Today, we continue our 2022 series of Conversations with the Candidates. Between now and the primary in June, we’ll be talking to candidates vying for their party’s nominations for some of MD’s most high-profile offices.

Tom's guest today is Rushern Baker, III, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Maryland Governor.

Mr. Baker entered politics in 1994, serving in the Maryland House of Delegates until 2003. He lost his first two elections for Prince George’s County Executive, but he succeeded the two-term incumbent Jack Johnson in 2010. Soon after that election, federal prosecutors arrested Johnson on corruption charges. Mr. Baker was widely credited with improving the county’s image and ending its “pay to play” legacy.

Rushern Baker is 63 years old. He holds a Bachelor’s degree and a law degree from Howard University. He was married for more than 30 years to Christa Beverly, a civil rights lawyer who passed away in 2021 after a long struggle with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Mr. Baker was her primary caregiver. They are the parents of three grown children.

Mr. Baker has chosen as his running mate Nancy Navarro, a three-term Montgomery County Council member.

Rushern Baker joins us on Zoom.

You're welcome to join us as well. Call us at 410.662.8780. You can email us at [email protected], or Tweet us: @MiddayWYPR

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.