Ron George (R) to Run for State Senate from District 30 in 2018

Former Republican Delegate and candidate for Governor Ron George has announced that he will run for State Senate in 2018 in District 30.

Ron George hopes to build on the momentum Republicans in Maryland started in 2013-14 by capturing this seat from Senator John Astle (D), who has served since 1995. Astle, for his part, is planning to run for re-election. He will be 75 years old.

George may have been encouraged by inroads Republicans have made recently in this Annapolis and southern Anne Arundel County district. The city of Annapolis elected a Republican mayor, Mike Pantelides, in 2013. Steve Schuh and Larry Hogan also performed well in large chunks of the city as well as the waterfront suburbs in Annapolis, Edgewater, and Deale.

Sen. Astle clung to a 51.3-48.6% lead in his 2014 matchup against Don Quinn, who had never held elected office before.

If Ron George wants to do better than Quinn, he’ll first have to move into the 30th District. This isn’t your classic case of carpetbagging: George’s home in Arnold was redrawn from District 30 into District 33 in the post-2010 Census redistricting. As Delegate, George represented much of the current 30th district, including Annapolis, Edgewater, and Shady Side. He also still runs his jewelry store in downtown Annapolis, giving him a business connection to the new district, as well as an existing network of constituents and donors.