On November 2, 1999, the city of Baltimore, Maryland, elected a new mayor, the 47th in the city's history. Primary elections were held to determine the nominees for the Democratic Party and Republican Party on September 14. Incumbent mayor Kurt Schmoke, a Democrat, opted not to run for reelection. Martin O'Malley, a member of the Baltimore City Council, won the election to succeed Schmoke.
Because Baltimore's electorate is overwhelmingly Democratic, it was widely believed that the city's next mayor would effectively be chosen in the Democratic primary election. Baltimore's large African American population initially made it seem likely that Schmoke would be succeeded by another African American. Former Congressman Kweisi Mfume was the preferred candidate of local politicians, but he opted not to run. Though Carl Stokes and Lawrence Bell, members of the city council, declared for the race, local leaders were underwhelmed with the quality of declared candidates.
In 1999, Baltimore experienced high rates of murder and unemployment, and had a failing city school system. O'Malley declared his candidacy, focusing his campaign on a "zero tolerance" approach to crime. He received endorsements from many of the city's African American leaders. After what had been competitive race, O'Malley overtook both Stokes and Bell to win the Democratic nomination by a sizable margin, making him an overwhelming favorite in the general election. He defeated Republican candidate David F. Tufaro in the general election by an overwhelming majority.
Background Kurt Schmoke, the incumbent Mayor of Baltimore, was serving his third term. He announced in December 1998 that he would not run for reelection the following year, the first time an incumbent Baltimore mayor did not run for reelection since 1971. Schmoke was the first African American elected mayor in Baltimore's history.
Racial politics had long played a role in Baltimore. As the state of Maryland did not attempt to prevent African Americans from voting through Jim Crow laws, political coalitions often involved African American community leaders. Theodore McKeldin, who served as mayor from 1943 through 1947 and from 1963 through 1967, was one of the first political leaders to work with African American community leaders. By 1999, 63% of Baltimore's registered voters were African American, and 90% were registered to the Democratic Party. Baltimore had not elected a Republican mayor since 1963.
As of 1999, Baltimore experienced 300 murders a year, which was the fourth most in the nation. Unemployment was 9%, twice the national average. Between 1990 and 1998, Baltimore saw its population decrease by 12.3%, the second-biggest decrease during that time period in the United States. This decrease led to its work force decreasing by one-sixth. The city saw decreases in heavy-manufacturing by 40 percent, distribution jobs by 35 percent, retail positions by 34 percent, and banking jobs by 28 percent. Also, the state of Maryland had taken over the city's failing school system in 1996, which upset African American politicians. State Senator Clarence M. Mitchell, IV called the takeover racist. Baltimore City Council members, including President Lawrence Bell and Martin O'Malley, had opposed the handling of Baltimore's high crime rate by Schmoke and Baltimore Police Department (BPD) Commissioner Thomas C. Frazier.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Lawrence Bell, president of the city council Mary Conaway, city register of wills Martin O'Malley, city council member from Northeast Baltimore Carl Stokes, former city council member
Declined
Joan Carter Conway, state senator (endorsed O'Malley) Patricia Jessamy, Baltimore state's attorney Kwesi Mfume, president of the NAACP and former U.S. representative from Catonsville Joan Pratt, city comptroller Pete Rawlings, state delegate (endorsed O'Malley) Bishop Robinson, former Baltimore police commissioner William Donald Schaefer, Maryland state comptroller and former mayor (endorsed Robinson; later O'Malley) Kurt Schmoke, incumbent mayor since 1987
Minor candidates None of these candidates received more than 0.10% of the popular vote.
Bell was considered in February 1999 to be the front-runner in the mayoral race. Other potential candidates included State's Attorney Patricia Jessamy, former city councilman Carl Stokes, City Comptroller Joan Pratt, and Joan Carter Conway, a member of the Maryland State Senate.
City leaders, including Howard P. Rawlings, a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, and William Donald Schaefer, the Comptroller of Maryland and Schmoke's predecessor as mayor, feared that none of the potential candidates had the vision to continue the urban renewal that took place under Schmoke and Schaefer. They hoped that Baltimore-native Kweisi Mfume, the president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), would run. Mfume had previously served on the Baltimore City Council and in the United States House of Representatives. Schmoke called the race "his to lose". However, Mfume lived in nearby Catonsville, Maryland, and did not move into Baltimore until March, which would leave him short of the one-year residency requirement. Schaefer stated that he had no interest in running, and threw his support behind Bishop Robinson, the former BPD Commissioner. Robinson chose not to run.
The state legislature passed a law shortening the residency requirement from one year to six months, which was signed into law by Democratic Governor Parris Glendening in April. Bell attempted to have the legislation overturned. The City Council, with Schmoke's support considered raising the salary of the mayor in April, to make the position more enticing to Mfume. Also, 200 Baltimore citizens, including three former mayors, attempted to draft Mfume into the race. However, Mfume had signed a five-year contract with the NAACP in 1996. Mfume considered leaving the NAACP to run, but in May, decided to remain with the organization.
