ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — Ahead of the 2026 general election in November, Patch has invited candidates running to represent Montgomery County to complete a questionnaire touching on a variety of key issues.
Candidate responses will be published verbatim in the run-up to Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Related:
Questionnaire responses for Cory Malinowski, who is running to represent the 2nd District, can be found below:
Name: Cory Malinowski
Age: 36
Hometown: Raised in Glendale, AZ; Severn, MD, resident for 10 years.
Political Affiliation: Republican
Do you have any previous political experience? If so, please explain how it will influence your time in office if elected. How do you differ from other candidates running against you?
I have not previously held public office. I filed as an unaffiliated petition candidate for this seat in 2018 but did not qualify for the ballot. In law school, my peers elected me to serve on the Student Bar Association. My broader public service includes Navy service, volunteer EMT work, and pro bono legal assistance.
I bring a combination of legal training, national security analysis, and experience running small businesses. Those experiences inform my approach: listen carefully, examine the evidence, understand the consequences, and explain my decisions. I want residents to know where I stand and why, and to have a councilmember who follows up when they bring forward a problem.
How would your work experience benefit the goals/objectives you've outlined in your campaign and/or the office you're seeking?
My work requires me to understand complex systems, identify where something has gone wrong, and develop practical solutions. As an attorney, I analyze legal language and help people navigate systems that can be confusing and intimidating. My national security work requires careful evaluation of evidence. As a small-business owner, I understand budgets, administrative burdens, and the cost of delays.
Those skills translate directly to reviewing legislation, questioning spending proposals, overseeing infrastructure planning, and helping constituents get answers from county government.
What do you believe is the single-most important issue facing voters in the district you're looking to represent? How do you intend to address those issues?
Affordability is the single most important issue facing District 2. Residents are paying more for housing, utilities, property taxes, and everyday necessities, but their paychecks aren't keeping up.
County government has several tools to address that. I would hold the line on property tax rates, pursue targeted relief for residents squeezed by rising assessments, and scrutinize county fees. I would prioritize spending on essential services (public safety, road maintenance, and classroom support) and review administrative costs and lower-priority expenditures before asking residents to pay more.
Housing supply is also part of the solution. Clearer zoning, predictable permitting, and more housing choices can help reduce costs. But additional development must come with adequate sewer capacity, roads, schools, and public services. Growth that overwhelms those systems creates costs of its own.
I would also pursue state authorization to explore community choice energy aggregation for Anne Arundel County, with any proposal evaluated for demonstrated savings and consumer protections.
My approach is to address affordability from as many directions as possible: make it easier to provide housing responsibly, and exercise discipline over the taxes, fees, and spending decisions county government controls.
What is your opinion of the work being done by the current officeholder, and how will you improve on it?
My main concern with the current councilmember's record is, ironically, affordability. The administration promotes its affordability programs, but residents need results they can see in their household budgets.
My concern with mandated moderately priced dwelling units is that providing discounted units can shift costs onto the remaining buyers and renters. We need to examine the effect on housing affordability across the market. Meanwhile, the county has increased residents' tax burden, including setting property taxes above the voter-approved cap through the education exception.
Schools and public safety should receive priority when we allocate existing revenue. Their importance should not make tax increases the automatic answer.
I would scrutinize expenditures, prioritize essential services, review county fees, and pursue property-tax relief. I would also support more housing choices and efficient permitting where infrastructure can accommodate growth. Affordability requires discipline over both development and the costs county government imposes.
How do you believe Anne Arundel County should address data centers? What type of legislation — moratorium or temporary pause — should be put in place? Explain.
The moratorium passed the council in early October. This is good, it allows the next Council to decide how to proceed after more dedicated work and research.
Residents should not be expected to absorb costs attributable to a data-center project. I would seek public disclosure of projected electricity and water demand, required infrastructure upgrades, and how those costs would be paid. I would advocate before the Public Service Commission and work with our state delegation for protections against shifting those costs onto residential customers.
What steps would you take to offset data center impacts to residents' standard of living, such as rising energy prices?
County government does not set electricity rates, and I cannot promise that a councilmember can offset increases caused by state policy or regional electricity markets. I would work with our state delegation to push for reliable, affordable generation. I oppose retiring dependable generating capacity before replacement resources and necessary grid infrastructure are operational.
For data centers, I would advocate before state and federal regulators for project-related electricity costs to be borne by the customers creating them. I would also pursue state authorization to explore community choice energy aggregation, with any proposal evaluated for demonstrated savings and consumer protections.
How would you distinguish between a good vs. bad data center?
A good data-center proposal demonstrates adequate infrastructure capacity, manageable electricity and water demand, effective noise controls, environmental protection, and a meaningful local economic benefit. Its commitments are measurable and enforceable, and residents can understand the impacts before approval.
