Brenda Jeanette Thiam[1] was born and raised in Raeford, North Carolina on September 9, 1969.[2] She was one of four children and was raised in a single-mother family after her father, a radio personality, filed for divorce and moved to Memphis, Tennessee.[3]
After graduating from North Carolina Central University, Thiam worked as a special-education teacher for Washington County Public Schools[4] and for various nonprofits until 2019,[2] While working for the Washington County Public Schools, she secured a $100,000 grant to support the ongoing education of teachers for students with intellectual disabilities.[5] Thiam lost her job just before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic,[6] after which she started her own nonprofit, Oasis Community Support Services Inc., to support the needs of adults with autism.[7]
Thiam first got involved in politics as a member of student government in school.[8] She was a registered Democrat until 2012, when she switched to the Republican Party.[9] From 2016 to 2018, she served as the vice president of the Washington County Republican Club.[2] In 2016, she applied to fill a vacancy on the Washington County Board of Commissioners,[10] which was filled by Wayne Keefer, a small-business owner.[11] In 2020, Thiam successfully ran for the Hagerstown City Council, placing sixth in the nonpartisan primary.[12] Thiam later withdrew from the race after being appointed to the Maryland House of Delegates, but she remained on the ballot for the general election.[13]
Maryland House of Delegates
In September 2020, following the appointment of Paul D. Corderman to the Maryland Senate, Thiam applied to fill the vacancy left by his resignation in the Maryland House of Delegates.[14] The Washington County Republican Central Committee nominated Thiam to fill the vacancy later that month,[5] and she was appointed to the seat by Governor Larry Hogan on September 23, 2020.[15]
Thiam was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on October 6, 2020, where she served on the House Judiciary Committee[2] and was a member of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland.[16] She was the first black Republican woman to serve in the Maryland General Assembly[15] and the first black Republican to serve in the legislature in the nearly three decades since Aris T. Allen died in office in 1991.[17] In 2022, Thiam was appointed deputy minority whip.[18]
Thiam ran for election in 2022, seeking a full term in the Maryland House of Delegates. She won the Republican primary election on July 19, 2022,[19] but was defeated by Democratic challenger Brooke Grossman in the general election on November 8.[20][21] Following her defeat, Thiam called on the Republican Party to "embrace" mail-in voting if it hoped to win future elections.[22]
On June 20, 2023, Thiam filed to run for Congress in Maryland's 6th congressional district in 2024 to succeed David Trone.[23] She announced her candidacy on July 25, 2023.[24] During the Republican primary, she ran on a platform[citation needed] including tackling the opioid epidemic and requiring recipients of disability benefits to undergo additional assessments to determine whether they're still eligible to continue receiving benefits.[25] Thiam was defeated in the Republican primary election by former state delegate Neil Parrott on May 14, 2024, placing second-to-last with 3.3 percent of the vote.[26]
Political positions
Thiam with Governor Larry Hogan, 2022
During her run for Hagerstown city council, Thiam said she supported addressing the opioid epidemic and improving the city's bond credit rating, and opposed raising taxes.[27] Upon being appointed to the Maryland House of Delegates, she said that her legislative priorities included the opioid epidemic and the Blueprint for Maryland's Future,[5] which she opposed.[28] She also described herself as "pro-life", expressing interest in working with legislators to promote family planning options other than abortions,[29] and said she opposed the "defund the police" movement.[3] Thiam supported the reelection campaign of President Donald Trump in the 2020 United States presidential election.[30]
During the 2021 legislative session, Thiam introduced a bill that would require students to pass a civics test before they could graduate from high school, as well as the "Learning at Home Relief Act", which would provide a $250 per child tax credit toward costs associated with online school, such as child care and internet services. Both bills failed to move out of committee.[31][32] She also voted for the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021, which repealed the Law Enforcement Officers' Bill of Rights,[33] and against the Plastic Bag Reduction Act, a bill to ban the sale of plastic bags and to require stores to charge a minimum of 10 cents for paper bags.[34] In February 2021, during debate on a bill to extend the earned-income tax credit to immigrants, Thiam introduced an amendment that required that benefits only go to "taxpayers of lawful status in the United States". The amendment was rejected by a 48-91 vote.[35]
In October 2021, Thiam was one of five Maryland state legislators from Garrett, Allegany and Washington counties who sent a pair of letters to West Virginia officials asking about annexation of Western Maryland to West Virginia.[36] The letters were later withdrawn by their authors, House Minority Leader Jason C. Buckel and state senator George C. Edwards, following criticism from local officials and some constituents.[37]
During the 2022 legislative session, Thiam introduced a bill to allow municipalities to establish Police Accountability Boards and another to prohibit dirt bike drivers from committing motor vehicle offenses; both bills died in committee.[38][39] She also expressed concerns with proposals to legalize recreational marijuana in Maryland, questioning whether black Marylanders would be able to make money from the recreational market.[40] In March 2022, during debate on a bill creating a statewide ballot referendum on codifying the right to abortion access, Thiam introduced an amendment requiring the Maryland Department of Health to collect data regarding abortions performed in the state, including gestational age and number of abortions performed. The amendment was rejected by the Maryland House of Delegates by a 39-83 vote.[41]
In April 2022, following a spike in gas prices as the result of the Russo-Ukrainian War, Thiam supported Maryland's brief gas tax holiday, which she later made efforts to extend by an additional 45 days.[46][47] She also introduced legislation to decouple the state's gas tax from inflation, which failed to pass out of committee.[48]
In October 2023, amid the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and subsequent Israel–Hamas war, Thiam expressed support for Israel and its right to defend itself, as well as the expansion of the Abraham Accords and humanitarian efforts in Gaza;[54] however, she later said that she opposed giving foreign aid to any country without first addressing domestic issues and implementing limits on how much aid could be given and for how long.[55] Thiam also opposed calls for a ceasefire in the war, saying that it would allow Hamas to retreat and restrategize for another, deadlier attack on Israel.[56]
Personal life
Thiam is married to her husband, Mam Malick Thiam, who migrated to the United States from Guinea in 2000 and unsuccessfully ran for Washington County Treasurer in 2022.[6] Thiam moved to Germantown, Maryland in 1995. Together, they moved to Hagerstown in October 2006,[57] and have a daughter.[58]
In July 2022, Thiam and her daughter were involved in a car crash in Hagerstown. Both were transported to Meritus Medical Center with minor injuries, and were released later that day.[59]
Electoral history
Hagerstown City Council primary election, 2020[60]
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