Contrary to what Martin Mitchell wants you to believe, we have not endorsed him for County Council. Nor has he been endorsed by a host of other officials listed on his website.
We did say something positive about him when he ran for Laurel City Council in 2021. However, he lost a lot of support running for Mayor in 2023, when the Laurel Independent (September 2023) reported about his past sexual assault charges (to which he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge) and his 2013 guilty plea for driving under the influence.
He believes he can use those five-year-old statements in this election to bolster his campaign by association. Last April, he placed our old statements of support on campaign literature and on his website strongly implying our endorsement. We immediately wrote him and requested that he cease using these statements.
Mr. Mitchell refused, stating “There is a clear distinction between a previously approved quote and an official endorsement.” Councilman Dernoga let him know that using these quotes out of context is intentionally misleading and that the voters deserve elected officials with integrity. We have waited for a year, but he has ignored our requests.
At The Laurel Independent forum, Mr. Mitchell stated that we need good honest actors in politics. Misusing our statements without context or permission is not a good example of integrity.
Not everyone cares what we think; however, as the two most recent County Council members, a lot of voters trust our opinion and ask us about candidates. Why else is Mr. Mitchell trying to associate himself with us?
We have endorsed Michelle Garcia, longstanding Chief of Staff to Tom Dernoga and to Speaker Pena-Melnyk, for County Council and not Martin Mitchell.
Tom Dernoga, County Council Member, District 1
Mary A. Lehman, Maryland State Delegate, District 21
Streetcar Suburbs accepts letters to the editor from area residents concerning our coverage, and reserves the right to edit them for clarity and brevity.