The Sentinel Profiles Marc Korman

By Donna Broadway

​For state delegate-elect Marc Korman, his election to the state house of delegates is the result of years of hard work and the realization of a lifelong dream. Korman, a Montgomery County native, has been serving on government and civic boards and has held elected office since 2007.

Since his election to the state house of delegates, Korman said he has been speaking to former delegates and senators and is looking into hiring one legislative aide. Korman said the most pressing thing the General Assembly will deal with is the projected $600 million budget crisis. When he takes office in January he will be replacing Delegate Susan Lee, who was voted to the Senate to replace Brian Frosh, who was elected attorney general of the state.

“When I knocked on doors people wanted to talk about schools, jobs, transits, and environment. They didn’t ask about a budget but we have 90 days to deal with it,” Korman said.

Korman, who has served in the community as the chair of the Western Montgomery Citizens Advisory Board and an elected member of the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee, said the most pressing issue for Marylanders is the projected budget gap. The biggest problem facing Montgomery County, he said, is school construction and transportation. The delegate-elect said the budget gap is caused by a decrease in tax revenue due to sequestration and cutbacks from the federal government. According to statistics from the state of Maryland, more than 200,000 state residents employed by the government receive $70 billion in wages, retirement and disability payments, grants and contracts.

“Our residents are well-educated so they understand these issues were not created overnight and they will not be solved overnight,” Korman said.

Korman is a graduate of Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville and has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California, a master’s degree in government from Johns Hopkins University and a law degree from the University of Maryland. Korman said he became involved in politics at USC.

Korman said it was the fall of 2000 and George Bush was just declared the 43rd president by the Supreme Court and one student was not happy about it. Korman, an angry young student, walked into the offices of the USC Young Democrats Club demanding to know how its members let Bush win. A member looked at him and said “We didn’t allow anything to happen; you didn’t help at all.” That student would later become president of that club. Korman called it the “a-ha” moment that pushed him into politics.

Korman said he is not concerned about Republican Governor Larry Hogan and the majority Democratic General Assembly working together, although he is worried Republicans may try to unsuccessfully reverse several social policy changes in the state – including the death penalty repeal and the legalization of same sex marriage in the state.

“This is different from what we (Democrats) were expecting but I’m hoping there will be plenty of things for us to find common ground,” Korman said.

​Montgomery County does not have any Republicans elected to the Maryland General Assembly and there not any Republicans elected to the Montgomery County Council. The highest-ranking Republican elected to office in Montgomery County is Gaithersburg Councilman Henry Marraffa Jr.