Sidney Kramer (July 8, 1925 – May 16, 2022) was an American politician in the state of

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He served in the

Maryland Senate The Maryland Senate, sometimes referred to as the Maryland State Senate, is the upper house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. Composed of 47 senators elected from an equal number of constituent single- ...

and as

county executive A county executive, county manager or county mayor is the head of the executive branch of government in a United States county. The executive may be an elected or an appointed position. When elected, the executive typically functions either as a ...

for Montgomery County.

Early life and education

Kramer was born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, on July 8, 1925. His parents were Jewish and immigrated to the United States from

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...

. He attended

Calvin Coolidge High School Calvin Coolidge High School is a public high school of the District of Columbia Public Schools system located in the Takoma neighborhood in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C. Its campus is listed on the National Register of Historic Plac ...

in his hometown, graduating in 1944. He then earned degrees in chemistry and physics from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

while working full-time. He subsequently moved to

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous county in the state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat and largest municipality is Rockville, although the census-design ...

, and became the proprietor and operator of Automatic Car Washes.

Career

After moving to Montgomery County in 1960, Kramer became active in the local parent-teacher association, as well as the Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce and the Montgomery County Citizens Planning Association. From 1965 to 1966, he served on the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee. His first bid for a seat in the Montgomery County Council was unsuccessful, but he became elected to the Council four years later in 1970, and he served till 1974. He was credited with persuading the county to distribute grants to local nonprofit institutions for the first time. During the 1974 US House of Representatives elections, Kramer was the Democratic nominee for

Maryland's 8th congressional district Maryland's 8th congressional district stretches from the northern Washington, D. C., suburbs north to the Pennsylvania border. Following the 2020 redistricting cycle, it will no longer reach north into Frederick and Carroll counties, instead b ...

against incumbent Republican

Gilbert Gude Gilbert Gude (March 9, 1923 – June 7, 2007) was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th congressional district from 1967 to 1977. He was a member of the Republican Party. Early life and career Gude was ...

. However, he lost by a margin of nearly 2-to-1. Kramer was elected to the

in 1978, and he served as Chairperson of the Montgomery County Delegation for eight years. He returned to the County in 1986 and defeated then-County Council Member David Scull in the election to become Montgomery County's third County Executive. During his tenure as county executive, Kramer oversaw the increase in funding for programs helping residents with developmental disabilities, which was previously within the purview of

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or ...

. His leadership was characterized as a "relatively low-key, businesslike administration". He was later defeated in the 1990 Democratic primary by

Neal Potter Neal Potter (March 22, 1915 – May 27, 2008) was an American Democratic politician from Maryland. He served as fourth executive of Montgomery County, Maryland, from 1990 to 1994. Early life and education Alfred Neal Potter grew up in Mont ...

, who went on to become the fourth Montgomery County Executive.

Personal life

Kramer married Betty Mae Kerman in 1950. They met at a beach party three-and-a-half years before while he was studying at George Washington University, and remained married until her death in 2010. Together, they had three children. Their daughter,

Rona E. Kramer Rona E. Kramer is an American politician from Maryland, a member of the Democratic Party, and a former member of the Maryland State Senate. She finished serving her 2nd term in the Maryland State Senate, representing Maryland's District 14 in M ...

, represented Maryland's 14th District in the

State Senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

from 2003 to 2011, while their son, Benjamin F. Kramer, represented Maryland's 19th District in the

from 2019. The Betty Mae Kramer Gallery and Music Room is named after his wife. Kramer died on May 16, 2022, at his home in

Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in ...

. He was 96 years old.

References

External links

Sidney Kramer's biographical profile
at the

Maryland State Archives The Maryland State Archives serves as the central depository for government records of permanent value. Its holdings date from Maryland's founding in 1634, and include colonial and state executive, legislative, and judicial records; county prob ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kramer, Sidney 1925 births 2022 deaths Democratic Party Maryland state senators Montgomery County, Maryland Executives Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni Politicians from Washington, D.C. Jewish American state legislators in Maryland 20th-century American politicians