After narrow win and a super-short transition, Fitzwater readies an aggressive agenda in Frederick

The next phase of Frederick County’s relatively young experiment with charter government began on Monday, with the swearing-in of new County Executive Jessica Fitzwater (D) and the seven members of the county council. Fitzwater, 39, becomes the second county executive in Frederick history, taking over from Democrat Jan Gardner, who was termed out after eight years on the job. Frederick is the only county in the state to have elected women as county executives back-to-back — though Baltimore City had three women serve consecutive terms as mayor from 2007 to 2019.