Maryland
Two nonbinary candidates elected to Md. Democratic Central Committee
Tia Hopkins and Antonio Bowens won respective races in August
Tia Hopkins and Antonio Bowens last month became the first openly nonbinary candidates elected to the Maryland Democratic Central Committee.
Hopkins was elected to represent District 40 in Baltimore City, and in an interview with the Baltimore Banner they said that the community’s response has been overwhelmingly positive.
“Everyone has welcomed me with open arms,” Hopkins said. “All the remarks were positive. One person wanted a better explanation of what gender neutral is. It’s people wanting to educate themselves. Obviously, I look female, and I changed my gender to nonbinary. It’s about them understanding that change.”
Bowens was re-elected to represent Frederick County. After winning election in 2018 on the male ticket, they decided to run under the newly created nonbinary option in 2022.
“I tried to be truthful to myself and register as nonbinary,” Bowens said. “The best way to advocate for minority voices is to be active in Frederick politics.”
Bowens said that one of their goals as a committee member is to prepare potential candidates — especially LGBTQ and nonbinary candidates — for success in future elections.
“I want to get in and get the bench filled — to get these people ready and give them the tools to be successful candidates,” they said.
A third nonbinary candidate, Jo Riedel, was unsuccessful in their race to represent Harford County on the committee. Before running for the central committee, Riedel was active in Harford County Democratic politics as a treasure and advisor to the house of delegates candidate.
However, despite their familiarity with Harford County politics, Riedel faced significant pushback as a nonbinary candidate.
“I could have very easily run as a male candidate. I really didn’t ever entertain that thought,” Riedel said. “There were transphobic comments made by other party members, to the point where one of the party officers had to make the point that we’re not going to use Republican talking points on our fellow members.”
Riedel even described an incident at a candidate forum where another Democrat accused them of having multiple personality disorder, because they were wearing a “they/them” button.
Although Riedel’s own election bid was unsuccessful, Riedel said they were proud to be one of the first three Maryland candidates openly designated as nonbinary, and excited for the two other candidates who were elected.
“I am very, very happy and excited for both of them, that they were elected, because they’re good candidates, you know, and not just because they’re nonbinary,” they said.
As Maryland’s Democratic moves forward from this historic first, Riedel stressed there is still more internal work to be done, even as party members celebrate a victory for the nonbinary candidates.
“As a party, we still have work to do, and we’re going to have to address that if we expect to continue to reach out to the queer community,” they said.
Maryland
Girlfriends charged with Silver Spring murder to go on trial in 2027
Prosecutors charged both women with killing mother of one of them
Two women identified as a couple who are charged with the May 22, 2026, murder of the mother one of them in her Silver Spring home and who were arrested three weeks later in Ohio are scheduled to go on trial for murder April 19, 2027.
According to online records filed with Montgomery County Circuit Court in Rockville, Vanessa Tjongarero-Henderson, 29, of Clarksburg, Md., and Samantha Raebel, 36, of Phoenix are being held without bond in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility until the time of their trial.
Statements from Montgomery County police show the two women were arrested June 10 in Genoa, Ohio, after fleeing from the scene of the murder in Silver Spring. Police statements and court records show they were extradited back to Maryland in July, where prosecutors with the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office obtained indictments against them for murder.
Earlier statements from Montgomery County police say their investigation into the murder led to their decision to initially charge the two women with first-degree murder for the death of Hilde Henderson, 67, who was Tjongarero-Henderson’s mother.
“Through the course of the investigation, detectives identified Henderson’s daughter, Vanessa Tjongarero-Henderson, and Vanessa’s girlfriend, Raebel, as the suspects,” one of the police statements says. It says police obtained arrest warrants for both women and launched a nationwide search seeking help from the public in in locating them.
One of the police statements says an autopsy determined the cause of Hilde Henderson’s death was blunt-force trauma injuries brought about by a murder. Police and the State’s Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, have yet to disclose whether they have determined a motive for the murder.
Court records show that prior to the start of the April 19, 2027, trial a “motion” hearing was scheduled for Oct. 30, 2026, a pre-trail conference was scheduled for Feb. 12, 2027, and another motion hearing and a status hearing were scheduled for March 12, 2027.
Court records also show that Tjongarero-Henderson is being represented by attorneys with the Montgomery County court system’s public defender service. The records show that Raebel initially had been represented by a public defender service attorney, but updated records show Aug. 14 is listed as the “removal date” for that attorney.
The docket shows that on Aug. 20, two new attorneys with the prominent D.C. law firm of Covington & Burling made their official appearance as her attorneys in the murder case. One of them, Daniel Solomon, told the Washington Blade in response to an inquiry that the defense has no comment at this time on the case.
He confirmed that Covington & Burling is representing Raebel on a no-cost, pro bono bass.
The office of the Montgomery County public defender service didn’t immediately respond to a phone message from the Blade asking for a comment on the Tjongarero-Henderson case.
Congress
Chris Van Hollen says the Democratic Party needs change. Is he the one to lead it?
Senator is backing anti-establishment Democrats across the country
By LEE O. SANDERLIN | The Democratic Party is having something of an identity crisis — losing to President Donald Trump twice in three elections will do that.
Should the party embrace anti-establishment figures who espouse progressive policy ideas like Medicare for all and rhetoric about unrigging the economy for the 1 percent? Or should Democrats try to appeal to moderates who want to return to semi-normalcy in a time of political upheaval?
Although he’s been in Congress since 2002, with key leadership roles throughout his tenure, Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, 67, counts himself firmly in the anti-establishment camp.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
Anne Arundel schools updates gender identity regulation following Trump administration threats
District facing federal lawsuit, White House threats over guidelines
By JESSICA CALEFATI | Under pressure from the Trump-Vance administration, Anne Arundel County Public Schools Supt. Mark Bedell announced Wednesday the district had updated a regulation intended to protect transgender students’ right to be called by their chosen name.
The revised language makes clear that district rules on gender identity do not block parents’ rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act as the federal government alleged last month, and that a student’s gender identity will not be treated as confidential medical information.
“No policy, guideline, or practice may limit or otherwise interfere with parental rights under FERPA,” Bedell wrote in a Wednesday letter to the community. “This includes any information maintained in education records that relates to gender identity, transgender status, sexual orientation, preferred name, or preferred pronouns.”
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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