Edith J. Patterson

{{Short description|American politician (born 1945)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = | image = Delegate Edith Patterson.jpg | image_size = | alt = | caption = | order = | office = | status =  | state_delegate = Maryland | district = 28th | term_start = January 14, 2015 | term_end = | alongside = Sally Y. Jameson, Debra Davis, and C. T. Wilson | predecessor = Peter Murphy | constituency = Charles County, Maryland | successor = | office1 = County Commissioner, Charles County, Maryland | term_start1 = December 2002 | term_end1 = December 7, 2010 | predecessor1 = F. Wayne Cooper | successor1 = Candice Quinn Kelly | office2 = Member, Board of Education, Charles County, Maryland | term_start2 = 1983 | term_end2 = 1995 | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1945|11|18}} | birth_place = Doswell, Virginia, U.S. | party = | spouse = {{marriage|Ralph Patterson||2001|end=died}}<ref name="Legacy">{{cite news |title=Ralph Patterson Obituary (2001) |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/washingtonpost/name/ralph-patterson-obituary?id=5448579 |newspaper=The Washington Post |via=Legacy.com |access-date=February 24, 2022 |date=November 22, 2001}}</ref> | children = Three children (Ralph, Robert, and Anne P. Tuggle), two grandchildren | education = John M. Gandy High School, Ashland, Virginia | alma_mater = Virginia Union University, B.S. (biology & chemistry), 1968; Bowie State College, M.Ed., (guidance & counseling), 1973; George Washington University, Ed.D. (higher education administration), 1991 | occupation = | profession = | website =  }}

'''Edith Jerry Patterson''' (born November 18, 1945) is an American politician who has served as a Democratic member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing district 28 in Charles County, since 2015. She previously served as a county commissioner from 2002 to 2010 and a member of the Board of Education for Charles County from 1983 to 1995.<ref name="msa">{{cite web |url=https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/06hse/html/msa14559.html |title=Edith J. Patterson, Maryland State Delegate |website=Maryland Manual On-Line |publisher=Maryland State Archives |access-date=January 16, 2021 |date=July 22, 2020}}</ref>

==Early life and career== Patterson was born in Doswell, Virginia, on November 18, 1945, where she attended John M. Gandy High School in neighboring Ashland.<ref name="msa" /> She attended Virginia Union University in 1968, where she earned a B.S. degree in biology and chemistry. After five years of teaching as a biology and physics teacher in Washington, D.C., she moved to Pomfret, Maryland, in 1973,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lagasse |first1=Paul |title=Patterson files for second term as District 28 delegate |url=https://www.somdnews.com/independent/news/local/patterson-files-for-second-term-as-district-28-delegate/article_16b91a3a-9329-5873-bcf8-23603277af0a.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=Maryland Independent |date=November 24, 2017 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220225033025/https://www.somdnews.com/independent/news/local/patterson-files-for-second-term-as-district-28-delegate/article_16b91a3a-9329-5873-bcf8-23603277af0a.html |archive-date=February 25, 2022}}</ref> and attended Bowie State University, where she earned a M.Ed. in guidance and counseling, and George Washington University in 1991, where she earned a Ed.D. in higher education administration. After graduating, she worked as a consultant for various groups, including the Congressional Black Caucus, the United States Department of Education, United States Department of Health and Human Services, and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.<ref name="msa" /><ref name="Pipeline">{{cite news |title=Commissioner Edith J. Patterson to Receive "Women Opening the Pipeline" Award |url=https://thebaynet.com/commissioner-edith-j-patterson-to-receive-women-opening-the-pipeline-award-html/ |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=The BayNet |date=September 10, 2006}}</ref>

In 1983, Patterson was elected to the Charles County Board of Education, becoming the first African American to serve on the board. In her final year on the board, she served as its chair.<ref name="Pipeline" />

Patterson entered into politics in 2000 when she became a member of the Charles County Democratic Central Committee.<ref name="msa" /> In 2005, the Charles County Democratic Central Committee appointed Patterson to serve as county commissioner, filling a vacancy after commissioner F. Wayne Cooper moved up to the board president after Murray D. Levy resigned to fill a vacancy in the Maryland House of Delegates left by the resignation of state delegate Van Mitchell. She was the first African American to serve on the council<ref>{{cite news |last1=Partlow |first1=Joshua |title=Democrats Pick College Administrator for Charles Board |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2005/01/06/democrats-pick-college-administrator-for-charles-board/070e88de-e8ba-4fbd-8d76-535617dffa4f/ |access-date=February 24, 2022 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=January 6, 2005}}</ref> and became the first African American elected commissioner alongside commissioners' Vice President Reuben B. Collins II in 2006. In 2010, Patterson lost her re-election bid to Charles County commissioners' President Candice Quinn Kelly by a margin of 114 votes.<ref name="Newman" />

In August 2010, Patterson was elected to serve on the Maryland Association of Counties Board of Directors.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sanderson |first1=Michael |title=MACo Board Tabs New County Leaders |url=https://conduitstreet.mdcounties.org/2010/08/25/maco-board-tabs-new-county-leaders/ |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=Conduit Street |date=August 25, 2010}}</ref>

