BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — Ahead of the 2026 general election in November, Patch has invited candidates running to represent Baltimore 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 Ruben Amaya, who is running to represent the 2nd District, can be found below:
Name: Ruben Amaya
Age: Not provided.
Hometown: Not provided.
Political Affiliation: Democrat
Do you have any previous political experience? If so, please state and explain how that experience will influence your time in office.
I serve as the 3rd Vice Chair of the Maryland Democratic Party. In this role I've worked to diversify our membership and ensure we fight for working people in the state.
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?
The biggest issue facing our communities is affordability. Residents living on the west side of the county shouldn't have to drive to Carroll or Howard counties to access quality grocery stores, pharmacies, or shops.
We can and must reimagine what living in Reisterstown, Randallstown, Academy Heights, and Woodlawn looks like by investing in mixed-use development that meets the needs and wants of our neighbors.
Whether it's access to necessities like food and medicine or things to do on the weekend, such as sit-down restaurants and going to the movies, our residents deserve better.
How do you differ from other candidates running against you?
From families struggling with rising costs and housing affordability to seniors seeking reliable access to services, residents deserve leaders who will listen, act, and deliver meaningful results.
This campaign is built around the priorities that matter most to our communities: protecting quality of life, investing in neighborhoods, supporting working families, and ensuring that every decision made in government puts residents first.
How would your work experience benefit the goals/objectives you've outlined in your campaign and/or the office you're seeking?
I have experience in many different aspects of leadership. Some of those skills are directly related to campaign priorities such as creating more affordable housing, and increasing investment in neighborhoods. Others deal with improving constituent services, and revitalizing our business corridors.
I'm not just running to acquire a title. I'm running to improve our local government and make it work better for the residents of our community. I want to listen to residents. I want to hold the government accountable. Ultimately, I want to make sure the tax dollars residents pay are spent on worthwhile programs that work for people.
What is your opinion of the work being done by the current office holder, and how will you improve on it? If you're running for reelection, please explain the lessons of your previous term and how they would impact your next term.
No answer provided.
How do you believe Baltimore County should address data centers? What type of legislation — moratorium or temporary pause — should be put in place? Explain.
I support a pause on data center development. Specifically, I am against data center development in District 2.
What steps would you take to offset data center impacts to residents' standard of living, such as rising energy prices?
No answer provided.
How would you distinguish between a good vs. bad data center?
No answer provided.
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?
I agree with this agreement. ICE should be out of our communities.
What is your stance on the establishment of ICE centers in the county and/or your district? What actionable plans would you undertake to address illegal immigration in the county?
Baltimore County must act to ensure that any spaces in our county are not allowed to be used to promote the activities conducted by this federal administration.
ICE cannot be trusted to uphold any norm of the rule of law. As a county, we have the responsibility to prevent such abuses of power from running rampant
in our neighborhoods.
Education: What is the biggest issue facing Baltimore County Public Schools? How would you address it?
Unfortunately, our educators and support staff are overworked and undervalued. Being a teacher today requires taking on more responsibilities than what it used to be.
The workload is crushing and the profession has become very demanding. This is why I support a $70,000 starting salary for teachers that is indexed to inflation to keep up with the cost of living, as well as raising salaries across the board for current teachers and support personnel.
This will give our teachers a greater incentive to begin and maintain a career in our county. The county should also help to provide more funding so that teachers can have more planning time. Hiring support personnel can help ease this burden as well, rather than eliminating them.
The County Council must listen to teachers and support staff on a daily basis to get a sense of what is happening on the ground in order to actively work to meet the needs of our school system.
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.
No answer provided.
What will you do to encourage affordable/public housing in the county?
I believe everyone deserves a safe and affordable place to live, but families, seniors, and young people are being forced out of Baltimore County because of a lack of affordable housing. We must create ways to allow long time residents to afford to stay and help working families and the homeless.
As a Council member, I would work to expand affordable and public housing through participation from the state and federal governments as well as nonprofit housing providers. I would also support using different methods to revitalize vacant and underutilized properties as well as development that utilizes techniques for both infill and different forms of density to include different levels of affordability.
We must also protect the affordable housing we already have by holding landlords who do not take care of their property or ignore state and local building codes accountable and assure resident's right to a safe and quality place to live.
How will you address crime in the county/your district?
As a Council member, I would prioritize making sure our police department has the necessary staffing, resources, and training to effectively and appropriately respond to situations involving criminal activity. I also believe it is critical to build and restore the relationship between law enforcement and the community. Building and reestablishing relationships and trust between law enforcement and the community is pivotal to public safety.
There are also underlying social factors that lead to crime. It is imperative that we address these factors by creating viable opportunities for our young people, making after school programs more accessible, and creating employment opportunities for youth as well as redeveloping and renovating neighborhoods that have been neglected.
I would work to ensure that our residents felt assured that their concerns were being brought to the attention of the appropriate personnel as well as taking steps to make sure that their tax dollars were being used appropriately.
The county has seen a spike in incidents involving teen brawls. What steps would you take to curb incidents? What role does the county play in clamping down on the fights, or what's become known as "teen takeovers"?
No answer provided.
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