Vanessa Atterbeary

Vanessa Elaine Atterbeary (born June 24, 1975) is an American attorney and politician from the Democratic Party who was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 13 from 2015 to 2026. She is the Democratic nominee for Howard County Executive in 2026.

Born and raised in Columbia, Maryland, she graduated from the College of William and Mary and the Villanova University School of Law. She began her career as a circuit court clerk before becoming an attorney for a local law firm. She was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 2014, where she served as the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee from 2021 until her resignation in December 2025.

Early life and career Atterbeary was born on June 24, 1975, in Columbia, Maryland. While in law school, she started working at a shelter and participated in a clinic to help women gain protective orders. She filed to run in the district on February 25, 2014, and ran on a "Team 13" slate with incumbent Delegates Guy Guzzone, Shane Pendergrass, and Turner. She won the Democratic primary with 27.3 percent of the vote. afterwards becoming the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee until December 2025. Atterbeary was also a member of the Rules and Executive Nominations Committee, the Women Legislators of Maryland, and the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland, and previously served as the chair of the Howard County Delegation from 2016 to 2017 and from 2019 to 2020.

2026 Howard County Executive campaign In September 2025, Atterbeary announced she would not run for reelection in 2026 and would instead run for Howard County executive. In December 2025, she announced that she would resign from the Maryland House of Delegates on January 14, 2026, to focus on her campaign for county executive. The Maryland Reporter and The Baltimore Sun have described Atterbeary as the frontrunner of the Democratic primary, during which she supported funding public schools and improving public safety by working closely with police, and received endorsements from U.S. senator Angela Alsobrooks, Governor Wes Moore, and outgoing county executive Calvin Ball III. She was also the only candidate in the race to choose not to use public financing through the Citizens' Election Fund, which prohibits candidates from accepting contributions from political action committees, businesses, or labor organizations. She argued using the Citizens' Election Fund would be "unfair" because she already had resources in an existing campaign account and using public financing would limit her relationship with labor groups.

Atterbeary won the Democratic primary election with 54.9% of the vote on June 23, 2026. She faces Green Party nominee Nater Kane in the general election. If elected, Atterbeary will be the first African-American woman to serve as Howard County executive.

Political positions

Education Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2016 legislative session that would put five of the seven members of the Howard County school board up for election. The bill was voted down, but was reintroduced in the 2019 legislative session where it passed unanimously.

Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2019 legislative session that would remove school resource officers from school buildings.

Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2019 legislative session that would allow the Howard County Council to raise fees against developers to cover the costs of school construction. Following amendments proposed by her colleagues, she voted against advancing the bill to the House floor. In 2020, she introduced a bill that would require the school board to submit a report addressing its deferred maintenance to the Howard County leaders in October. The bill failed to receive a vote.

In 2020, Atterbeary introduced legislation that would prevent the Howard County school board from enrolling students at schools with capacities greater than 115 percent.

Marijuana As chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, Atterbeary helped craft the state's recreational marijuana industry framework bill after voters approved Question 4 in 2022. In February 2023, she admitted that she had reservations on the legalization of recreational marijuana use, citing her tenure on the Judiciary Committee, but said she would focus on making sure the state's marijuana industry was "equitable".

Gun policy

Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2020 legislative session that would require background checks for private sales of long guns. The bill passed and became law through a gubernatorial veto override on February 10, 2021.

In June 2022, Atterbeary condemned the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, calling it "scary". In February 2023, she participated in a Moms Demand Action rally in front of the Maryland State House to support legislation regulating how firearms could be carried and stored.

Policing In May 2020, Atterbeary was appointed to chair the Work Group to Address Police Reform and Accountability in Maryland, where she helped craft the Maryland Police Accountability Act of 2021. She opposed a proposed provision that would give jurisdictions the ability to allow independent police oversight boards to make disciplinary decisions. The bill passed and became law through a gubernatorial veto override on April 10, 2021.

In December 2021, Atterbeary said that agencies that did not comply with Anton's Law by issuing high fees or denying access to police records could have funding withheld.

Social issues Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2018 legislative session that would allow judges to admit evidence of past acts in trials of defendants accused of sexual assault.

Atterbeary introduced legislation in the 2019 legislative session that would raise the minimum age for marriage from 15 to 18 years. The bill failed, but was reintroduced in 2021, this time lowering the minimum age to 17 years. The bill was reintroduced and finally became law on April 21, 2022.

During the 2023 legislative session, Atterbeary introduced a bill that would allow spouses to uncouple based on "irreconcilable differences".

Personal life Atterbeary is married and has three children.