In April 2012, Governor Martin O'Malley appointed Patterson to the Maryland Higher Education Commission. In accepting her appointment, Patterson retired after 37 years from the College of Southern Maryland, where she worked as the longtime director of the college's Educational Talent Search program.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Renner |first1=Lindsay |title=Patterson leaves position at CSM after 37 years |url=https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/patterson-leaves-position-at-csm-after-37-years/article_0a58b27f-da98-525d-8804-8b790ff8abb5.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=SoMdNews.com |date=April 18, 2012 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref name="Newman" />

In February 2014, Patterson again filed to run for Maryland House of Delegates.<ref name="Newman">{{cite news |last1=Newman |first1=Jeff |title=Patterson enters House of Delegates contest |url=https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/patterson-enters-house-of-delegates-contest/article_c030c998-392c-5f51-b459-380719f08d2f.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=SoMdNews.com |date=February 26, 2014 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220225033652/https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/patterson-enters-house-of-delegates-contest/article_c030c998-392c-5f51-b459-380719f08d2f.html |archive-date=February 25, 2022}}</ref> She came third place in the Democratic primary with 20.8 percent of the vote, squeaking out a narrow victory of about 700 votes.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Newman |first1=Jeff |date=June 25, 2014 |title=Patterson wins primary to represent Dist. 28 |url=https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/patterson-wins-primary-to-represent-dist-28/article_a503bbdd-aa5c-54c0-b96b-53b65acccbb3.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=SoMdNews.com}}</ref> She received 23.78 percent of the vote in the general election.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Michaels |first1=Andrew |title=Wilson, Jameson, Patterson elected to delegate seats |url=https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/wilson-jameson-patterson-elected-to-delegate-seats/article_83ab4ad9-0a7f-57dd-9d6e-7ddfe6440956.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=SoMdNews.com |date=November 7, 2014 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

In 2004 and 2016, Patterson served as a delegate for the Democratic National Committee.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Pimpo Jr. |first1=Stephen |title=Clinton delegates will lead the way for Maryland at the 2016 DNC |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/ph-ac-cn-delegate-winners-0510-20160509-story.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=The Baltimore Sun |date=May 9, 2016 }}{{Dead link|date=August 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Maryland delegates |url=https://archive.boston.com/news/special/politics/dnc2004/delegates/md.htm |website=Boston.com |access-date=February 24, 2022 |date=2004}}</ref>

==In the legislature== Patterson was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 14, 2015.<ref name="msa" />

===Committee assignments=== * Ways and Means Committee, 2015–present (election law subcommittee, 2015, 2017–2018; finance resources subcommittee, 2015–2017; education subcommittee, 2016–2019; local revenues subcommittee, 2019, 2021–present; revenues subcommittee, 2019; early childhood subcommittee, 2020; chair, racing & gaming subcommittee, 2020–present) * Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness, 2016–present * House Chair, Protocol Committee, 2019

===Other memberships=== * House Chair, Charles County Delegation, 2016–present * Member, Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland, 2015– (2nd vice-chair, 2016–2018; 1st vice-chair, 2018–2019) * Member, Maryland Veterans Caucus, 2015–present * 2nd vice-president, Women Legislators of Maryland, 2021–present (member, 2015–present; executive board, at large, 2019–2021)

==Political positions== [[File:ERA Rally (53541445845).jpg|thumb|Patterson speaks at an Equal Rights Amendment rally, 2024]]

===Education=== During her 2014 House of Delegates campaign, Patterson said that she supports the objectives of Common Core State Standards, but believes that governments should provide teachers with professional development and training to implement the program.<ref name="Questionnaire" />

Following an investigation by Project Baltimore on Maryland private schools, Patterson introduced legislation in the 2019 legislative session that would have required the Maryland Department of Education to provide a list of all non-public schools to local municipalities annually to conduct zoning and fire code inspections.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Papst |first1=Chris |title=Lawmakers Take Action After Project Baltimore Investigation |url=https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/lawmakers-take-action-after-project-baltimore-investigation |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=WBFF |date=February 6, 2019}}</ref> The bill passed the House of Delegates by a vote of 118–17, but was killed by the Senate subcommittee on Education, Health and Environmental Affairs.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Papst |first1=Chris |title=Bill Prompted by Project Baltimore Investigation Dies in Committee |url=https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/bill-prompted-by-project-baltimore-investigation-dies-in-committee |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=WBFF |date=April 3, 2019}}</ref>

In 2022, Patterson said that she opposed legislation introduced by state senator Arthur Ellis that would turn the Charles County campuses of the College of Southern Maryland into a standalone college.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kurtz |first1=Josh |title=Senator Stands Alone in Fight Over Regional Community College |url=https://www.marylandmatters.org/2022/02/02/senator-stands-alone-in-fight-over-regional-community-college/ |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=Maryland Matters |date=February 2, 2022}}</ref>

