BERLIN — After a rather spirited campaign, there was little drama in the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office race when the polls closed on Tuesday with incumbent Republican Beau Oglesby nearly doubling up Democratic challenger and local attorney Mike Farlow.
The Worcester County State’s Attorney race has produced some of the most highly contested elections in recent years with long-time incumbent Joel Todd edging Oglesby on absentee ballots in 2006 after Todd led by just one vote at the close of the polls. In 2010, Oglesby returned the favor, ousting Todd after leading by just 145 votes at the close of the polls and unseating the incumbent by a narrow margin on absentee ballots.
However, no such drama unfolded on Tuesday as Oglesby cruised to a decisive win over Farlow. Continuing a trend of Republican dominance on the Lower Shore and across Maryland on Tuesday, Oglesby collected 11,589 total votes, or roughly 65 percent. Farlow finished with 6,222, or roughly 35 percent. Oglesby did not respond to requests for comment in the days following the election, but Farlow was candid in his response to the outcome. While he was soundly defeated, Farlow said the campaign brought attention to the State’s Attorney’s Office in Worcester.
“I was happy that we were able to open a discussion about the role that a State’s Attorney should have in the community and about the manner in which cases are prosecuted,” he said. “Mostly, though, I am proud that we were able to start a discourse about heroin in the community. I started talking about the harm that opiates cause in the very earliest days of the campaign and it’s very rewarding to see people in the community taking about it now as well. When I saw the article about heroin in last week’s Dispatch, it occurred to me just how much I had been able to bring the issue into the public. Even though the campaign is over, the discussion about these issues is going to continue.”
Farlow, a Democrat, dismissed any notion he might have been caught in the Republican landslide on Tuesday.
“I think that blaming the results on the Republican avalanche would be taking the easy way out,” he said. “The fact is some of my most loyal supporters and hardest working volunteers were Republicans. Even though it is a partisan election, the State’s Attorney’s Office should not be about partisan politics. I simply did not give the voters enough of an opportunity to get to know me and know my positions.”
With the election complete, Farlow has already immersed himself back into his private practice and barely took any time to digest the outcome on Wednesday.
“I intended to take off the day after the election, but I was back working before lunchtime,” he said. “Obviously, a lot of my time will be devoted to my practice, but the campaign really reminded me that I have an obligation to give back to the community. The election gave me the ability to talk about some of the issues in the county, but now that the election is over, I still have a forum in which I can talk about our problems and offer solutions. I have a few other projects that I’ve been mulling over.”
Farlow said he was uncertain about making another run for State’s Attorney in the future or for any other elected position.
“It’s too early to think about that,” he said. “The beauty of our democracy is that we always have the choice of whether to run or not. If someone isn’t doing the job that we expect them to do, then we have an obligation to at least try to make a change. But campaigning is a long, hard process, and I owe my wife quite a few quiet, peaceful evenings before considering another run for anything.”
The State’s Attorney’s Office race was a major focal point of the county judicial system in Worcester on Tuesday, but there were other key races decided. When longtime Clerk of Circuit Court Stephen Hales announced he would not seek re-election, several candidates lined up for the opportunity to replace him.
After the primary in June, long-time clerk’s office staffer Susan Braniecki emerged as the winner in a field of Republican challengers for the vacancy, while on the Democratic side, Valerie Gaskill outlasted challengers to gain the Democratic nomination. On Tuesday, it was Braniecki claiming the Clerk of Circuit Court seat, collecting 11,864 votes, or 67 percent. Gaskill finished with 5,683 votes, or roughly 32 percent.
Register of Wills Charlotte Cathell was unopposed and retained the seat she has held for decades. In addition, Sheriff Reggie Mason also ran unopposed and retained his seat. The Worcester County Judges of Orphan’s Court election provided some drama. With four candidates seeking three seats, just tenths of percentage points separated third from fourth place.
Worcester County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Dale Smack led the field, gaining 29 percent, while incumbent Linda Hess finished with 27 percent of the vote. Incumbent Bill Shockley earned 22.2-percent of the vote and narrowly edged challenger Franklin Knight, who finished with 21.9 percent, or just three-tenths of a percentage point behind Shockley.