Politics & Government

Voting Guide: Congressional District 6

Are you ready to vote? Prepare for the primary election with some last-minute info on the Sixth Congressional District candidates.

On Tuesday, 14 candidates will face-off in the 6th District's Maryland primary vying for their party's nomination.

Last month, we asked Patch readers and they would support in the 6th District Congressional seat primary election.

But if you haven't been paying attention, catch up with some last minute info about some of the candidates for the 6th District Congressional seat.

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Democrats

-- Pooran, a critical care physician who joined the Air National Guard as a third-year medical student, is running without any prior political experience. He hopes to bring different perspectives than what many people already provide for Congress.

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"I think you want people from different segments of the communities: You want physicians, you want teachers, you want industrial workers, you want everyone to be there so they can bring their own talents, their unique experiences. If we had a Congress that was filled with lawyers and special interests we'd get exactly what we have now," he said.

-- A successful businessman, John Delaney wants to bring his understanding of the economy and ideas for job creation to Congress.

"I just think it's the right match with my skills," Delaney said. "The central issue facing this country right now is employment ... and that's what I'm an expert at."

-- Serving as a state senator for 10 years, Garagiola is a veteran in Annapolis and the senator is hoping to bring his experiences with him to Washington. If elected, he believes he can help unite the split parties.

"I feel that I've been the kind of person who's brought Republicans and Democrats together in Annapolis and I think that's something that's just very lacking at the federal level."

Other candidates include: Charles Bailey and Ron Little.

Republicans

 -- The incumbent, Bartlett has served District 6 for 20 years and is seeking his 11th term in Congress. But Bartlett doesn't want to be seen as an old dog in the race.

"This 85-year-old guy that's been in there for 20 years, he needs to get out of there," he said. "When they don't see me, they don't know me, I can see that stereotype."

-- A Maryland State Delegate elected in 2010, Afzali hopes to quickly reach the federal government. She defeated Bartlett's son, Joseph, in 2010 and hopes to defeat the elder incumbent in this year's primary.

"I think there is the misnomer in politics that there are somehow sacred cows and there are things you don't do. You never run against an incumbent. Well, if that incumbent is, in my view and others' views, not doing a great job, we owe it to the citizens to have the best people that we can have," she said.

-- Brinkley has climbed the political ladder since his election to the House of Delegates in 1995. Brinkley joined Garagiola in the state senate in 2003 and hopes to take the next step towards Congress in the primary election.

"You can sit in the grandstands and complain about things -- do the Monday morning quarterbacking -- or you can get on the playing field. And sometimes you get beat up a little bit, but other times there are some fruits to your labor and you can actually make a difference," Brinkley said.

Other candidates include: Robert Coblentz, Robin FickerJoseph Krysztoforski, Brandon Rippeon and Peter James.

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Editor's Note: Madeline Marshall of Capital News Service compiled some of the candidates' profiles. They were used in this post. This post has been updated.


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