Edith J. Patterson

Edith Jerry Patterson (born November 18, 1945) is an American politician who has served as a Democratic member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing district 28 in Charles County, since 2015. She previously served as a county commissioner from 2002 to 2010 and a member of the Board of Education for Charles County from 1983 to 1995.

Early life and career Patterson was born in Doswell, Virginia, on November 18, 1945, where she attended John M. Gandy High School in neighboring Ashland. and attended Bowie State University, where she earned a M.Ed. in guidance and counseling, and George Washington University in 1991, where she earned a Ed.D. in higher education administration. After graduating, she worked as a consultant for various groups, including the Congressional Black Caucus, the United States Department of Education, United States Department of Health and Human Services, and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

In 1983, Patterson was elected to the Charles County Board of Education, becoming the first African American to serve on the board. In her final year on the board, she served as its chair. and became the first African American elected commissioner alongside commissioners' Vice President Reuben B. Collins II in 2006. In 2010, Patterson lost her re-election bid to Charles County commissioners' President Candice Quinn Kelly by a margin of 114 votes.

In April 2012, Governor Martin O'Malley appointed Patterson to the Maryland Higher Education Commission. In accepting her appointment, Patterson retired after 37 years from the College of Southern Maryland, where she worked as the longtime director of the college's Educational Talent Search program. She came third place in the Democratic primary with 20.8 percent of the vote, squeaking out a narrow victory of about 700 votes. She received 23.78 percent of the vote in the general election.

In 2004 and 2016, Patterson served as a delegate for the Democratic National Committee.

In the legislature Patterson was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 14, 2015. The bill passed the House of Delegates by a vote of 118–17, but was killed by the Senate subcommittee on Education, Health and Environmental Affairs.

In 2022, Patterson said that she opposed legislation introduced by state senator Arthur Ellis that would turn the Charles County campuses of the College of Southern Maryland into a standalone college.

Environment Patterson co-sponsored legislation introduced in the 2020 legislative session that bans the intentional release of balloons in Maryland.

Marijuana During her 2014 House of Delegates campaign, Patterson said that she supports the use of marijuana for medical or medicinal purposes under medical supervision and use through state licensed distribution centers, but did not support legalizing recreational marijuana, calling it a "gateway drug". She also said that she supports decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Taxes During her 2014 House of Delegates campaign, Patterson said that she supports reviewing regulatory and corporate tax structure and providing tax incentives to start up medium and small technology firms to increase Maryland business competitiveness. She also said that she would support establishing tax-free zones targeted around research and development academic institutions to lure high-technology and cybersecurity business. She supports the intent of Maryland's "rain tax" and "septic bill", but expressed the need to protect support those most affected by the septic bill, especially farmers, through funding at both the state and county level.