Nick Mosby accomplished something that was once considered politically impossible in Baltimore when he defeated an incumbent with the last name of Conaway. This City Paper article shows that since single member districts were established for the 2003 primary election that only one City Council incumbent has lost an election. That “incumbent” was Vernon Crider. Crider was never elected to his office, he was appointed by the city council to fill a vacancy when his predecessor left. Nick Mosby was just involved in the biggest City Council upset of the last thirty years! How did we get here?
In March of this year I wrote an article about a home Belinda Conaway and her husband own in Randallstown. This was the first time that this easy to find house was talked about in any publication. The house was listed under Conaway’s married last name (Washington), but Conaway had recently reported owning the house on ethics filings which can be viewed by anyone on the top floor of City Hall in the library. Anyone could have found out that Conaway owned a house in Randallstown. The crossing guard on my block would eventually tell me that she even knew about the house. The Washingtons were not trying to hide the fact they owned a house in Randallstown. A reporter should have researched this house a long time ago.
Since I was the first person to report the existence of this house, I was also the first person to report the existence of the homestead property tax credit that Belinda Conaway received for this house. The information was easy to find online. My original blog entry provided a PDF copy of a Belinda Conaway signed real estate document that showed she said the house was her principal residence. In order for a house to be your principal residence you have to live there. Belinda Conaway said and continues to say she lives at 3210 Liberty Heights in Baltimore. Something was clearly wrong here.
My story caused a little stir. A few other media outlets covered the story in March and early April. Despite the important tax/political/residency issues my story raised, it was soon forgotten. The Baltimore Sun did not bother to mention it in its print edition. For some reason (that only Belinda Conaway truly knows) Belinda Conaway decided to sue me for libel on May 10, 2011, almost two months after the story was first viewed on my little blog. She thought $21million was an appropriate amount of money to sue for. Belinda Conaway did not know it then, but she had just put the nail in her city council coffin.
A two term city council incumbent never faces a serious challenge because they have already become so ingrained into the public consciousness in the district that it is virtually impossible to defeat them. Belinda’s lawsuit against me quickly destroyed huge chunks of her unquestioned authority in he 7th District. She went from being viewed as a “nice lady” to being seen as a bully trying to hide something. Numerous media outlets covered the filing of the lawsuit (Belinda’s lawyer sent out a press release to announce the suit!). The coverage was unflattering to say the least. Few logical people could understand her reasoning. She was basically inviting a legitimate contender to run against her in September. Nick Mosby answered the challenge. He said the lawsuit played a large role in his decision to run.
On August 1, 2011 Belinda Conaway eventually had to drop her frivolous lawsuit against me. The humiliating end of the saga further hurt her image. At this point I was free to start writing about her again without the fear of her trying to bring up my blog posts in the now dropped case. I did not hold back. I am proud to say that I have been helping Nick Mosby’s campaign since August 1, 2011. It has been an awesome adventure. I am very proud of what this campaign stood for and what it brought about.
I have always written with what some would call a “bias”. I definitely give an opinion. If I think something is wrong and that it helps bring down Baltimore then I am going to say how wrong it is. If you do not like my writing style then read something else. Freedom of speech is a beautiful thing. I can say what I want, but you do not have to pay attention. Belinda Conaway paid attention and it cost her an election. The victory solidifies what Belinda Conaway already notified the Baltimore political world of: Adam Meister covers Baltimore politics like no other writer or publication in this city. Had Belinda Conaway simply ignored me, she would still be City Councilwoman and my blog would be as unknown as it originally was. Belinda Conaway has sent Nick Mosby and I on to bigger and better things. I once again would like to thank her for her lawsuit against me. I also want to remind her and her family that I will continue to write about them and cover their issues that other media sources refuse to cover for some reason. The Baltimore Brew sums things up nicely here:
“Seven lessons learned from yesterday’s primary
6. For an incumbent, getting booted out is tricky, but not impossible…
… incumbent Belinda K. Conaway, who lost her 7th District seat yesterday to Nick Mosby, and who apparently took one homestead tax credit too many. (Note to others on the council with similar skeletons in their closets: if blogger Adam Meister calls you on it, do not file a $21 million defamation suit against him that you’re going to have to drop.)”
Belinda Conaway has helped usher in a new era of local political coverage and influence. Larry Young has been defending Belinda recently. It was once believed that Young was a king maker of sorts. I am happy to say that the Mosby case shows the growing power of local Internet coverage and that “if blogger Adam Meister calls you on it, do not file a $21 million defamation suit against him that you’re going to have to drop”. The declining political influence of the Larry Youngs and Frank Conaways of the world is great for Baltimore!
Welcome to the new paradigm.
The above photo is of three guys who ran for city council in the 11th district in 2007. Nick Mosby, Adam Meister, and Bill Cole. It will be very interesting to see how two young council-members in neighboring districts work together on trans-district issues. I think we will see some of the positives that single member districts bring about. Madison Park North has met its match!
I’ll write more about all my observations from yesterday soon enough. I was at the Hampden polling place for over thirteen hours straight! Belinda Conaway had some interesting people handing out literature for her at the polls, or at least they were supposed to be handing out literature. I especially enjoyed the police officers sitting in a running police take-home yellow Ford Mustang for four hours while they were supposed to be supporting the Conaway campaign….
I like this photo also.
Adam is the most recognizable face of the recent resurgence in Reservoir Hill. He has appeared on many national and local radio shows, in several news publications, and at numerous events discussing his innovative urban redevelopment ideas and his unique lifestyle. Adam is a successful entrepreneur, community activist, and a local political guru who ran for city council in 2007. He is the founder and director of the TechBalt.com Buy a Block Project and BaltimoreHourly.com. His fearless local political commentary has rocked the local blog scene for most of this decade and he plans to take it to the next level in the next decade here on Charm City Current.
