Woodsboro burgess joins 6th District congressional race
Jul. 20—Woodsboro Burgess Heath Barnes on Wednesday filed to run for the U.S. House of Representatives in Maryland's 6th Congressional District, according to the Federal Election Commission website.
Originally from Missouri, Barnes, a Republican, relocated to Frederick County roughly a decade ago. He was elected to serve a five-year term as the burgess of Woodsboro in 2021.
He shares a home with his partner, whose family has lived in the area for generations.
Barnes campaigned in 2022 to represent Maryland's 4th legislative district in the state House of Delegates, but finished fourth in the Republican primary behind the three winning candidates.
Despite his past bids for public office, Barnes prefers to think of himself as a "people person" rather than as a politician.
He said the idea of representing the 6th District in the U.S. House never crossed his mind until Democrat David Trone, who currently occupies the seat, announced his intent to run for U.S. Senate instead of reelection.
"I think he did some good things, but he's also out of touch with a lot of our Western Maryland district," Barnes said of Trone during a phone interview with The Frederick News-Post on Thursday. "I've been on the very bottom in my lifetime, and I see where our middle class is struggling."
If elected to Congress, Barnes said he would prioritize securing the U.S. border with Mexico, cutting unnecessary government spending, and supporting military veterans dealing with homelessness and mental illness.
He also expressed concerns that parents don't have enough control over what their children learn in public school.
Until recently, Barnes served as 2nd vice chair of the Maryland Republican Party. He resigned on Wednesday in accordance with organization bylaws, which prohibit individuals from seeking public office while serving as an officer.
Although he is running for the Republican nomination, Barnes said he does not lean as far to the right as some in the party.
"I'm not a typical Republican. ... I'm more socially liberal on some things, and I'm very fiscally conservative," Barnes said. "The far on both sides are the loudest. But if you look down the middle, there's a lot of policies that we can agree on."
Barnes is the sixth Republican to officially announce his candidacy for the 6th District. The other five Republicans are:
— Chris Hyser, a retired Maryland State Police trooper from Thurmont
— Todd Puglisi, a food service worker from Gaithersburg
— Mariela Roca, a medical logistics manager from Frederick
— Brenda Thiam, a former state delegate from Hagerstown
— Tom Royals, a former U.S. Navy officer from Germantown
Another Republican — former state Del. Neil Parrott, who competed for the same seat in 2020 and 2022, but lost to Trone both times — is still deciding whether he will run again. He formed an exploratory committee and filed a statement of candidacy with the FEC last month.
So far, seven Democrats have entered the 6th District race:
— George Gluck, a mathematician from Rockville
— Stephen R. McDow II, an entrepreneur from Monrovia
— Lesley Lopez, a state delegate representing District 39
— Joe Vogel, a state delegate representing District 17
— Destiny Drake West, founder of the Drake Institute for Women's Policy
— Mia Mason, a U.S. military veteran and Frederick resident
— Tekesha Martinez, the mayor of Hagerstown
Former Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner, a Democrat, said on Monday that she is "contemplating" a run for Congress.
The deadline to file for candidacy is Feb. 9, 2024. The 2024 primary election will take place on May 14 and the general election will be held on Nov. 5.
