The Prince George’s County Council failed to elect a new chair in multiple voting rounds on Tuesday during its gavel exchange ceremony.
District 5 council member and chair Jolene Ivey will likely keep her position for the 2025 legislative year, she told The Diamondback.
Ivey said she believes it is unlikely any member will reach the six votes needed to be elected as chair. The council does not currently have plans to hold another election for chair, she added, which means she will likely continue in her position.
The members nominated for chair during the three rounds of voting were Ivey, District 3 council member Eric Olson and District 6 council member Wala Blegay.
Ivey has represented District 5 since 2018 and was chair for the 2024 legislative year. In November, she was elected to one of the council’s at-large positions.
Ivey also announced her campaign for Prince George’s County Executive after U.S. Sen.-elect Angela Alsobrooks resigned from the seat on Monday, The Diamondback reported.
The special election to fill Alsobrooks’ seat must be held within 100 days of her resignation, The Diamondback reported on Monday.
[Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks resigns after winning US Senate race]
“I’m very happy to be able to continue representing the county and doing the hard work that’s before us,” Ivey told The Diamondback. “We have some really serious issues that we have to grapple with, and I believe that I’d be the right person to do it.”
Ivey fell one vote short of being elected chair for the 2025 legislative session during the lengthy voting process.
District 2 council member Wanika Fisher, who nominated Ivey to be chair on Tuesday, said Ivey helped the council through many challenges over the past year.
“I think she’ll be able to work with everyone, as she continues to do, to bring us together,” Fisher said.
Another chair could be elected if the council calls for another vote during the legislative session because no one was officially elected into the role, deputy administrator Colette Gresham confirmed at Tuesday’s meeting.
District 8 council member Edward Burroughs III will serve as vice chair in 2025. He was elected 6-0-4.
[Jolene Ivey wins special election for Prince George’s County Council at-large seat]
Burroughs has previously clashed with council members, including Ivey, about council spending, NBC4 Washington reported Tuesday.
It was important for Ivey to work with council members during her time as chair, she said, especially when the council faced a $171 million budget deficit at the beginning of her term.
During Tuesday’s meeting, 2024 vice chair Sydney Harrison thanked Ivey for her service and for helping the county through difficult times.
“You should be commended for your stick-to-it-ness, your leadership and your stewardship to this county,” Harrison said.
Ivey told council members she is honored to lead them again next year.
“The coming year will require all hands on deck as we navigate all the challenges we face this year again,” she said.
The council will reconvene in January for its next meeting.
