Politics

Just nine days after suffering a minor stroke, Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, addressed the Maryland delegation’s breakfast at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday. The longtime Maryland politician and former House majority leader approached the stage in the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk hotel in front of an already warmed-up delegation. Hoyer, 85, had his longtime friend, Rep. Kweisi Mfume, D-Maryland, to thank for that.

Larry Hogan’s campaign for U.S. Senate said Tuesday the former Republican governor would debate Angela Alsobrooks in a forum the Democrat had previously committed to — likely setting up at least one televised debate between the candidates after they were initially locked in a stalemate over where and when to face off.

The November elections present Maryland and the Baltimore area with “an existential moment” because the region relies heavily on federal funding that could disappear if Republicans control the White House and make significant gains in Congress, leading area Democrats said Tuesday while together at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

A renters’ rights bill first introduced by Baltimore City Council President hopeful Zeke Cohen in 2023 will advance to a full council vote after clearing a major hurdle on Tuesday. Resuscitated after months of negotiations, the bill, called the Strengthening Renters’ Safety Act, sailed through an Economic and Community Development committee hearing with several amendments that council members praised as sensible and favorable to the city’s tenant class.

Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) attended her first Democratic National Convention in 1992, in New York City. She was an intern with the Congressional Black Caucus at the time, responsible for checking in delegates every evening. But what Alsobrooks remembers most about that experience was hanging out in the almost-empty Madison Square Garden hours before the daily convention sessions began, watching the evening’s speakers practicing their speeches.

The federal government has awarded Johns Hopkins University $20.9 million as part of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot program aimed at halving the cancer death rate by 2047. Hopkins researchers are trying to create a device similar to a camera to detect cancer cells left behind after surgery. The research is intended to minimize how often surgeries leave small amounts of cancer cells inside a patient’s body.

Marylanders watching the Democratic National Convention on TV this week will catch a glimpse of their governor center stage, where he’ll make the case for Americans to vote for his party’s presidential and vice presidential picks. Gov. Wes Moore will be one of a handful of Maryland politicians to speak during the four-day event.