Christian_Miele

Christian Miele

Christian Miele

American lawyer and politician

Christian J. Miele born February 28, 1981) is an American politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Maryland Senate from the 34th district from January 5 to January 11, 2023, and a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from the 8th district from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Miele served as the deputy secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities in the administration of Governor Larry Hogan from 2019 to 2023.

Quick Facts Member of the Maryland Senate from the 34th district, Appointed by ...

Early life and education

Miele was born in Red Bank, New Jersey on February 28, 1981[1] to an Italian American father.[2] Miele was raised in New Jersey and graduated from St. John Vianney High School, afterwards moving to Maryland to attend Towson University,[3] where he was a member of the Sigma Pi fraternity and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science in 2004 and a Master of Arts degree in professional studies in 2008; and Emory University, where he was a member of the Phi Alpha Delta fraternity, served as the president of the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, and earned a Juris Doctor degree in 2014.[1][4]

Career

After graduating from Towson, Miele worked as the university's coordinator for fraternity and sorority life from 2006 to 2010.[5][6] While attending Emory, he co-founded and worked as the editor-in-chief for the Emory Corporate Governance and Accountability Review law journal,[1] interned for the U.S. Department of Justice's criminal division, and clerked for Maryland Court of Appeals justice Glenn T. Harrell Jr.[5] Miele was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 2017, after which he worked for injury law firm Pinder Plotkin LLC, first as an associate from 2017 to 2023 and then as a partner since 2023.[1] Miele has also worked as a public information officer for the Cecil County government since 2023.[4]

Maryland House of Delegates

House Speaker Michael E. Busch (left) swears Miele (right) into the Maryland House of Delegates, 2015

In August 2013, Miele announced that he would run for the Maryland House of Delegates in District 8.[7] He won election to the seat in the 2014 general election,[8] and was sworn in on January 14, 2015. Miele served on the Health and Government Operations Committee during his entire tenure.[1] Following his election, Miele was considered a rising star within the Maryland Republican Party.[3]

The Baltimore Sun described Miele as a political moderate. During his 2014 House of Delegates campaign, he expressed support for legislation to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland, decriminalize marijuana possession, and repeal the death penalty.[8] In the legislature, he successfully introduced the Hire Our Veterans Act, which incentivized businesses to hire military veterans; Janet's Law, which requires physicians practicing without insurance to disclose their lack of coverage to patients; and legislation to discourage bullying in public schools.[9] Miele also introduced bills to strip lawmakers convicted of felonies of their pension benefits,[10] and supported bills to decriminalize marijuana paraphernalia[11] and to establish an independent redistricting commission to draw Maryland's political maps.[12]

In November 2015, Miele was named as a co-chair for Marco Rubio's 2016 presidential campaign in Maryland.[13]

Maryland Senate campaigns

2018 8th district election

Main article: 2018 Maryland Senate election § District 8

On June 8, 2017, Miele announced that he would run for the Maryland Senate in District 8 in 2018, challenging incumbent Democratic state senator Katherine A. Klausmeier. His candidacy was endorsed by Governor Larry Hogan and the Maryland Republican Party in their "Drive for Five" campaign.[3] The election was seen as one of the most competitive in the Maryland Senate, as Miele was expected to benefit from having Hogan's endorsement, who won the district by 37 points in 2014,[14][15] but Klausmeier was seen as being the slight favorite due to her high name recognition and strong community roots.[16][17][18] Both candidates ran campaigns focused on local issues, including school overcrowding and the opioid epidemic.[19]

Klausmeier defeated Miele in the general election on November 6, 2018, edging out Miele by a margin of 1,061 votes, or 2.3 percent.[20] Following his defeat, in January 2019, Governor Larry Hogan appointed Miele to serve as the deputy secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities, replacing William J. Frank, who moved to a position within the Maryland Department of Budget and Management.[21] In this capacity, Miele oversaw the department's legislative portfolio and managed its policy team.[22]

2022 34th district election

Main article: 2022 Maryland Senate election § District 34

On July 2, 2021, Miele announced that he would run for the Maryland Senate in District 34, seeking to succeed Robert Cassilly, who retired to run for Harford County executive.[23] He won the Republican primary election with 73.7 percent of the vote, defeating businessman Walter Tilley, and faced Democratic nominee and former state delegate Mary-Dulany James,[24] who defeated Miele in the general election with 50.55 percent of the vote, or by a margin of 591 votes, on November 8, 2022.[25]

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Following his defeat, in December 2022, Governor Larry Hogan appointed Miele to the Maryland Senate to replace Cassilly, who vacated the seat after winning the Harford County executive election. He was sworn in on January 5, 2023. Miele served in this position for one week until the start of the Maryland General Assembly's 445th legislative session on January 11, 2023.[27]

