MARYLAND, USA — Editor's Note: This is the third installment in a series of profiles of the candidates running in Maryland's gubernatorial race leading up to the July 19 primary elections.
Early voting in Maryland is underway and primary day is July 19. Voters are deciding which candidates will head to the general election in November to replace Governor Larry Hogan.
To help prepare voters, WUSA9 is sitting down with both the Republican and Democratic gubernatorial candidates to learn more about their platforms and priorities.
Tom Perez, 60, is the former Chairman of the Democratic National Committee and served as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights and the United States Secretary of Labor. Perez characterizes himself as a fighter and advocate. We discussed his position on some of the issues that matter to voters like the economy, crime and school safety.
The Economy
Larry Miller: "Right now, the economy tends to be one of those issues that are really top of mind for voters: record-high gas prices, escalating costs at the grocery store. It's tough out there. What are you going to do to help Marylanders?"
Tom Perez: "If I were governor now, I would have called a special session to deal with the gas tax issue. I would not raise it. And I would make sure we provide gas tax relief for however long it is until the prices at the pump start to go down. In addition, I want to make bus fare, in the city of Baltimore, free. That’s a stimulus check of sorts for workers, especially low-income workers."
Tom Perez: "I would also extend the earned income tax credit. We have a state earned income tax credit. The earned income tax credit rewards work. So, people who are working but barely making ends meet. The earned income tax credit would put more money in your pocket."
Larry Miller: "What about middle-class families? They make more than some of our lower-income community members but they still feel the brunt of an escalating economy. What are you going to do to help them?"
Tom Perez: "Part of what I talked about was the gas tax issue."
Larry Miller: "Is that enough though?"
Tom Perez: "It will help everyone."
Crime
Larry Miller: “Where do you stand on policing and addressing violence? What do you say to those families that are looking for solutions when it comes to community safety?”
Tom Perez: “It would be helpful to have a governor who was a former prosecutor. And I was a federal prosecutor for a number of years. I've tackled these challenges. What do we need to do here? We need partnership. The first thing that has to happen is that you need a governor that's going to be a true partner. I would establish, with great strength, the criminal justice coordinating committee. The criminal justice coordinating committee would do, as I just described when I was a federal prosecutor, bring federal, state and local authorities together to solve these issues."
School Safety
Larry Miller: “What’s your position on school resources officers? More or less?
Tom Perez: “That's why we have boards of education. I think local jurisdictions are in the best positions to make those judgments about what should happen in their communities.”
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