Politics

As the recount in the Democratic primary for Montgomery County executive nears an end, businessman David Blair has closed the gap on incumbent Marc Elrich’s lead by 3 votes. Montgomery County elections workers gathered Monday for a fourth straight day at the Germantown Community Center, working their way through every ballot cast in the county during the July 19 primary. Around 6 p.m., a dwindling number of remaining workers were dismissed to a rowdy round of applause, and the work to tabulate results shifted to the board’s office.

Federal prosecutors said in court filings that the government plans to try to seize Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby’s Florida Gulf Coast vacation condo if she’s convicted of perjury and mortgage fraud. The city’s top prosecutor is charged with two counts of perjury and two counts of mortgage fraud related to early withdrawals from her city retirement account and the purchase of two Florida homes: an eight-bedroom home near Disney World and the two-bedroom condo in Longboat Key.

When Montgomery County health officials hold the first in a planned series of community town hall meetings about Monkeypox on Monday evening, the focus will be on the county’s LGBTQ+ community. A panel of experts will provide information about how the disease is spread and how to avoid becoming infected. They will also discuss treatment and vaccines.

Mayor Brandon Scott has announced more money to improve how the city deals with people having a behavioral health crisis. In a news release, Scott said the money would expand the Baltimore Crisis Response Incorporated’s program, which for the last year has sent out mental health professionals in addition to or as an alternative to sending out police when dealing with calls from suicidal individuals.

State and local leaders are keeping a watchful eye on economic indicators that could hint at a looming recession. Mixed economic signals including high inflation and job growth linger as the state, nation and the world try to right themselves during a pandemic. Maryland’s treasurer said some caution might be warranted. “I don’t want us to get to comfortable that we’re ok because we still don’t know where it’s going to go and we have to continue to be vigilant on how we spend the money,” said Treasurer Dereck Davis. “What we don’t want to do is unnecessarily raise taxes or cut programs.”

Montgomery County’s School Superintendent Monifa McKnight appeared at the announcement of a gun buyback event in Rockville, Maryland, last week and said she hopes “to launch a campaign to educate our young people about gun prevalence, gun laws, and the consequences of guns.” Though McKnight didn’t offer specifics, she said she was proud to stand alongside Rockville City Police Chief Victor Brito and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy to talk about efforts to keep guns out of the hands of young people.