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Michele Guyton

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Michele Guyton
Guyton in 2024
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates
from the 42B district
Assumed office
January 9, 2019
Preceded bySusan L. M. Aumann
Personal details
Born (1966-10-19) October 19, 1966 (age 57)
Madison, Tennessee, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Children3
EducationVanderbilt University (BA)
Harvard University (MA)
Brandeis University (MA, PhD)

Michele Jenkins Guyton (born October 19, 1966) is an American politician from the Democratic Party and is a member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 42B.

Background

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Guyton was born on October 19, 1966, in Madison, Tennessee. She attended Baldwin County High School in Bay Minette, Alabama and received her B.A. in psychology and anthropology from Vanderbilt University in 1989. She later jointly earned an MA in women studies from Radcliffe College of Harvard University as part of the Boston-area Graduate Consortium for Women’s Studies, alongside an MA in psychology from Brandeis University. Guyton also possesses a Ph.D. in developmental and social psychology from Brandeis, which she received in 1996.[1]

In 2015, Governor Larry Hogan appointed Guyton to serve on the Maryland State Board of Education. The Maryland Senate approved her nomination in a 42-0 vote.[2] She served on the board until January 1, 2019, when she resigned to become a state delegate.[3]

In January 2018, at the Baltimore Women's March, Guyton announced her intent to run for state delegate, citing the 2016 presidential election as what motivated her to run for office.[4] During the primary, she enjoyed endorsements from various organizations, including the Maryland League of Conservation Voters, Metro Baltimore Council AFL–CIO, NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, and the LiUNA Mid-Atlantic Region, and state senator James Brochin.[5] She received 48.4 percent of the vote in the 2022 Democratic primary[6] and narrowly defeated Republican Tim Robinson in the general election with 26.5 percent of the vote.[7] Mileah Kromer, a political scientist and pollster at Goucher College, suggested that Guyton's primary win indicated a polarized electorate in Maryland's 42nd district.[8]

Guyton is a developmental psychologist and disabilities advocate who has worked at various institutions relating to psychology, including the University of Iowa, the North Carolina Department of Mental Health, and the Kennedy Krieger Institute.[1] Her three sons all have disabilities, which moved her to co-found a support group for families with disabilities that has since evolved into the Mid-Atlantic chapter of the Tourette Association of America.[9] She has also used her position as state delegate to introduce several pieces of legislation that would support disabled Marylanders.[10]

In the legislature

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Guyton in the Environment and Transportation Committee, 2024

Guyton was sworn in as a member of the House of Delegates on January 9, 2019.[1] She was floated as a potential candidate for Maryland Senate in 2022.[11] Unopposed in the Democratic primary,[12] Guyton was reelected in the 2022 general election by a more than 20% margin.[13]

Committee assignments

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  • Ways and Means Committee, 2019–present (education subcommittee, 2019–present; finance resources subcommittee, 2019; racing & gaming subcommittee, 2020; early childhood subcommittee, 2021–present)

Other memberships

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  • Women's Legislators of Maryland, 2019–present
  • Maryland Legislative Transit Caucus, 2019–present
  • Maryland Legislative Latino Caucus, 2019–2020

Political positions

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Guyton is a self-described progressive Democrat,[8] but has expressed that she will work across the aisle to support good ideas "regardless of who is sponsoring them."[14]

Education

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Guyton supports universal pre-kindergarten, boosting mental health supports in schools and improving teacher-student ratios in classrooms.[14]

Guns

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In February 2020, Guyton joined seven Democratic delegates in voting against a bill that would mandate background checks on private sales and transfers of shotguns and rifles.[15]

Healthcare

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Guyton supports expanding access to healthcare, saying that she "believes it really is a human right" and that single-payer healthcare is worth discussing but would have to be paid for.[14]

Minimum wage

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On the campaign trail, Guyton advocated for the legislature to pass a "$15 an hour living wage with future indexed increases."[16] In March 2019, she was one of two Democrats in the Maryland House of Delegates to vote against a bill that would raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour.[17]

Taxes

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Guyton opposes raising new taxes, instead advocating for redirecting priorities and using funding sources like lottery money and the legalization of marijuana.[14]

Electoral history

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Maryland House of Delegates District 42B Democratic Primary Election, 2018[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michele Guyton 5,652 48
Democratic Sachin Hebbar 3,293 28
Democratic Daniel Nemec 2,744 24
Maryland House of Delegates District 42B Democratic Primary Election, 2018[7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nino Mangione 20,267 29
Democratic Michele Guyton 18,815 27
Republican Tim Robinson 18,090 26
Democratic Sachin Hebbar 13,670 19
Other/Write-in Other/Write-in 53 0

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Michele J. Guyton, Maryland State Delegate". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. March 14, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  2. ^ Cox, Erin; Wood, Pamela. "Gun board member rejected". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  3. ^ Gaines, Danielle E. (December 7, 2018). "Guyton Begins Journey From State Board of Education to State Lawmaker". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  4. ^ Richman, Talia (January 20, 2018). "At Baltimore's Women's March, participants look to the future". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 20, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  5. ^ Breck, Angela (June 6, 2018). "Political Notebook: More Endorsements". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Official 2018 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. July 31, 2018. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Official 2018 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. December 11, 2018. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Solomon, Libby (November 8, 2018). "Results in Baltimore County's District 42 races indicate a split electorate". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 20, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  9. ^ Straub, Brendan (September 19, 2018). "Four District 42B candidates race for two state House seats". The Baltimore Watchdog. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  10. ^ Knight, Megan (November 4, 2019). "Fashion Rocks Autism fundraiser to benefit autism advocacy group SafeMinds". WMAR-TV. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  11. ^ Kurtz, Josh (April 15, 2021). "In Competitive District, Sen. West Gets First Democratic Challenger". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  12. ^ "Official 2022 Gubernatorial Primary Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. August 24, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  13. ^ "Unofficial 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. November 20, 2022. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  14. ^ a b c d Solomon, Libby (June 19, 2018). "Meet the candidates for state delegate in the District 42B primary". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 20, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  15. ^ DePuyt, Bruce (February 5, 2020). "Democrats Challenge Hogan to Put Up Solutions on Crime". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  16. ^ "Michele Guyton". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  17. ^ Kurtz, Josh (March 1, 2019). "Maryland House Passes $15 an Hour Minimum Wage". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
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