Trent Kittleman

Trent M. Kittleman (née Mitchell; born May 7, 1945) is an American politician. She was a Republican member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 2015 to 2023.[1] She was the wife of State Senator Robert H. Kittleman until his death in 2004, and unsuccessfully ran alongside him for County Council in 1978.[2] She is the stepmother of Allan H. Kittleman, former state senator and Howard County executive.[2] She lost her 2022 re-election bid.[3]

Trent Kittleman
Kittleman in 2017
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates
from the 9A district
In office
January 14, 2015 – January 11, 2023
Serving with Warren E. Miller
Preceded byGail H. Bates
Succeeded byChao Wu
Personal details
Born (1945-05-07) May 7, 1945
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1986; died 2004)​
Children2 children; 6 grandchildren
RelativesAllan H. Kittleman (stepson)
ResidenceWest Friendship, Maryland
EducationCatonsville Senior High School, Catonsville, Maryland
Alma mater
ProfessionAttorney

Kittleman is the author of Why Must There Be Dragons? Empowering Women to Master Their Careers Without Changing Men.[4]

Early life and education

Kittleman was born on May 7, 1945, in Baltimore, Maryland. She graduated from Catonsville Senior High School in Catonsville, Maryland and attended the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, where she earned a B.A. degree in English in 1967. She also attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned a M.A. in English literature in 1970, the University of Maryland School of Law, where she earned a J.D. degree in 1991, and Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where she earned an executive leadership coaching certificate in 2010.[1]

Career

Attorney

After she was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1991 – and later being admitted to the District of Columbia Bar in 1993 – she began working as an attorney for Arent Fox until 1996. In 1992, she became a member of the University of Maryland School of Law Alumni Association and served as its president from 2002 until her departure in 2003. After working for Arent Fox, she worked as a senior counsel for Marriott International until 1999, when she became the vice president of legislative affairs for Marriott.[1] In 2001, she worked as a minority counsel for U.S. Senator Fred Thompson of Tennessee.[5] In 2007, Kittleman, Marie Royce, and Joan Athen formed a company called GenderStrategy.[4]

Author

In 2008, Kittleman's book, with contributing edits from Joan Athen and Marie Royce, Why Must There Be Dragons? Empowering Women to Master Their Careers Without Changing Men was published. The story takes place at Feline Foods and highlights a conflict between the dogs that run the company and the cats that work there, who are threatening a lawsuit for not getting promoted, a practice they call "discatination". Feline Foods CEO Bernie Rottweiler then hires Kathryn Woo, a training specialist, to identify the problem and fix it for the cats by working with Ryan "Wolfe" Wolfhound, the executive vice president of Special Projects and Bernie's right-hand man. The book is divided into three sections, each representing the early, middle, and peak years of one's career.[4]

Political career

Kittleman first got involved with politics by working as a coordinator for the Catonsville Republican Headquarters in 1968. In 1972, she became the co-chair of the Howard County Republican Election Headquarters, and in 1973 she became the president of the Howard County Republican Women's Club. She worked as a political columnist for Howard County Times from 1975 to 1976, after which she was elected to the Oakland Mills Village Board. In 1978, she unsuccessfully ran for the Howard County Council in 1978 alongside her husband, Robert Kittleman. From 1982 to 1986, she served as the chair of Robert Kittleman's and Robert Flanagan's election committees, and later co-chaired the Maryland Republican Party legislative candidate recruitment effort in 1988. In 1998, Kittleman worked on the gubernatorial campaign of Ellen Sauerbrey.[5]

In January 2003, Governor Bob Ehrlich appointed Kittleman to serve as Deputy Secretary for the Maryland Department of Transportation, where she worked until October 2004, after which she served as Executive Secretary of the Maryland Transportation Authority until her resignation on January 22, 2007.[1][6][7] During her service, the authority experienced a 450 percent increase in its capital program, including new lanes planned for Interstate 95, financing the Inter-county Connector in Montgomery County, and planning for toll-road bridge renovations.[8]

Following the death of her husband in September 2004, Kittleman declined to serve the rest of his term in the Maryland Senate, saying that she was not able to focus on politics.[9]

In October 2009, Kittleman said that she was "exploring" a run for Howard County Executive.[10] She announced her candidacy for executive in February 2010.[11] She ran unchallenged in the Republican primary,[12] but was defeated by Ken Ulman in general election with 37.1 percent of the vote.[13]

Since 2010, Kittleman has been a member of various women's groups, including the Business Women's Network, the American Association of University Women, and the League of Women Voters.[1]

In 2012, Kittleman filed to run for delegate for the Republican National Convention, representing Newt Gingrich. She received 6.2 percent of the vote in the primary election.[14]

In July 2013, Kittleman announced her candidacy for the Maryland House of Delegates in District 9A, the seat once held by her late husband for 19 years.[15] She won the Republican primary with 22.4 percent of the vote, coming in second place in a field of five candidates.[16][17] She defeated Democratic candidates Walter E. Carson and James Ward Marrow in the general election, receiving 37.5 percent of the vote.[18][19]

In the legislature

Kittleman was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 14, 2015.[1] In 2022, she was defeated in the general election by Democrats Natalie Ziegler and Chao Wu.[20]

Committee assignments
  • Deputy Minority Whip, 2022–2023
  • Member, Appropriations Committee, 2019–2023 (education & economic development subcommittee, 2019; oversight committee on pensions, 2019; transportation & the environment subcommittee, 2020–2023; oversight committee on personnel, 2020–2023)
  • Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee, 2021–2023
  • Member, Judiciary Committee, 2015–2018 (civil law & procedure subcommittee, 2015–2018)

