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| Glenn Ivey: Former county prosecutor now seeking to serve in Congress | Glenn Ivey: Former county prosecutor now seeking to serve in Congress |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| This is the fourth in a series of profiles of the six candidates seeking the Democratic nomination to represent Maryland’s 4th Congressional District. | This is the fourth in a series of profiles of the six candidates seeking the Democratic nomination to represent Maryland’s 4th Congressional District. |
| Growing up in North Carolina in the 1960s, Glenn F. Ivey saw firsthand how the civil rights movement changed his home town of Rocky Mount. | |
| “The schools desegregated. You could shop in stores and go into restaurants where you hadn’t been allowed,” Ivey, 55, recalls. “I saw these people making a difference. And I wanted to be one of those who could help people in the same way.” | |
| That desire led to a career as a lawyer, Capitol Hill staffer and prosecutor, including eight years as state’s attorney in Prince George’s County. Now Ivey is running for Congress, one of six Democrats vying for the party’s nomination to succeed Rep. Donna F. Edwards, who is running for the Senate. He has raised the most money in the race and is the first to run television ads. | |
| [Contest to succeed Edwards boils down to three veteran politicians] | [Contest to succeed Edwards boils down to three veteran politicians] |
| Ivey is trying to reacquaint himself with voters who may be more familiar with his wife, Jolene Ivey, a state delegate from 2007 to 2015 and a candidate for lieutenant governor in 2014. He says his work experience and commitment to the community have prepared him to advocate for constituents and Democratic interests in a deeply polarized legislature. | Ivey is trying to reacquaint himself with voters who may be more familiar with his wife, Jolene Ivey, a state delegate from 2007 to 2015 and a candidate for lieutenant governor in 2014. He says his work experience and commitment to the community have prepared him to advocate for constituents and Democratic interests in a deeply polarized legislature. |
| “I know you are tired of Congress being dysfunctional and the political fights of scoring points instead of getting things done,” Ivey said at a recent candidates forum. “I want to make sure we stand with the president, protect Social Security and protect Obamacare.” | |
| The second son born to a U.S. Air Force military police officer and a school librarian, Ivey moved to Northern Virginia as a teenager after his father got a job with the Labor Department. | |
| He graduated from Princeton University and received a law degree from Harvard before returning to the Washington area in 1987 to become an aide to Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich). He later spent four years as a federal prosecutor and worked for Sens. Paul S. Sarbanes (D-Md.) and Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.). | |
| Ivey said he learned bipartisanship watching Conyers persuade Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.) to collaborate on a bill requiring warning labels on alcoholic beverages and seeing Sarbanes, Daschle and other Democrats forge a deal with Republicans to pass a federal minimum-wage hike. “It was a great model of how things could come together,” he said. | |
| By 2002, Glenn and Jolene Ivey had married and moved to Prince George’s, where they raised five sons. Their blended family also includes Glenn Ivey’s daughter from a previous relationship. | |
| Ivey served two terms as state’s attorney, building a reputation as a thoughtful and fair litigator during a time when the rates for homicide and violent crimes were dropping dramatically. He reorganized the prosecutor’s office, which his predecessor, Jack B. Johnson, had left in turmoil (Johnson, who had become county executive, later pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to his tenure as county executive). And Ivey worked closely with the community — helping create mentoring programs, asking faith leaders to open a dialogue about domestic abuse and forming a task force of local organizations to develop anti-gang programs and laws. | |
| [Seniors press 4th district candidates on Social Security] | [Seniors press 4th district candidates on Social Security] |
| His high-profile prosecutions include the cases of Roger B. Hargrave, who in 2005 stormed into the workplace of his estranged wife, Yvette Cade, doused her with gasoline and set her ablaze; and then-police officer Keith Washington, who shot two furniture deliverymen in 2009, killing one of them. | His high-profile prosecutions include the cases of Roger B. Hargrave, who in 2005 stormed into the workplace of his estranged wife, Yvette Cade, doused her with gasoline and set her ablaze; and then-police officer Keith Washington, who shot two furniture deliverymen in 2009, killing one of them. |
| When Ronnie White, who was accused of killing a police officer, was strangled in his jail cell in 2008, Ivey’s office faced intense public scrutiny and demands to hold someone accountable. After a year-long investigation, he announced that there was no evidence to support murder charges against jail employees. | |
| Although many were unhappy with the decision, some — including the then-president of the county chapter of the NAACP, June White Dillard — ultimately concluded that Ivey’s probe had been fair. | |
| “We pressured him a lot,” said Dillard, who is backing Ivey in the primary race. “He was always responsive to us.” | “We pressured him a lot,” said Dillard, who is backing Ivey in the primary race. “He was always responsive to us.” |
| Ivey also met with White’s father several times during the investigation. “The key was to be sympathetic to his plight,” Ivey said. “The focus was on getting it right. . . . I think he appreciated that.” | Ivey also met with White’s father several times during the investigation. “The key was to be sympathetic to his plight,” Ivey said. “The focus was on getting it right. . . . I think he appreciated that.” |
| At one point, Ivey was considered a possible running mate for then-gubernatorial candidate Martin O’Malley. But O’Malley tapped Anthony Brown, then a state delegate. Now, Brown and Ivey — who most recently has worked in private practice — are the two front-runners in the congressional race. | At one point, Ivey was considered a possible running mate for then-gubernatorial candidate Martin O’Malley. But O’Malley tapped Anthony Brown, then a state delegate. Now, Brown and Ivey — who most recently has worked in private practice — are the two front-runners in the congressional race. |
| Ivey appears to be focusing especially on older, African American women, among the most reliable voters in the district. Although he is not a fiery speaker, his Southern drawl, folksy manner and willingness to listen seem to appeal to those he meets while campaigning. | |
| Lessie Hairston, of Capitol Heights, yelped when she spotted the bespectacled, suspender-wearing candidate on her doorstep the other day. She asked to take a picture with him. “I got a picture with Obama, too,” Hairston said. | Lessie Hairston, of Capitol Heights, yelped when she spotted the bespectacled, suspender-wearing candidate on her doorstep the other day. She asked to take a picture with him. “I got a picture with Obama, too,” Hairston said. |
| “Well, can I count on your vote?” Ivey asked. | |
| She replied: “You’ve got it.” | She replied: “You’ve got it.” |
| Next: Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk. | Next: Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk. |