Name Janet Owens | Role Politician | |
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Janet S. Owens (born February 18, 1944, in Lothian, Maryland) is an American politician and Democrat who served as County Executive of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, for two terms, from 1998 until 2007. She is a resident of Millersville, Maryland. She was the first female county executive of Anne Arundel County. As County Executive, she was seen as a moderate, frequently implementing more conservative policies than the County Council, which is now led by Republicans. After conducting polling regarding her chances of being re-elected to her former position of County Executive, Owens decided against running for the Democratic nomination in June 2010.
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Prior to serving as County Executive, Owens was the Executive Director of Anne Arundel County Housing Authority from 1984 to 1986 and later as the Director of the Department of Aging for Anne Arundel County from 1986 to 1990. She then served as a Judge of the Orphans Court from 1990 to 1994. She ran for county Clerk of the Court in 1994 but was defeated by Bob Duckworth.
Election results
2006 Maryland Comptroller election
Janet Owens announced her plans to seek the office of Maryland State Comptroller on May 4, 2006. This was done after months of rumors that she would seek the Democratic nomination for the third congressional district of Maryland (the seat vacated by Ben Cardin, who ran successfully for U.S. Senate to succeed Paul Sarbanes), as well as rumors that she was under consideration as a potential running mate for Governor Robert Ehrlich, a Republican, during his campaign for re-election. (Ehrlich's lieutenant governor, Michael S. Steele, ran unsuccessfully for Senate [losing to Cardin] rather than for a second term as lieutenant governor. Ehrlich ended up choosing Kristen Cox as his new running mate; the ticket was defeated by Democratic Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley and Anthony Brown.) Term limits prevented her from seeking another term as county executive. Owens competed with controversial Democratic incumbent comptroller William Donald Schaefer for the party's nomination. In early July 2006, when asked if he would debate Owens, Schaefer said he "wouldn't debate her on how to bake a chocolate cake." In the primary election on September 12, 2006, Owens garnered more votes than Schaefer, but Peter Franchot received the most votes, earning the Democratic party's nomination for Comptroller. Franchot went on to win the general election on November 7, 2006.
John R. Leopold (Republican) succeeded her as County Executive after winning the general election on November 7, 2006.