Shane Robinson (politician)

Shane Robinson (born December 26, 1976) is an American politician and a former member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 39 in Montgomery County, Maryland.[1][2]

Shane Robinson
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates
from the 39th district
In office
January 12, 2011 – January 9, 2019
Preceded bySaqib Ali
Succeeded byGabriel Acevero
Personal details
Born (1976-12-26) December 26, 1976
Ahwaz, Iran
Political partyGreen (2018–present)
Other political
affiliations		Democratic (before 2018)
SpouseMary King Robinson
Children2
EducationUniversity of Nevada, Reno

Background

Early life

Robinson was born on December 26, 1976, to American parents living in Ahwaz, Iran. As a child Robinson lived in Bolivia, the nation of his mother's birth, as well as Brazil, Maryland, Nevada, and Poland. He later graduated from Reno High School.[1][3]

University

He attended the University of Nevada, Reno, earning dual degrees in Spanish and biology in 2000. While in college, Robinson worked as a wildland firefighter for the United States Forest Service and later joined the Peace Corps, serving in rural Zambia from 2002 to 2005.[1][3]

Return to United States

From 2005 to 2006 he worked as an English Instructor in South Korea. Following his return to the United States, he worked for a number of organizations, including the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont, the Iracambi Atlantic Rainforest Research and Conservation Center which is located in Minas Gerais, Brazil, and where Robinson resided for six months, and afterwards for the Coulter Companies (now known as MCI USA) for whom he helped manage non-profit clients and was the director of sustainability. During this period, Robinson also began work on a graduate degree in sustainable development, which he earned in 2011. Currently, Robinson is co-owner of Anthropocene Solutions, a sustainability, nonprofit management, and government affairs firm, and is co-executive director of The Ehlers-Danlos Society. He also works on the side as a National Ski Patrol alpine patroller. He is married with two children.[1][3]

House of Delegates

Robinson ran for one of three seats in District 39 in the Maryland House of Delegates in the fall of 2010. He came in third, behind incumbents Charles E. Barkley and Kirill Reznik.[4] He was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 12, 2011, and assigned to serve on the House Environmental Matters Committee and its Land Use and Ethics Subcommittee and Environment Subcommittee. In his first year in the legislature, he was also appointed to serve as a Trustee of the Chesapeake Bay Trust and as a member of the Task Force to Study the Establishment of a Statewide Spay/Neuter Fund.[1]

Robinson was reelected for a second term in the fall of 2014. He came in second, behind incumbent Charles E. Barkley and ahead of incumbent Kirill Reznik. During his second term he was elected Chair of the House of Delegates Delegation from Montgomery County.[5] Robinson and 29 other delegates tried to get the Housing Department Chief to resign in Aug 2015.[6]

On May 25, 2017, Robinson filed his candidacy for reelection as Delegate.[7] In June 2018, he lost the primary election by 154 votes.[8][9] Following the general election, Robinson switched his party affiliation to the Green Party.[10]

Political Positions

Robinson co-sponsored a bill to prohibit wage discrimination based on gender identity.[11][12] He also co-sponsored a bill to authorize same-sex marriage.[13] Robinson is an advocate for alternative energy[14][15] he is a strong supporter of the Off Fossil Fuels Act[16] which would require Maryland to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2035.[17] He sponsored a law to ban fracking, which passed in Maryland.[18] He was awarded Green Champion by the Maryland League of Conservation Voters for his work in promoting environmental causes in 2017.[19] He voted yes on a bill to reduce green house gas emissions.[20] Robinson is a vegan, and has said that animal rights are important to him.[21] He has advocated against the competitive hunting of Cownose Rays.[22] He also has sponsored a bill to end training on live animals at Johns Hopkins.[21] Furthermore, he advocates limiting the use of antibiotics in livestock.[23]

Robinson voted in favor of legislation which would require the fingerprinting of gun buyers, prevent purchasing of guns by the mentally ill, a ban on assault weapons, and banning magazines that hold over 10 bullets.[24] Robinson co-sponsored legislation to prohibit price hikes in generic drugs in Maryland, the legislation passed.[25][26] Robinson co-sponsored legislation to raise the minimum wage in Maryland.[27] He also supported a bill which would require public school teachers paying labour union fees.[28] He voted yes on a bill to require certain employers to provide paid sick leave.[29] Robinson voted yes on a bill to repeal the death penalty.[30]

