Three candidates filed prior to the February 25 deadline to replace St. Mary’s County Treasurer Jan Norris (D) who announced that she was not running for re-election. Norris has served 20 years in the elected position and 35 years total in the office. After her announcement speculation was rampant about potential candidates. One of the issues facing potential candidates already working in the office was that they made considerably more in their current position than the elected treasurer was paid.

In the end there political newcomers filed, a Democrat, Republican and Independent, so voters will have to wait until the general election in November to choose. The Bay Net sent requests for the three candidates to respond with biographical information and a photo. Only two responded: Democrat Carrie Swartz of Lexington Park and Republican Christy Kelly, also of Lexington Park. Independent Steve Gelrud of Lexington Park did not respond.

The following is the information submitted by Swartz:

“I grew up in Maryland on Kent Island. I have been in St. Mary’s county since 2010, and from the minute I arrived here, I knew this was the place I would raise my daughter. I want to be involved in the community she will grow up in. I want to be an active participant in our local government. I currently hold an Associate’s Degree, and have been working on completing my Bachelor’s at St. Mary’s college.  I had my own business while living in North Carolina and managed several other businesses where good accounting skills were essential. Last year I began tutoring students from Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary’s counties. I came to find out there was a huge need for knowledgeable and enthusiastic math tutors, and have stuck to strictly math ever since. I deal with algebra to calculus and everything in between. I am comfortable working with numbers and complex equations. I am wholeheartedly invested in the success of each of my students.

“I am running for this position only after finding out Mrs. Norris was not interested in running again. Let’s face it; no one can do the job better than her at the moment. One of the first things I would do would be to ask the commissioners to lower my salary by $8,000. If I were re-elected then we could prorate it by $2,000 for each term I was re-elected. The money saved could be used for upgrades or other productive measures. I would like to serve the community and hear what they would like to see done in the Treasurer’s office. I would like to bridge some of the old with some of the new. I will have a highly experienced staff around me, and I feel I have invaluable assets to bring to the table. And most importantly I see this as an opportunity to gain the people’s trust in caring for their hard earned tax dollars.”

The following is the information submitted by Kelly:

“Christy Kelly is happy to announce her candidacy for St. Mary’s County Treasurer. She is a 24 year resident of Lexingt