Stokes announced his candidacy in December 1998. Bell announced his candidacy two days after Mfume passed on running, in May 1999, promising to tackle crime and improve public safety. Community leaders who attempted to draft Mfume into the race began to back Stokes. Other declared candidates included Mary Conaway, the City Register of Wills, activists A. Robert Kaufman, Robert Marsili, and Phillip Brown. Jessamy stated that without Mfume in the race, she would consider running, but she opted against getting into the race.
O'Malley initially supported Bell's candidacy. Bell urged O'Malley to endorse him, and offered him the job of city solicitor in exchange for his support. However, O'Malley began to distance himself from Bell, not appearing at Bell's campaign announcement, due to disagreements on several bills debated at the city council. Bell's supporters attempted to convince O'Malley to run for City Council President, but O'Malley announced his decision to run for mayor in June, becoming the first major candidate in the race who was Caucasian. O'Malley made a late entrance into the multi-candidate primary. He began his campaign largely unknown outside of Northeast Baltimore.
Campaign Fifteen candidates ended up running in the Democratic primary. The front-runners were considered to be O'Malley, Bell, and Stokes. Schmoke made no endorsement in the race.
O'Malley and Bell called for "zero tolerance" to all crime, though Stokes felt this policy was biased against minorities. Stokes ran on the issue of education, as he was a former member of the Baltimore school board, in addition to the city council. Stokes vowed to reduce class sizes and reverse the trend of citizens of Baltimore leaving the city to live in nearby suburbs.
O'Malley faced initial difficulties based on race, as a community leader stated that his entrance into the race "created some tension," and that O'Malley's potential victory "would be the worst thing that could happen in this city" and could "tear this city apart." Some saw his entrance in the race as an attempt to split the African American vote. However, O'Malley received endorsements from prominent African American politicians in August, including Rawlings, fellow state Delegate Kenneth Montague, and Conway. Rawlings credited O'Malley's "track record of empowering black Americans." O'Malley also received an endorsement from Schaefer. Some African Americans charged Rawlings with "stabbing us in the back" over the endorsement.
Bell attempted to portray himself as the heir apparent to Schmoke. However, disclosures from a lawsuit revealed Bell's financial troubles, which included having his car repossessed. Bell lost support after he stated that voters should choose him because "I look like you." Stokes began to lose support after he was charged with lying about having a college degree, when it was discovered that he did not graduate from Loyola University Maryland, as his campaign literature stated. It was also revealed that Stokes settled an income tax lien. Bell's supporters rallied outside the offices of The Baltimore Sun, challenging that they were writing negative stories about African American candidates, and giving better treatment to O'Malley during the campaign. Stokes was able to recover support when he received endorsements from The Baltimore Sun, the Baltimore Afro-American, and the ministerial alliance.
Seven candidates, including Democrats Bell, Stokes, O'Malley, and Conaway, and Republicans Adair, Tufaro, and Arthur Cuffie Jr., met for a debate on September 8. The debate focused on crime, with Bell, Stokes, and O'Malley making their cases regarding "zero tolerance", while Adair and Tufaro declared their support for Frazier.
Polling A June 1999 poll conducted by Gonzales/Arscott Communications Inc., a polling firm based in Annapolis, Maryland, showed Schaefer ahead of Bell.
Bell led Stokes in a poll conducted early in the race, 33% to 17%, before O'Malley declared his candidacy. By late August, Bell slipped in the polls to third place, with O'Malley and Stokes tied. Bell and O'Malley began airing television commercials supporting their campaigns in early August, while Stokes did not begin to air commercials until September. O'Malley also advertised on the radio.
Results The Democratic primary was held on September 14. Turnout was high; though the mayoral candidates expected about 100,000 voters, about half of Baltimore's 294,000 registered voters voted in the primary elections.
O'Malley won the primary election with more than 50% of the vote, though he received only 30% of the African American vote. Bell and Stokes split a significant portion of the city's black majority, but their combined total was less than O'Malley. At his victory rally, O'Malley called the election "a victory for diversity and a victory for inclusiveness".
Republican primary
Candidates
Carl Adair, public school teacher and perennial candidate Arthur Cuffie Jr. Lynwood H. Leverette Roberto Marsili David F. Tufaro, real estate developer and lawyer from Roland Park Melanie M. Taylor
On July 1, David F. Tufaro, a real estate developer and lawyer from Roland Park, Maryland, announced his intention to run for the Republican Party nomination, joining three neighborhood activists who had already declared their intentions to run. Carl Adair, a public school teacher who had run unsuccessfully for the city council and the Maryland House of Delegates on numerous occasions, was also a candidate for the Republican nomination.
Republican Party officials quickly began to back Tufaro, who criticized the Democratic Party by pointing out that Democrats have led Baltimore in its decline.
Results In the September 14 Republican primary, Tufaro received over half of the votes cast. Adair finished in second place.
General election
Candidates
Martin O'Malley, city council member from Northeast Baltimore (Democratic)