(RANDALLSTOWN – March 27, 2026) – I have to be honest. I’m not just saddened — I’m alarmed.
What I’m hearing from some leaders in Northwest Baltimore County right now sounds less like strategy and more like disunity at the worst possible moment.
On June 23rd, Baltimore County voters face a historic crossroads. For the first time ever, a non-white male candidate has a real shot at leading the county. Given everything people of color have built and contributed here, this moment is long overdue.
Moments like this don’t come often — and when we mishandle them, we pay for it for years.
And yet, some of the very people who should be leading the charge are standing in the way.
The Power Behind the Race
Let’s talk about endorsements.
State legislators carry enormous weight in county executive races — their support can make or break a campaign. So can legacy influencers. Former State Senator Delores G. Kelley is one of those voices. And she has endorsed Izzy Patoka.
On the surface, some might ask: why isn’t the Black woman supporting Julian Jones?
But for those who know the political history of Northwest Baltimore County, the answer is no surprise.
Kelley has a long pattern of withholding support from strong Black men who won’t fall in line. The late Emmett Burns. Ken Oliver, the first man of color on the Baltimore County Council. N. Scott Phillips — who ran, lost without her, then eventually won anyway, though not before Kelley inserted her own candidate into the race.
Jones himself won his council seat without her support.
So when her Patoka endorsement dropped, Black political advocates barely blinked.
At some point, we have to stop calling this coincidence and start calling it a pattern.
Let’s Stop Dancing Around It
Izzy Patoka sided with Republicans to draw a district map that was not beneficial to the Black community. His campaign colors signal exactly where his loyalties lie. Martin O’Malley — long associated with “lock ’em up” politics — is his longtime political patron.
And yet, some Black leaders in Baltimore County are choosing him over a four-term Council Chair who has made history right in front of our eyes.
Julian Jones has served as Baltimore County Council Chair for three consecutive terms — and a fourth overall — an unprecedented run. That is a proven record of leadership.
This Didn’t Start Today
This isn’t just about one election. It’s about a pattern.
Question P in Baltimore City reduced three-member council districts to 14 individual ones — an automatic reduction in Black representation. Lisa Stancil became the first casualty.
The so-called “Highway to Nowhere” displaced thousands of Black families from West Baltimore. Then came the demolition of public housing in East and West Baltimore.
Many of those families moved to Baltimore County — to Woodlawn, Lochearn, Milford Mill, Owings Mills, Granite.
The geography changed.
The struggle did not.
The Comfort Question
So here is the question for those communities:
Do you think the fight is over because your family crossed the Beltway?
Do you think your children can afford for you to be comfortable right now?
Our Greatest Failure
The saddest part of all this is what it means for the next generation.
We are failing our youth politically — and they are watching us do it.
Too many of us are distracted.
Too many are divided.
And not enough of us are building the next cohort of Black leadership.
A Final Word
My father always said:
“White people vote white when given a choice. Why don’t we?”
If Black voters in Baltimore County miss the significance of June 23rd, what comes next won’t be accidental — it will be the result of our own disunity.
And history will record it that way.
Don’t say you weren’t warned.
