The head of a well-known Howard County Republican family officially announced Monday she is running for county executive, confirming months of speculation.

Trent Kittleman, widow of the late state Sen. Robert Kittleman and stepmother of current state Sen. Allan Kittleman, indicated she will focus her campaign for the county’s top elected position on government spending.

“What politicians have forgotten is that the money government spends comes from the labor of thousands and hundreds of thousands of people,” she said. “So when government takes money to spend, it better have a darned good reason.”

Kittleman, 64,  announced her challenge to Democratic incumbent Kenneth Ulman in a brief event at Sign-A-Rama in Columbia, where she was introduced by Allan Kittleman and flanked by family and other local GOP candidates.

She said she has no specific plans for cuts to programs or spending, but initiatives such as Healthy Howard — a public heath-care service introduced by Ulman — need to be examined.

“I don’t think government is there to be looking for ways to spend money,” she said.

Sign-A-Rama owner Betty Evans, said she is looking to Kittleman to make a change in health care policy and support small businesses, like hers, which has six employees.

“(The county is) going in the wrong direction,” Evans said. “I think she is a wonderful person.”

Former state Del. Robert Flanagan, who served as transportation secretary  under Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich, said Kittleman, his deputy secretary at the time, was instrumental in improving transportation services for the disabled in Maryland.

“It was a real fix. Seldom do you get a major government program that was in such bad shape that gets fixed,” he said.

Kittleman is planning to hold a fundraiser Wednesday at a private home in Glenwood, featuring former Gov. Robert Ehrlich, who is considering running again for governor.

Flanagan, for his part, has expressed an interest in running for the County Council in District 1, a seat currently held by council chairwoman Democrat Courtney Watson. 

He said this week he has not set a date to officially announce his candidacy.

Kittleman was twice elected to the Oakland Mills Village Board in the mid-1970s and is also the former president and CEO of the Maryland Transportation Authority.

She has worked as senior counsel for Marriott International and minority counsel for former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson.

She currently manages a business communication company.

Flanagan said Kittleman’s experience, combined with public dissatisfaction with sitting elected officials, are a recipe to winning the executive’s seat in typically liberal-leaning Howard County.

“People need to get to know her first of all and realize that she is better qualified than the incumbent to run Howard County,” he said.

The GOP last controlled the county in the mid-1990s, when Republican Charles Ecker served as county executive and three of the five County Council members were also Republicans.

Ulman has not officially announced a bid for reelection, but he is fund raising and has launched a campaign Web site.

Ulman said Monday he does not know when he will file for reelection. Asked about Kittleman’s challenge, he said he is putting his time and energies into cleaning up from last week’s back-to-back, record-setting snowstorms.

“We’re just so focused on digging out of this storm and getting through this historic event,” he said. “My 100 percent, sole focus is this effort right now.”

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user comments (3)

user milton says...

Yes, Ken Ulman, pretend to be distracted by last week's snowstorms. That way you can be dismissive of your challenger that you have known about for months without looking too negative. Ken Ulman not having time for politics is like a duck not having time to swim.

Posted 8:05 PM, 02.15.10 | Permalink

user commonsenseplease says...

Every step he takes (or doesn't take) is political.

Posted 10:18 PM, 02.15.10 | Permalink

user independent says...

A very close County Exec race would be a good for constituents who are taken for granted, presuming that the incumbent will be re-elected. A challenger who takes the lead would be even more welcomed.

Posted 7:32 AM, 02.16.10 | Permalink