A bad proposal leaves those questions unanswered, relies on promises that cannot be enforced, or transfers its costs and burdens to surrounding neighborhoods. I would judge the actual project, its location, and its operating requirements, not simply the label "data center." Data centers themselves are not some moral evil, but there are always tradeoffs we must address so we don't have to suffer with a new type of neighbor taking advantage of our beautiful county.
Gov. Wes Moore signed bills banning agreements between local police and federal immigration officials in February.
What is your opinion of the legislation? What steps would you take to support or readjust that initiative?
Maryland can determine whether state and local officers participate in federal civil immigration enforcement. Ending that participation does not end federal immigration enforcement.
I am skeptical of treating the withdrawal of local cooperation as proof that the practical outcome will improve. We should examine what changes for public safety, accountability, county costs, and the people affected.
I would work with our state delegation to review those consequences and consider changes where lawful cooperation could improve safety and accountability. Any cooperation must respect constitutional rights and due process. The standard should be whether the policy produces better outcomes.
What is your stance on the establishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers in the county and/or your district? What actionable plans would you undertake to address illegal immigration?
County government does not have a general veto over lawful federal operations. I would evaluate any proposed detention facility based on its ownership, legal authority, community impacts, and the county's actual powers.
Legitimate concerns include infrastructure demands, public services, detention conditions, and fiscal impacts. Federal ownership can also affect the local tax base because the federal government does not pay taxes.
Withdrawing county detention facilities creates a tradeoff: detention will continue elsewhere, with fewer opportunities for local oversight of county staff and facilities or locally enforceable conditions on them. Moving people out of county facilities does not, by itself, establish that their conditions will improve or that the federal government will change its behavior. It only ensures that we no longer have a say in how those facilities operate.
I would seek early consultation, public disclosure of community impacts, and coordination with our congressional delegation on oversight and appropriate reimbursement for county services. Locally, I would prioritize public safety, constitutional policing, and effective services for residents.
Education: What is the biggest issue facing Anne Arundel County Public Schools? How would you address it?
The biggest issue is ensuring that every classroom has the staffing, support, and conditions necessary for students to learn. Competitive compensation matters, but so do manageable class sizes, orderly classrooms, adequate facilities, and administrators who support educators.
Through the county budget, I would prioritize classroom staffing, teacher retention, and school maintenance, while asking for transparent spending and measurable results. I would also work with our state delegation to address state funding obligations. Families and educators deserve confidence that education dollars are reaching the places where they make the greatest difference.
A student brings a gun/weapon to campus without setting off any red flags.
What security measures would you advocate for to prevent such an incident? Do you believe schools need stricter security measures? Metal detectors? Explain.
Students should absolutely feel safe at school. A firearm reaching an elementary classroom is a serious failure that requires investigation and action. But turning an elementary school into a prison is not the solution.
I strongly oppose metal detectors for elementary-school children. We should not teach young children that they are safe only when surrounded by armed guards and security checkpoints. Measures should be appropriate to their age and grounded in the risks they address.
We cannot promise that every dangerous item will be intercepted before entering a school. I would seek a review of this incident to identify whether there was a reasonable opportunity to prevent it and whether the school's response procedures were adequate. Any proposed changes should address a demonstrated gap and be evaluated for their effectiveness and their effects on children. A frightening incident does not automatically justify permanent security checkpoints for every elementary-school student.
Anne Arundel County is experiencing a housing shortage. What steps would you take to address the crisis? What will you do to encourage affordable/public housing?
We need more housing choices where infrastructure can support them, and an approval process that is clear, predictable, and efficient. I would support zoning modernization, appropriate accessory dwelling units and smaller housing options, and shorter permitting timelines. Delays add costs that ultimately reach buyers and renters.
Housing growth also needs adequate roads, sewer capacity, and school facilities. Affordability policy should be measured by the homes it makes available and the costs residents actually face. Public or nonprofit housing proposals should be evaluated for lasting affordability, households served, infrastructure needs, and sustainable funding.
How will you address crime in the county/your district?
Public safety is a core responsibility of county government. I would prioritize police recruitment and retention, appropriate training and equipment, and dependable funding for frontline services. Residents should receive responsive, professional policing, with clear accountability for results.
Prevention is just as important. I would support effective behavioral-health and substance-use services and coordination among the agencies addressing recurring public-safety problems. As a councilmember, my responsibility would be to fund essential capacity, examine whether programs are working, and ensure public-safety resources keep pace with growth.
Sign up for free local newsletters and alerts for the
Glen Burnie Patch
Patch.com is the nationwide leader in hyperlocal news.
Visit Patch.com to find your town today.