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New Leadership Look as Maryland Lawmakers Begin Session

Maryland State Capitol
creative commons
Maryland State Capitol

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — For the first time in 17 years, the Maryland General Assembly will be led by two presiding officers who aren’t white men over 55 named Mike.

On Wednesday, 36-year-old Baltimore Democratic Sen. Bill Ferguson will be elected Senate president.

He will be the first new Senate president in more than three decades.

The vote by the chamber's 47 senators will come after a historic year in the House of Delegates.

Its 141 members elected Adrienne Jones to be the first black official and first woman to win the powerful office.

Jones has taken the place of Michael Busch, the longest-serving speaker in the state's history. Busch died in April.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.