Despite Hoyer's Hasty Ascent, Majority Seat Arose from Patience

By Matthew Mosk and John Wagner
Sunday, November 19, 2006

Maryland's Steny H. Hoyer (D) broke the curse of the boy wonder last week, becoming the nation's House majority leader after a tough slog up the leadership ladder on Capitol Hill.

Those who recall Hoyer's ascent in Annapolis say that in state politics, he was always the hare, not the tortoise. The Prince George's County politician broke into politics at age 27, winning election to the Maryland state Senate in 1966 when he was barely out of Georgetown University law school. In just nine years, he maneuvered his way into becoming the youngest Senate president in state history.

In 1980, Hoyer went to Congress with plans for a similar ascent, but as often happens to hard-charging congressional newcomers, he found himself in a far different environment.

In 1987, the Democrat sought the job of his party's chief deputy whip but lost to Rep. David E. Bonior (Mich.). In 1991, Hoyer again faced off against Bonior for the senior whip post and was again slapped down, this time by a coalition of liberals and entrenched, old-bull committee chairs.

Hoyer continued to court moderates as he sought the position of minority whip. His colleague, incoming Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin, ran his campaign against Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), who, like Bonior, was an old-line liberal from a large state. In October 2001, Pelosi defeated Hoyer 118 to 95 in secret balloting.

So it was with some trepidation that Hoyer's close allies in Maryland watched last week as what seemed as a sure-shot bid for majority leader in the new Congress suddenly faced opposition from Rep. John P. Murtha (Pa.), the handpicked candidate of newly-minted Speaker Pelosi.

"The problem is, he comes from a very small state," explained state Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert), a close friend of Hoyer. "We have six votes in the caucus; it's tough to rise without a big base."

Rep. Chris Van Hollen (Md.) agreed, saying just before the vote that he thought Hoyer had reached out to enough constituencies to overcome that.

"This is something that he's been working toward for a long time," Van Hollen said.

Hoyer prevailed, becoming the first Marylander in more than a century to attain such a high rank among congressional leaders. But this time, his was the story of the patient, plodding tortoise.

"It's his time," said friend and former Maryland congressman Michael D. Barnes. "He's more than paid his dues."

Ehrlich's Loss Unique Among Incumbent Republican Governors

Many Republicans have argued that Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s loss this month was largely the result of a national Democratic tide. But if that is true, it was not powerful enough to sweep any other Republican incumbent governor from office.

All told, 26 incumbent governors -- 13 Republicans and 13 Democrats -- were up for reelection Nov. 7. Ehrlich was the only one from either party to meet defeat, according to a tally by the National Governors Association.

With his loss to Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley (D), Ehrlich also became the first Maryland governor since 1951 to be unseated after one term.

The still-unofficial vote count has narrowed some since election night but still has O'Malley in the lead by about six percentage points: 52.5 percent to 46.4 percent.

Ehrlich clearly had a more difficult fight than many of the Republicans who prevailed elsewhere, given registered Democrats still outnumber Republicans nearly two to one in Maryland.

But Republican incumbents survived in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Minnesota, Nebraska, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Vermont.

Black Female Senators Tapped for Leadership Positions

State Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) moved swiftly after the election to promote two African American women in his chamber to leadership positions.

Miller announced last week that Sen. Joan Carter Conway (D-Baltimore) would take over as chairman of the state Senate's Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee. She succeeds Sen. Paula C. Hollinger (D-Baltimore County), who made an unsuccessful run for Congress this year.

Sen. Lisa A. Gladden (D-Baltimore), meanwhile, was tapped as the next vice chairman of the Judicial Proceedings Committee. She takes over for the retiring Sen. Leo E. Green (D-Prince George's).

The moves come on the heels of an election in which some Democrats questioned whether the party had done enough to promote African Americans to positions of leadership.