Education and government

After graduating from college, Dixon worked as an elementary school teacher and adult education instructor with the Head Start program.^[11] She then worked for 17 years as an international trade specialist with the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development.^[12]

In 1986, Dixon was elected to the Baltimore City Democratic State Central Committee representing the 40th Legislative District.^[13] In 1987, she won a seat on the Baltimore City Council representing the 4th Council District, where she served twelve years.^[13]

Shoe comment

In 1991, Dixon waved her shoe at white colleagues on the Baltimore City Council and yelled, "You've been running things for the last 20 years. Now the shoe is on the other foot."^[14] This incident led many people, including some of her supporters, to view her as a divisive person.^[15]

Dixon explained her earlier comment by stating that she had "matured" since making the shoe comment and that she now attempts "to communicate better with individuals."^[16]

City Council presidency

In 1999, Dixon was elected president of the Baltimore City Council, the first African-American woman elected to this position. In 2003, she won her re-election race for president of the Baltimore City Council, defeating her nearest competitor, Catherine Pugh, by 21,000 votes.^[17]

Mayor of Baltimore

As City Council President, Dixon was ex officio mayor pro tempore, and ascended as mayor when Martin O'Malley resigned after being elected governor of Maryland in November 2006.^[18]

During her tenure, Baltimore's homicide rate dropped for the first time in the 30 years.^[19] In 2007, Dixon introduced a crime plan that focused on more community policing and using police resources to target the most violent offenders. To combat crime, Dixon appointed Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III, who supported her neighborhood-crime strategy. In February 2008, the Baltimore City Police reported a sharp decline in homicides in Baltimore. According to police there were 14 murders in the city for the month of January, the lowest monthly total in 30 years.^[20] As of April 2008, there had been a 40% reduction in murders in the city after experiencing a record high in 2007 during Dixon's first year in office.^[21] By April 15, 2008, the number of murders in the city had grown to 54,^[22] the lowest total to this time of the year in recent memory, putting the city on pace for 189 murders in 2008. By the end of 2008, the murder count was 234—a 17% reduction over the previous year.^[23]

While her critics complained that crime had risen in Baltimore during her tenure and that she did not pay enough attention to the issue, her record shows that she had increased police patrols,^[24] cracked down on the possession of illegal guns,^[25] and actively secured federal and state funds for crime-fighting programs.^[24]

Several city developments were completed during Dixon's tenure such as Baltimore's Inner Harbor East community, the Legg Mason Tower, and the Baltimore Hilton Hotel.

As mayor, Dixon was a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition.^[26]

2007 mayoral election

Dixon ran for a full term as mayor in the 2007 election and won the Democratic Party primary in September.^[27] Dixon maintained a strong fundraising advantage throughout the campaign. Scores of public officials, unions and newspapers endorsed the mayor’s campaign. This includes The Baltimore Sun, The Baltimore Afro-American, the AFL-CIO, former Rep. Kweisi Mfume, Minority Contractors Association, SEIU, SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, Gov. O'Malley, Comptroller Peter Franchot, Unite Here, United Auto Workers, and others.

A major issue during the primary mayoral campaign was crime. By mid-2007, homicides in Baltimore were on pace to surpass 300 for the year, the most since the early years of the O'Malley administration. On June 19, Dixon presented her crime plan to 500 Baltimore police officers,^[28] but Dixon was attacked by Mitchell and Carter for not doing enough.^[29] Dixon's crime plan departed from that of previous Mayor Martin O'Malley in that it stressed community policing and focused on apprehending the most violent offenders as opposed to zero-tolerance approach. As of June 19, 2007, there were 146 homicides and 340 non-lethal shootings in the city.^[28]

By the end of July 2007, Dixon's campaign had been endorsed by the Baltimore Metropolitan Council of the Maryland AFL-CIO collectively as well as several individual union endorsements. Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot was the only statewide elected official to endorse Dixon until an August 13 rally in which Governor Martin O'Malley gave his endorsement. Former Congressman Kweisi Mfume also endorsed Dixon at the same event in front of Baltimore's City Hall.^[30] State Delegates Tom Hucker, Maggie McIntosh, Curt Anderson, Cheryl Glenn, Melvin L. Stukes, Talmadge Branch, Senators Nathaniel J. McFadden and Catherine Pugh and Baltimore City Council members Robert Curran, Bernard "Jack" Young, Ed Reisinger, Stephanie Rawlings Blake and Agnes Welch endorsed Dixon and were at the rally as well.

Prosecution

In 2008, investigators from the Office of the State Prosecutor executed a search warrant at Dixon's residence in southwest Baltimore. Around the same time, several subpoenas were issued to Dixon's aides. The investigation examined gifts, including several fur coats, as well as Dixon's spending habits. Two of Dixon's associates—campaign chair Dale Clark and Mildred Boyer, a businesswoman who had hired Dixon's sister—pleaded guilty in 2008 to tax charges and cooperated with prosecutors during their investigation into Dixon. The affidavit filed to support a search warrant on the company Doracon was published by The Baltimore Sun in June 2008; the affidavit stated that Dixon was being investigated for bribery.^[34][35]

On January 9, 2009, Dixon was indicted by a Baltimore grand jury on twelve counts: four counts of perjury, two counts of misconduct, three counts of theft, and three counts of fraudulent misappropriations.^[36]

2016 Mayoral election

In 2015, Dixon made a second attempt at becoming mayor of Baltimore. She was the front-runner in the Democratic primary until early 2016,^[40] when Congressman Elijah Cummings endorsed her leading opponent, Catherine Pugh in April 2016.^[41] Pugh won the Democratic primary with 37% of the vote, while Dixon received 35% of the vote.^[42]

2020 Mayoral election

On December 14, 2019, Dixon announced she was running for mayor of Baltimore in the 2020 election.^[44] After the first campaign finance reporting date in mid January of 2020, Dixon's campaign reported that it had raised roughly $100,000. Incumbent Mayor Jack Young, also running for mayor, had $960,000 cash on hand during the same reporting period.^[45] In the June 2, 2020 Democratic primary, she narrowly lost to Brandon Scott.^[8]

2024 Mayoral election

In September 2023, Dixon announced that she would again run for mayor of Baltimore, setting up a rematch of the 2020 Democratic primary contest between Dixon and the now-incumbent mayor Brandon Scott.^[46]