Endorsements

In 2014, Robinson was endorsed by Equality Maryland, Maryland State and Washington, DC AFL-CIO, Maryland State Education Association - NEA, NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, National Organization for Women, Progressive Maryland, Sierra Club Maryland Chapter, and United Food & Commercial Workers.[31] Robinson endorsed Ben Shnider in the race for District 3 County Council.[32] He also condemned a petition to limit early endorsements.[2] Tim Willard, of the Montgomery County Green Party, and Meg Robbins, of Food & Water Watch encouraged state legislators to support Shane Robinson for his work on supporting the Off Fossil Fuels Act.[33]

Electoral history
  • 2010 Race for Maryland House of Delegates–39th District[4]

Voters to choose three:

Name Votes Percent Outcome
Charles E. Barkley, Democratic 18,060   23.54%    Won
Kirill Reznik, Democratic 16,199   21.12%    Won
Shane Robinson, Democratic 15,961   20.81%    Won
Jim Pettit, Republican   9,695   12.64%    Lost
Bill Witham, Republican   8,482   11.06%    Lost
Al Phillips, Republican   8,482   11.06%    Lost
  • 2014 Race for Maryland House of Delegates–39th District[34][5]

Voters to choose three:

Name Votes Percent Outcome
Charles E. Barkley, Democratic 15,247     23%    Won
Shane Robinson, Democratic 14,179   21.4%    Won
Kirill Reznik, Democratic 13,788   20.8%    Won
Gloria Chang, Republican 8,117   12.3%    Lost
Al Phillips, Republican 7,565   11.4%    Lost
Xiangfei Chang, Republican 7,340   11.1%    Lost

References
  1. "House of Delegates". Maryland Manual. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  2. Hicks, Josh (2017-05-17). "Md. petition would limit early endorsements in Democratic gubernatorial primary". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  3. "Shane Robinson | The Ehlers Danlos Society". The Ehlers Danlos Society. Retrieved 2017-11-10.
  4. Elections, Maryland State Board of. "2010 General Election Official Results". www.elections.state.md.us. Retrieved 2017-11-10.
  5. Elections, Maryland State Board of. "2014 Election Results". elections.state.md.us. Retrieved 2017-11-10.
  6. "Housing department chief under fire for remarks". WBAL. 2015-08-17. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  7. Elections, Maryland State Board of. "2018 Candidate Listing". elections.state.md.us. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  8. "2018 Primary Election Results". Retrieved 2018-07-28.
  9. Elections, Maryland State Board of. "2018 Election Results". elections.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2018-07-28.
  10. Sukharev, Nickolai (November 21, 2018). "Outgoing delegate switches to Green Party". Montgomery County Sentinel. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020.
  11. "HB 1003 - Prohibits Wage Discrimination on Basis of Gender Identity - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  12. "GAM-HB1003 Summary 2016 Regular Session". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  13. "HB 438 - Authorizes Same-Sex Marriage - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  14. "Del. Shane Robinson: 'We need to move toward 100 % clean energy immediately". Baltimore Post Examiner. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  15. Sun, Baltimore. "Maryland must lead on renewable energy". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  16. "Montgomery County Leaders, Advocacy Groups Lay Out Priorities for 2018 General Assembly Session". Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  17. "Opinion | Md. should move to 100 percent renewable energy as soon as possible". Washington Post. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  18. "HB 1325 - Prohibits Fracking - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  19. "2017 Environmental Leadership Awards Dinner- SOLD OUT". Maryland League of Conservation Voters. 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  20. "SB 323 - Reduces Greenhouse Gas Emissions - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  21. Cohn, Meredith. "Johns Hopkins medical students will no longer train on live animals". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  22. Yeager, Amanda. "Legislation proposes banning cownose ray hunting tournaments". capitalgazette.com. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  23. Public Interest Podcast (2017-04-09), Ep 24 Shane Robinson Interconnected Ecosystem 2, retrieved 2017-11-15
  24. Wagner, John (2013-04-03). "How the Maryland House of Delegates voted on gun-control legislation". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  25. "HB 631 - Prohibits Unwarranted Price Hikes on Generic Drugs - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  26. "GAM-HB0631 Summary 2017 Regular Session". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  27. "HB 295 - Increases the Minimum Wage - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  28. "SB 422 - Requires Public School Teachers to Pay Labor Union Fees - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  29. "HB 1 - Requires Certain Employers to Provide Paid Sick Leave - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  30. "SB 276 - Repeals the Death Penalty - Key Vote". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  31. "Shane Robinson's Ratings and Endorsements". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  32. "Political Roundup: Delegate Endorses Katz's Challenger in County Council Race". Retrieved 2017-11-09.
  33. "Montgomery County Leaders, Advocacy Groups Lay Out Priorities for 2018 General Assembly Session". Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  34. "Shane Robinson (Maryland) - Ballotpedia". Retrieved 2017-11-10.
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