Politics & Government

Watson's 'Special Announcement' Scheduled for Sept. 21

Local political observers expect County Council member Courtney Watson to run for Howard County Executive.


Courtney Watson has set a date for a "special announcement" on Sept. 21, at which point she is likely to announce her intention to run for Howard County Executive.

The announcement will take place at 9:30 a.m. at Kahler Hall, 54400 Old Tucker Row, Columbia, according to Watson's Facebook page.

County Executive Ken Ulman said he would be attending the event, telling ExploreHoward.com, "I look forward to being there on the 21st so that we can continue to make progress in Howard County."

Watson, 51, seems to have a clear path to the Democratic nomination for County Executive. No other Democrat has announced a run for county executive, while two Democrats—Jon Weinstein, of Ellicott City, and Dave Grabowski, of Elkridge—have both filed to run for Watson's District 1 Council seat in 2014.

Watson currently has about $374,000 in her campaign account, according to online database records.

Watson is in her second term representing District 1, which encompasses Ellicott City, Elkridge and Hanover. She also served a term on the Howard County Board of Education. She is the daughter of former County Executive Ed Cochran, who served from 1974 to 1978.

Local blogger Bill Woodcock, who frequently covers Howard County politics on The 53 wrote that there are a number of reasons to expect Watson will run for County Executive, "There are no other Democratic candidates—not even a marginal one—who have jumped into the ring. There is an active Democratic primary underway for her seat in Council District 1. She's not going back to run for the School Board. And last, you don't bring families out on a nice September Saturday morning to announce your retirement from politics."

If she does run for County Executive, Watson will face Republican State Senator Allan Kittleman, who announced he would run in June at the Columbia lakefront.


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