<figure>
		
	</figure>


	
		
			
		
		<span>Gaithersburg and Rockville are </span><span>the third- and fourth-largest cities in Maryland</span><span>, with nearly 70,000 residents each. These two Montgomery County municipalities </span><span>regularly top lists of the nation’s most diverse places</span><span> and are the backbone of the region’s biotech industry. It’s in Rockville where scientists </span><span>mapped the human genome</span><span> and </span><span>found a potential HIV cure</span><span>, and in Gaithersburg where they </span><span>discovered a COVID-19 vaccine</span><span>. What happens here has echoes that go way beyond the borders.</span>

That’s why we reached out to candidates in three key races to learn about their views ahead of the general election November 7. In Rockville, voters will choose a new mayor and, for the first time, six city councilmembers (up from four previously), while in Gaithersburg, voters will select three city councilmembers. These are all nonpartisan races. In the general election, voters can choose up to six candidates in addition to the mayor.

We’re sharing the questionnaire responses we received here as a service to the public. Questionnaire responses also inform our endorsement decisions, which we’ll announce later this month.

Wait, how does this work?

Gaithersburg and Rockville have a unique distinction: both cities run their own public services, like parks, police, and zoning, unlike most of the Washington region where those things happen at the county level. Thus, the Rockville and Gaithersburg city governments have a lot of power over a big chunk of our region. Both cities also have council-manager governments, in which the mayor is more of a figurehead and votes as part of the City Council, which in turn appoints a city manager to run day-to-day affairs. This has a lot of similarities to Arlington County’s government, which has a Chair instead of a mayor. Both Rockville and Gaithersburg have at-large councils, in which everyone votes for the same candidates regardless of where they live.

			<figure>
			
				
			
			<figcaption><i>Main Street in Gaithersburg's Kentlands neighborhood. [Image](https://www.flickr.com/photos/beyonddc/36326119665/) by Dan Malouff licensed under  Creative Commons.</i></figcaption>
			</figure>

When they take office this winter, the cities’ new representatives will face some new challenges.

Governor Wes Moore announced that he’ll move forward with plans to add four toll lanes to I-270, which runs through both cities. Rockville opposes the project, while Gaithersburg supports it. Both cities pushed back on Montgomery County’s newly-passed rent stabilization law, though they’ll face pressure to do something similar. In addition, Rockville’s council will have to appoint a new city manager, who resigned in August due to performance issues.

Voters in Rockville will also decide on four ballot questions, including whether to allow 16-year-olds and non-citizens to vote, as well as setting term limits for councilmembers and creating representative districts.

Both Rockville and Gaithersburg will have vote-by-mail as an option. In Rockville, all registered voters will receive a ballot in the mail by October 13, while in Gaithersburg, voters have to request a ballot be mailed to them. In both cities, voters can mail their ballots back, place them in a drop box, or vote in person. Here’s information on how to do that in Rockville and Gaithersburg.

Here’s what the candidates had to say

Below we are excited to share the questionnaire responses we received, organized by race. Click on a linked name to view that applicant’s questionnaire. If a name is not linked, it’s because that candidate did not submit a questionnaire.

			<li><span>Monique Ashton</span>
			</li><li><span>Mark Pierzchala</span>
		

		</li></td>
		<td>
		
			<li><span>Danniel Belay</span>
			</li><li><span>Kate Fulton</span>
			</li><li><span>Richard Gottfried</span>
			</li><li><span>Harold Hodges</span>
			</li><li><span>Barry Jackson</span>
			</li><li><span>Ricky Mui</span>
			</li><li><span>David Myles</span>
			</li><li><span>Anita Neal Powell</span>
			</li><li><span>Paul Scott</span>
			</li><li><span>Izola Shaw</span>
			</li><li><span>Marissa Valeri</span>
			</li><li><span>Adam Van Grack</span>
		

		</li></td>
		<td>
		
			<li><span>Neil Harris</span>
			</li><li><span>Yamil Hernández</span>
			</li><li><span>Daniel Lukomsky</span>
			</li><li><span>Shanika Whitehurst</span>
			</li><li><span>Omodamola Williams</span>
			</li><li><span>Robert Wu</span>
		

		</li></td>
	</tr>
</tbody>

If you’d like to learn more about the candidates, you can attend one of three candidate forums in Rockville this fall, while Gaithersburg has bios for each candidate on the city website. WABA also has questionnaire responses for Rockville and Gaithersburg candidates. And don’t forget, our Elections Hub is your one-stop shop for questionnaires, endorsements process details, and our endorsements themselves. Access the hub anytime from the “2023 Elections” link in the upper right corner of our website.

	<i>Top image: [Photo](https://www.flickr.com/photos/beyonddc/24344051093/in/photolist-6ZuVYm-6ZuVW9-daJ3YS-cLsHt9-D6cCfR-cLsK6E-dAePcg-dAePdn-cLsFZo-DUmuG2-D5SRK5-BExhau-cLsFxJ-cLsHRS-cLsPUd-9jNoov-cLsQnj-9jRu1A-cLsN3d-cLsF2b-cLsR3w-cLsGkW-fpEQD3-87dWdz-a7k4fH-cLsNvU-cLsGRG-cLsKEW-cLsJk9-cLsLaU-cLsLBN-SPqgeW-cLsMDY-cLsJGu-cLsNXY-cLsM51-9jRu7f-cLkD8o-9jNoZ8-9jRtHf-E1gWwN-D6cZPn-9jNovM-9M2m4y-cLsPqU-a7juN8-cLGeZm-7ar79z-7ar7eg-7auVoU) of Rockville Town Center by Dan Malouff. </i>


[Comment on this article](https://ggwash.org/view/91071/rockville-gaithersburg-2023-election#comments)