Personal life

Miele is married to his wife, Jessica (née Minacapelli).[5] Together, they have two children.[1] Following his defeat in the 2018 Maryland Senate election, Miele and his family moved from Nottingham to Harford County.[23][28]

Electoral history

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References

  1. [1]
    "Christian J. Miele, Maryland State Senator". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  2. [2]
    Hicks, Josh (June 9, 2017). "Hogan makes first 2018 endorsement at rally for state Senate candidate". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  3. [3]
    Kurtz, Josh (June 8, 2017). "Republicans Get Their Miele Ticket". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  4. [4]
    "Christian J. Miele, Esq". Pinder Plotkin LLC. 13 December 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  5. [5]
    "Christian Miele's biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  6. [6]
    Johnson, Jenna (January 13, 2015). "Meet the 2015 Maryland General Assembly's sizable freshman class". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  7. [7]
    "Miele Kicks off Campaign in White Marsh". Patch. Parkville, Maryland. August 2, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  8. [8]
    "Miele 14L elected to Maryland House of Delegates". Emory University School of Law. November 21, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  9. [9]
    Kurtz, Josh (January 4, 2019). "Miele, Schuh Vets Find Refuge in Hogan Administration". Maryland Matters. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  10. [10]
    DePuyt, Bruce (April 4, 2018). "Chances Dim for Bill to Strip Corrupt Lawmakers' Pensions". Maryland Matters. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  11. [11]
    Smith, Van (April 20, 2015). "The Maryland GOP on Pot: Free State Republicans have been warming to marijuana reform, but support for legalization so far remains a pipe dream". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  12. [12]
    Dresser, Michael (February 15, 2015). "Redistricting reform is in spotlight – and in bills". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  13. [13]
    Fritze, John (November 30, 2015). "Miele, Neuman will head Marco Rubio's campaign in Md". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  14. [14]
    DePuyt, Bruce (April 7, 2018). "Hogan School Construction Bill Veto Sets Up Late-Session Override Drama". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  15. [15]
    Hicks, Josh (May 7, 2017). "How Md. Republicans plan to break the state Senate's supermajority in 2018". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  16. [16]
    Kurtz, Josh (February 16, 2018). "Political Notebook: Klausmeier Leads Miele in State Senate Poll – And More!". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  17. [17]
    Kurtz, Josh (February 19, 2018). "Republican Polling Memo Sees Klausmeier as Highly Vulnerable". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  18. [18]
    Kurtz, Josh (September 30, 2018). "Races for Maryland Senate, House of Delegates". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  19. [19]
    Chason, Rachel (October 20, 2018). "Can Md. Republicans ride Gov. Larry Hogan's coattails to key gains in the Senate?". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  20. [20]
    Kurtz, Josh (November 7, 2018). "GOP's 'Drive for Five' Stalls". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  21. [21]
    Wood, Pamela (January 3, 2019). "Miele, after losing state Senate contest, lands job at Department of Disabilities". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  22. [22]
    Fontelieu, Jason (January 28, 2022). "Former Baltimore County state delegate is running for state Senate in Harford County". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  23. [23]
    Gaines, Danielle E. (July 2, 2021). "Former Delegate Running for Harford County Senate Seat". Maryland Matters. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  24. [24]
    Kurtz, Josh (July 22, 2022). "Speaker's preferred candidate leading in open-seat Senate race — plus, other Senate results". Maryland Matters. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  25. [25]
    Kurtz, Josh (November 18, 2022). "Dems take two more Senate seats, win Frederick County exec race". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  26. [26]
    "Swearing-In Ceremony of Christian Miele". Maryland Senate. Retrieved February 14, 2024 – via www.youtube.com.
  27. [27]
    Kurtz, Josh (January 6, 2023). "Political notes: Maryland's newest senator, plus an environmental confab on the Eastern Shore". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
  28. [28]
    "Christian J. Miele, Esq". Maryland Daily Record. September 19, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  29. [29]
    "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates". Maryland State Board of Elections.
  30. [30]
    "Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates". Maryland State Board of Elections.
  31. [31]
    "Official 2018 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for State Senator". Maryland State Board of Elections.
  32. [32]
    "Official 2018 Gubernatorial General Election results for State Senator". elections.maryland.gov. December 11, 2018. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  33. [33]
    "Official 2022 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for State Senator". Maryland State Board of Elections. August 24, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  34. [34]
    "Official 2022 Gubernatorial General Election results for State Senator". Maryland State Board of Elections. December 7, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
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