Barrington, New Jersey
Barrington is a borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 6,983, She graduated from
Haddon Heights High School
Haddon Heights Junior/Senior High School, previously known as Haddon Heights High School (HHHS), is a six-year comprehensive public middle school / high school that serves students in seventh through twelfth grades from Haddon Heights, in Cam ...
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree in political science in 2010 and submitted a thesis on how having students participate in governing boards can make them more effective. In 2012, Elfreth earned her
Master of Science
A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...
degree in public policy from
Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
, where she worked as a research assistant in the Office of Government and Community Affairs from 2010 to 2012. Elfreth serves as an adjunct professor for Towson University's Honors College.
Political involvement
Elfreth became active in politics while attending Towson University, when she became involved with student government and began traveling to
Annapolis
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
Martin O'Malley
Martin Joseph O'Malley (born January 18, 1963) is an American lawyer and former politician who served as the 61st Governor of Maryland from 2007 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he was Mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007.
O'Malley ...
appointed Elfreth to be the student member of the University System Board of Regents. She didn't become involved with electoral politics until her senior year at Towson, after hearing a speech by former Vermont Governor
Madeleine Kunin
Madeleine Kunin (née May; born September 28, 1933) is a Swiss-born American diplomat, author and politician. She served as the 77th governor of Vermont from 1985 until 1991, as a member of the Democratic Party. She also served as United States ...
Steny Hoyer
Steny Hamilton Hoyer (born June 14, 1939) is an American politician and attorney serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 1981 and as House majority leader, House Majority Leader since 2019. A Democrat ...
Annapolis
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
, Elfreth became involved with local politics, becoming a member of the Ward 1 Residents Association and serving on the District 30 Democratic Club. In June 2017, Elfreth filed to run for Maryland Senate, seeking to succeed state Senator John Astle, who did not seek re-election to run for
Mayor of Annapolis
The Mayor of Annapolis is the chief political figure in the city of Annapolis, which is the capital city of Maryland. The mayor is elected to a four-year term.
List of Mayors of Annapolis
*1708–1720 Amos Garrett
*1720–1721 Thomas Lar ...
. During the Democratic primary, she ran on a slate with House Speaker
Michael E. Busch
Michael Erin “Coach” Busch (January 4, 1947 – April 7, 2019) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 106th Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates from 2003 until his death in 2019. Busch was a mem ...
. Elfreth was elected to the Maryland Senate with 53.8 percent of the vote against former Delegate
Ron George
Ronald Alan George (born August 30, 1953) is a former Republican member of the Maryland House of Delegates. From January 2007 to January 2015 he represented District 30 in the Maryland General Assembly located within Anne Arundel County. He shar ...
.
Maryland Senate
Elfreth was sworn into the Maryland Senate on January 9, 2019. She is currently the youngest woman ever to serve in the Maryland Senate. Elfreth is a member of the Budget and Taxation Committee, Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness, Education, Business, and Administration Subcommittee of the Budget and Taxation Committee, Capital Budget Subcommittee of the Budget and Taxation Committee, and Special Joint Committee on Pensions. She is Senate chair of the Joint Committee on the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bay Critical Areas.
In 2022, Elfreth served as the chair of the Chesapeake Executive Council.
;Committee assignments
* Member, Budget and Taxation Committee, 2019–present (capital budget subcommittee, 2019, 2021–present; education, business & administration subcommittee, 2019–present; chair, pensions subcommittee, 2020–present, member, 2019–present)
*Senate Chair, Joint Committee on the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Areas, 2019–present
*Member, Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness, 2019–present
* Senate Chair, Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review, 2020–present
* Special Joint Committee on Pensions, 2020–present (member, 2019–present)
* Member, State Park Investment Commission, 2021–present
* Member, Work Group to Study Shelter and Supportive Services for Unaccompanied Homeless Minors, 2019–2020
* Member, Senate President's Advisory Work Group on Equity and Inclusion, 2020–2021
2024 congressional campaign
On November 4, 2023, Elfreth announced that she would run for the
U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
in
Maryland's 3rd congressional district
Maryland's 3rd congressional district comprises portions of Baltimore, Howard, Montgomery, and Anne Arundel counties, as well as a significant part of the independent city of Baltimore. The seat is currently represented by John Sarbanes, a Demo ...
to succeed John Sarbanes, who had announced his retirement a week before.
Political positions
Crime
During debate on a bill to give the attorney general of Maryland prosecutorial power in police-involved deaths, Elfreth voted for amendments that would allow states attorneys' to decide first whether to prosecute a case, and another to appoint a director of the investigations division. Both amendments were rejected in largely party-line votes.
In June 2023, following a shooting in Annapolis that left three dead and another three injured, Elfreth attended a vigil to honor the victims of the attack and endorsed calls for accountability from state legislators.
Education
During her tenure as the student member of the University System of Maryland Board of Regents, Elfreth voted against a three percent tuition increase and spoke in support of Governor Martin O'Malley's four-year tuition freeze. She also voted for a resolution recommending against a policy on pornographic films following the screening of '' Pirates II: Stagnetti's Revenge'' at the
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of Mary ...
.
Electoral reform
During the 2021 legislative session, Elfreth introduced the "Student and Military Voter Empowerment Act", which would require
higher education institution
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
s to create websites to provide students with voting information and allow military members to register to vote using their
Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to:
Current departments of defence
* Department of Defence (Australia)
* Department of National Defence (Canada)
* Department of Defence (Ireland)
* Department of National Defense (Philippin ...
Larry Hogan
Lawrence Joseph Hogan Jr. (born May 25, 1956) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 62nd governor of Maryland since 2015. A moderate member of the Republican Party, he was secretary of appointments under Maryland governor Bo ...
