Jack Young (politician)

Bernard C. "Jack" Young (born June 26, 1954)[1] is an American Democratic politician and former mayor of Baltimore, Maryland. Young was elected to the Baltimore City Council in 1996 representing Baltimore's second district.[2] In 2010, Young became City Council President following Stephanie Rawlings-Blake taking over as mayor due to the indictment of Sheila Dixon.[2] On April 2, 2019, Young was named acting mayor during the leave of absence by Mayor Catherine Pugh.[3][4] Following Pugh's resignation on May 2, 2019, Young was fully vested as mayor of the city.[5] In October of 2019, Young announced that he was running to retain his position as Mayor in the 2020 election.[6] He lost the Democratic nomination for mayor, despite raising more money than the other candidates. Instead, Brandon Scott won the nomination for mayor in the 2020 general election which he went on to win. [7]

Jack Young
51st Mayor of Baltimore
In office May 2, 2019 – December 8, 2020 Acting: April 2, 2019 – May 2, 2019
Preceded by	Catherine Pugh
Succeeded by	Brandon Scott
President of the Baltimore City Council
In office February 8, 2010 – May 2, 2019*
Preceded by	Stephanie Rawlings-Blake
Succeeded by	Brandon Scott
Member of the Baltimore City Council
In office December 1996 – February 8, 2010
Preceded by	Tony Ambridge Jacqueline McClean Carl Stokes
Succeeded by	Carl Stokes
Constituency	2nd district (1996–2005) 12th district (2005–2010)
Personal details
Born	June 26, 1954 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	Baltimore City Community College
Website	Campaign website Government website
*Green Middleton served as Acting President while Young served as Acting Mayor

Background

Jack Young graduated from Northern High School in Baltimore and attended Baltimore City Community College. Young was originally elected to represent Baltimore City Council District 2 in 1996, which he represented until 2003 when district lines were redrawn. After redistricting, he represented District 12 until he was appointed as City Council President in February 2010 to fill the vacancy left when Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was elevated to mayor.

Career

At Johns Hopkins Hospital, Young first worked in the cafeteria and mailroom before joining the radiology department as a file clerk and eventually an administrator, helping digitize the department archives.[8] By the late 1980s, Young began spending his evenings and weekends serving on the staff of Baltimore City Council member Mary Pat Clarke.[9][8] From 2007 to 2010, Young was a manager at the Maryland Department of Human Resources.[9] He has been a member of the Historic East Baltimore Community Action Council since 1995, and is a co-founder of the Broadway Development Foundation.

Young created controversy in 2009 when he said that "it should be required that all top-level people live in the city," referring to a report by the Baltimore Examiner that most Baltimore City police commanders don't live in the city.[10] On February 1, 2010, WBAL-TV's Jayne Miller reported that Young himself owned a home in Harford County for which he had signed an affidavit that declared the Harford County home was his primary residence.[11] Young said the house in Harford County had served as his summer home until he sold it in 2005.

In February 2010, Councilman Young was unanimously nominated to fill the position of City Council President[12] after former City Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake was sworn in as Mayor of Baltimore following the resignation of former Mayor Sheila Dixon.[2]

Mayor of Baltimore (2019 - 2020)

Young was elevated to Acting Mayor on April 2, 2019, when then Mayor Catherine Pugh went on an indefinite leave of absence to recover from pneumonia. The announcement coincided with a scandal over a "self-dealing" book-sales arrangement by Pugh.[13] On May 2, 2019, Pugh resigned and Young became mayor of the city.[5]

In July 2019, Young said that Baltimore will not assist ICE agents with immigration raids. He said in a statement: "Immigrants who call Baltimore home should not live in fear of family separation and deportation, and I will continue to do all that is in my power so that all Baltimore residents, including immigrants, feel safe and welcome in our city."[14]

2020 Mayoral race

After the first campaign finance reporting date in mid-January 2020, Young led all candidates with $960,000 cash on hand, Thiru Vignarajah reported having about $840,000, Brandon Scott had nearly $430,000 cash on hand and Sheila Dixon had raised $100,000.[15]

See also

• List of mayors of Baltimore
• List of mayors of the 50 largest cities in the United States
• Baltimore City Council President

References

1. Baltimore Sun. "First District-DemocratsJames Ward MorrowDate of birth: Feb..." baltimoresun.com. Retrieved Apr 3, 2019.
2. "Bernard C. "Jack" Young | Baltimore City Council". www.baltimorecitycouncil.com. Retrieved Apr 3, 2019.
3. Waldman, Tyler. "Pugh Taking Leave Of Absence, Young To Assume Her Duties". WBAL(AM). Retrieved Apr 3, 2019.
4. Donovan, Doug; Wenger, Yvonne. "Who is Baltimore City Council President Jack Young, who will be mayor while Catherine Pugh is on leave?". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. Retrieved Apr 3, 2019.
5. Duncan, Ian; Marbella, Jean; Broadwater, Luke (May 2, 2019). "Baltimore Mayor Pugh resigns after month on leave amid investigation into her business deals". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
6. Broadwater, Luke. "Young says he's running in 2020 to remain Baltimore mayor, believes city is 'on the cusp of a renaissance'". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved Apr 10, 2020.
7. "AP calls Democratic nomination for Baltimore mayor for Brandon Scott". wbaltv.com. WbalTV11 News. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
8. Duncan, Ian (April 12, 2019). "Up from the East Side: How 23 years in Baltimore politics led Jack Young to becoming mayor — for now". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
9. "Bernard C. (Jack) Young, Mayor (Democrat)". Maryland Manual Online. Maryland State Archives. May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
10. Fenton, Justin (February 27, 2009). "Councilman Demands Action". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore Maryland. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
11. "Young's Home, State Job Questioned". WBAL-TV (video). Baltimore, Maryland. February 2, 2010. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
12. Sharper, Julie (February 9, 2010). "Young unanimously elected Baltimore City Council president". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
13. McFadden, David (April 1, 2019). "Baltimore mayor goes on leave as 'self-serving' book deal scandal intensifies". KMPH-TV. Associated Press. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
14. "U.S. Cities Prepare For Planned ICE Raids". NPR. July 13, 2019.
15. Opilo, Emily; Richman, Talia. "Baltimore mayoral candidates raise $2.3M, signaling expensive and bitter fight ahead for crowded field". baltimoresun.com. the Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 27 January 2020.