===Environment=== Patterson co-sponsored legislation introduced in the 2020 legislative session that bans the intentional release of balloons in Maryland.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Holt |first1=Alex |title=Here are the bills we're watching during Maryland's 2020 legislative session |url=https://ggwash.org/view/75620/here-are-the-bills-to-watch-out-for-in-annapolis-in-2020 |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=ggwash.org |date=January 13, 2020}}</ref>

===Marijuana=== During her 2014 House of Delegates campaign, Patterson said that she supports the use of marijuana for medical or medicinal purposes under medical supervision and use through state licensed distribution centers, but did not support legalizing recreational marijuana, calling it a "gateway drug". She also said that she supports decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana.<ref name="Questionnaire">{{cite news |title=Edith J. Patterson |url=https://www.somdnews.com/archive/news/edith-j-patterson/article_a6c94dd3-f20e-5685-bbe4-3345fb140580.html |access-date=February 24, 2022 |work=SoMdNews.com |date=June 10, 2014 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

===Taxes=== During her 2014 House of Delegates campaign, Patterson said that she supports reviewing regulatory and corporate tax structure and providing tax incentives to start up medium and small technology firms to increase Maryland business competitiveness. She also said that she would support establishing tax-free zones targeted around research and development academic institutions to lure high-technology and cybersecurity business. She supports the intent of Maryland's "rain tax" and "septic bill", but expressed the need to protect support those most affected by the septic bill, especially farmers, through funding at both the state and county level.<ref name="Questionnaire" />

==Personal life== Patterson was married to Ralph Patterson until his death in 2001.<ref name="Legacy" /> She has three children and two grandchildren and lives in Pomfret, Maryland.<ref name="Legacy" />

She is a member of the Nu Zeta Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.<ref name="msa" />

==Electoral history== {{Election box begin no change | title = 2014 Maryland House of Delegates district 28 Democratic primary election<ref>{{cite web | title = Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates | work = Maryland State Board of Elections | url = https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2014/results/primary/gen_results_2014_1_01628.html }}</ref> }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''C. T. Wilson''' |votes = 8,302 |percentage = 25.9 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Sally Y. Jameson''' |votes = 7,249 |percentage = 22.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Edith J. Patterson''' |votes = 6,644 |percentage = 20.7 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = Candice Quinn Kelly |votes = 5,966 |percentage = 18.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = John Coller |votes = 3,913 |percentage = 12.2 }} {{Election box end}} {{Election box begin no change | title = 2014 Maryland House of Delegates district 28 election<ref>{{cite web | title = Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates | work = Maryland State Board of Elections | url = https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2014/results/General/gen_results_2014_2_01628.html }}</ref> }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Sally Y. Jameson''' |votes = 25,811 |percentage = 28.7 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''C. T. Wilson''' |votes = 24,202 |percentage = 26.9 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Edith J. Patterson''' |votes = 21,421 |percentage = 23.8 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Republican Party (United States) |candidate = Jim Crawford |votes = 17,312 |percentage = 19.2 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Republican Party (United States) |candidate = John C. Ford (Write In) |votes = 913 |percentage = 1.0 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Write-In |candidate = |votes = 419 |percentage = 0.5 }} {{Election box end}} {{Election box begin no change | title = 2018 Maryland House of Delegates district 28 Democratic primary election<ref>{{cite web | title = Official 2018 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates | work = Maryland State Board of Elections | url = https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2018/results/primary/gen_results_2018_1_01628.html }}</ref> }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Edith J. Patterson''' |votes = 10,346 |percentage = 27.4 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''C. T. Wilson''' |votes = 10,053 |percentage = 26.6 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Debra Davis''' |votes = 8,725 |percentage = 23.1 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = Edward Holland |votes = 4,561 |percentage = 12.1 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = John Coller |votes = 4,043 |percentage = 10.7 }} {{Election box end}} {{Election box begin no change | title = 2018 Maryland House of Delegates district 28 election<ref>{{cite web | title = Official 2018 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates | work = Maryland State Board of Elections | url = https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2018/results/general/gen_results_2018_2_01628.html }}</ref> }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Debra Davis''' |votes = 34,236 |percentage = 23.8 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''Edith J. Patterson''' |votes = 33,383 |percentage = 23.2 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Democratic Party (United States) |candidate = '''C. T. Wilson''' |votes = 32,793 |percentage = 22.8 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Republican Party (United States) |candidate = Jim Crawford |votes = 15,059 |percentage = 10.5 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Republican Party (United States) |candidate = Dave Campbell |votes = 15,010 |percentage = 10.4 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Republican Party (United States) |candidate = Maureen Janette Woodruff |votes = 13,318 |percentage = 9.3 }} {{Election box candidate with party link no change |party = Write-In |candidate = |votes = 159 |percentage = 0.1 }} {{Election box end}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{commons category-inline}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Edith J.}} Category:Democratic Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates Category:Living people Category:1945 births Category:21st-century American women politicians Category:People from Hanover County, Virginia Category:Bowie State University alumni Category:George Washington University alumni Category:Virginia Union University alumni Category:Women state legislators in Maryland Category:African-American state legislators in Maryland Category:County commissioners in Maryland Category:School board members in Maryland Category:21st-century members of the Maryland General Assembly

Edith J. Patterson

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