's signature on May 30, 2021.
Environment
During the 2020 legislative session, Elfreth proposed legislation to allow jurisdictions to create Resilience Authorities to provide funding to large infrastructure projects related to
sea level rise
Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...
,
nuisance flooding
Tidal flooding, also known as sunny day flooding or nuisance flooding, is the temporary inundation of low-lying areas, especially streets, during exceptionally high tide events, such as at Full moon, full and new moons. The highest tides of the ...
, and
erosion
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distin ...
. She also co-sponsored legislation to expand the public's role in rehabilitation projects in the Chesapeake Bay Bridge resurfacing project.
During the 2021 legislative session, Elfreth introduced various environmental bills, including:
* Senate Bill 62, which would create the position of Chief Resilience Officer within the
Maryland Emergency Management Agency
Maryland Department of Emergency Management (MDEM). is the department of the Maryland state government with primary responsibility and authority for emergency preparedness policy, and for coordinating hazard mitigation, incident response, and di ...
* Senate Bill 319, which would expand the state's clean energy loan program to include
water efficiency
Water efficiency is the practice of reducing water consumption by measuring the amount of water required for a particular purpose and is proportionate to the amount of essential water used.Vickers, Amy. “Water use and conservation." Amherst, MA ...
projects,
environmental remediation
Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollution or contaminants from environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment, or surface water. Remedial action is generally subject to an array of regulatory requirements, and may al ...
projects, and
climate resilience
Climate resilience is defined as the "capacity of social, economic and ecosystems to cope with a hazardous event or trend or disturbance".IPCC, 2022Summary for Policymakers .-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, M. Tignor, ...
projects
* Senate Bill 119, which would establish a fund to reduce pollution in Maryland waterways
* Senate Bill 195, which would require Maryland to switch to safer alternatives in firefighting foam and ban PFAS chemicals in
food packaging
Food packaging is a packaging system specifically designed for food and represents one of the most important aspects among the processes involved in the food industry, as it provides protection from chemical, biological and physical alterations ...
During the 2022 legislative session, Elfreth introduced legislation that would require the Maryland State Retirement and Pensions System to consider climate change as a financial factor when making investment decisions. The bill passed and became law on April 9, 2022.
In 2023, Elfreth introduced a bill to establish a State Disaster Recovery Fund to help jurisdictions recover from natural disasters. The bill passed and was signed into law by Governor
Wes Moore
Westley Watende Omari Moore (born October 15, 1978) is an American politician, investment banker, author, and television producer. He is the governor-elect of Maryland, after defeating Republican Dan Cox in the 2022 Maryland gubernatorial ele ...
.
Government
During the 2019 legislative session, Elfreth introduced legislation to expand the Board of Regents' membership and implement additional oversight reforms. The bill passed both chambers unanimously and was signed into law by Governor Hogan on April 30, 2019.
During the 2021 legislative session, Elfreth introduced legislation to create an "Office of Digital Inclusion" in the
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
The government of Maryland is conducted according to the Maryland Constitution. The United States is a federation; consequently, the government of Maryland, like the other 49 state governments, has exclusive authority over matters that lie entire ...
. The bill passed and was signed into law by Governor Hogan on April 13, 2021. She also introduced legislation that would require the state's Commission on Environmental Justice and sustainable Communities to "reflect the racial, gender, ethnic, and geographic diversity of the state". The bill passed and became law on May 30, 2021.
National politics
Elfreth condemned the
January 6 United States Capitol attack
On January 6, 2021, following the defeat of then-U.S. President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, a mob of his supporters attacked the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. The mob was seeking to keep Trump in pow ...
, saying that those who participated in the attack should be referred to as terrorists.
Paid family leave
During the 2020 legislative session, Elfreth introduced legislation to provide Maryland workers with up to 12 weeks of
paid family leave
Parental leave, or family leave, is an employee benefit available in almost all countries. The term "parental leave" may include maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; or may be used distinctively from "maternity leave" and "paternity le ...
, funded by a payroll tax shared equally by the worker and employer.
Social issues
Elfreth supports abortion rights, describing access to abortion services as a matter of economics.
During the 2019 legislative session, Elfreth introduced a resolution to designate June 28 as "Freedom of the Press Day" in honor of the five killed at the
Capital Gazette shooting
On June 28, 2018, a mass shooting occurred at the offices of ''The Capital'', a newspaper serving Annapolis, Maryland, United States. The gunman, Jarrod Ramos, killed five employees with a shotgun and injured two others who were trying to escap ...
. The bill passed unanimously and became law on April 18, 2019. In June 2019, Governor Hogan signed a proclamation declaring June 28 to be "Freedom of the Press Day" in Maryland.
During the 2021 legislative session, Elfreth introduced legislation to provide students access to
menstrual products
Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) or menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) refers to access to menstrual hygiene products to absorb or collect the flow of blood during menstruation, privacy to change the materials, and access to facilities to disp ...
in school bathrooms. The bill passed and became law on May 30, 2021.
During the 2022 legislative session, Elfreth introduced the "Great Maryland Outdoors Act", which would increase staffing, expand recreational amenities, and improve equity of access for Maryland state parks. The bill passed and became law on April 24, 2022.
Taxes
In March 2023, Elfreth was one of five Democrats to vote for an amendment to decouple the state's
gas tax
A fuel tax (also known as a petrol, gasoline or gas tax, or as a fuel duty) is an excise tax imposed on the sale of fuel. In most countries the fuel tax is imposed on fuels which are intended for transportation. Fuels used to power agricultural v ...
from inflation. The amendment was rejected by the Maryland Senate in a 20-27 vote.