to clarify that the possession and transportation of fentanyl or xylazine testing isn’t illegal. The legislation is co-sponsored by 10 senators including Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D).

The Boston-born candidate also wants to address affordable housing. One of his proposals is to transition some of the state’s commercial real estate properties into affordable housing.

Houton decided to run after the fentanyl legislation was introduced in the Senate.

“Knowing that accomplishment was successful amplified the urgency [of the Senate run],” Houton said.

The non-profit founder also plans to continue the campaign after the primary. Houton said he’s been in contact with the Maryland State Board of Elections and believes he’s qualified to appear on November’s ballot as an independent candidate for Senate.

Joseph Perez

Perez, a former Department of Justice contractor, said he’s running for Senate to lower government debt and decrease government spending. One of his proposals is to require a spending report for organizations receiving government funding, according to a profile in the Frederick News-Post.

He took the same approach to addressing climate change, arguing that such efforts to address climate change needs more accountability and should primarily center domestic efforts. Perez said his upbringing which involved immigrating to Northern Virginia as a child, would help inform his time in office. “Maryland could benefit from a representative in the U.S. Senate who has known the hardship of living paycheck to paycheck, living off of credit,” Perez said in his campaign bio.

Steven Seuferer

Seuferer said that governments shouldn’t be making medical decisions for people. His priorities include creating an elected board of doctors to be involved in policy decisions and addressing gun violence by making mental health evaluations part of the requirements to purchase a gun.

Seuferer said he doesn’t support the significant amounts of money being poured into elections, so he’s opting to talk to people in person as much as possible.

The IT specialist said he’s looking to be the voice of the average American. “Their struggles have been my struggles,” he said.

A.J. Wildman 

Wildman, a frequent candidate for office, has worked as a business systems analyst and consultant for 30 years. The Carroll County resident seeks to address bullying in K-12 schools. He also wants to limit the student use of phones in schools and bring back the death penalty. He also wants to introduce rent control and food price protections. He hopes to eliminate “racial divisions” and create straightforward solutions for Maryland residents.

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