Other memberships
  • Member, Maryland Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus, 2015–2023
  • Maryland Veterans Caucus, 2016–2023
  • Maryland Legislative Transit Caucus, 2019–2023
  • President, Women Legislators of Maryland, 2019–2020 (member, 2015–2023; treasurer, 2016–2017; 1st vice-president, 2017–2018; president-elect, 2018–2019)

Political positions

Crime

Kittleman introduced "Laura and Reid's Law" during the 2019 legislative session, which would allow prosecutors to seek convictions for the murders of the mother and fetus.[21] The bill was named for Laura Wallen, who was four months pregnant when she was killed by her boyfriend in September 2017.[22] The bill passed and became law on May 13, 2019.[23]

Education

In 2015, Kittleman co-sponsored legislation that would shift the burden of proof in due process hearings for children with disabilities to get IEPs from parents to school systems.[24][25][26]

Environment

In 2019, Kittleman voted against legislation that would allow the Howard County Council to set a fee for plastic bags.[27] The bill passed and became law,[28] and the Howard County Council voted 4-1 to implement the bag fee in December 2019.[29]

In December 2019, the Maryland Public Interest Research Group gave Kittleman a score of zero percent on its annual legislative scorecard.[30]

Guns

Since 2013, Kittleman has been a member of the National Rifle Association.[1]

In 2017, Kittleman co-sponsored legislation that would prevent a person from owning firearms if they received probation before judgment for a crime of violence or a crime that is domestically-related.[31] The bill passed and became law on May 27, 2017.[32] She also co-sponsored legislation that would allow select employees to carry firearms on school property to prevent the loss of life in a school shooting,[33][34] and another that would give property owners the right to use any amount of force to protect their residence from an intruder.[35]

National politics

Kittleman endorsed Donald Trump in the 2016 Republican Party presidential primaries, saying that he was "the one person who can put this country back on the right footing."[36]

Social issues

Kittleman supported legislation introduced in the 2019 legislative session that would allow doctors to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to terminally ill patients who want to end their lives. The bill passed the House of Delegates by a vote of 74-66.[37] The bill was re-introduced during the 2022 legislative session.[38]

Kittleman opposed legislation introduced in the 2022 legislative session that would allow hate crime victims to bring civil action against the person who committed the act, arguing that the bill would allow people to be sued "for thoughts".[39]

Taxes

Kittleman co-sponsored legislation introduced during the 2015 legislative session that would provide tax relief to seniors and individuals that are totally disabled.[40] The bill received an unfavorable report from the Ways and Means Committee.[41]

Awards
  • Maryland Woman of the Year, Women's Transportation Seminar, Inc., 2004[1]
  • Maryland's Top 100 Women, Daily Record, 2004[1]
  • Robert H. Kittleman Life Achievement Award, Howard County Republican Central Committee, 2010[1]

Electoral history
Howard County Executive Republican Primary Election, 2010[17]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Trent Kittleman 12,301 100.0%
Howard County Executive General Election, 2010[19]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Ken Ulman 66,121 62.8%
Republican Trent Kittleman 39,066 37.1%
N/A Other Write-Ins 98 0.1%
Alternate Delegates to the Republican National Convention, District 7, 2012[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Ann Miller (Romney) 9,387 17.9%
Republican Dave Myers (Romney) 9,038 17.2%
Republican Loretta H. Shields (Romney) 8,709 16.6%
Republican Gloria B. Murphy (Santorum) 4,357 8.3%
Republican Bryant J. Parker (Santorum) 4,159 7.9%
Republican Frank C. Mirabile (Gingrich) 3,465 6.6%
Republican Trent Kittleman (Gingrich) 3,250 6.2%
Republican M. Justin Kinsey (Paul) 2,521 4.8%
Republican Adrian Citroni (Paul) 2,427 4.6%
Republican Chick Chickanis (Gingrich) 2,310 4.4%
Republican Larry Manross, III (Paul) 2,259 4.3%
Republican Kendall Taylor Murphy (Perry) 546 1.0%
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A Republican Primary Election, 2014[12]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Warren E. Miller 3,354 29.2%
Republican Trent Kittleman 24,371 22.4%
Republican Frank Mirabile 2,509 21.8%
Republican Kyle Lorton 1,620 14.1%
Republican Christopher Eric Bouchat 1,426 12.4%
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A General Election, 2014[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Trent Kittleman 24,371 37.5%
Republican Warren E. Miller 21,553 33.1%
Democratic Walter E. Carson 10,144 15.6%
Democratic James Ward Morrow 8,906 13.7%
N/A Other Write-Ins 99 0.2%
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A Republican Primary Election, 2018[42]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Trent Kittleman 5,222 51.7%
Republican Warren E. Miller 4,873 48.3%
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A General Election, 2018[43]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Trent Kittleman 24,531 30.6%
Republican Warren E. Miller 19,563 24.4%
Democratic Natalie Ziegler 18,891 23.6%
Democratic Steven M. Bolen 17,019 21.3%
N/A Other Write-Ins 56 0.1%
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A General Election, 2022[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Trent Kittleman 17,373 26.26%
Republican Jianning Jenny Zeng 13,609 20.57%
Democratic Chao Wu 17,486 26.43%
Democratic Natalie Ziegler 17,656 26.68%
N/A Other Write-Ins 44 0.07%

References
  1. "Trent M. Kittleman, Maryland State Delegate". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. January 11, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  2. Lazarick, Len (December 2, 2018). "Weepy celebration marks halt to Kittleman political career and nadir of Howard County's GOP". MarylandReporter.com. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  3. "Official 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. December 7, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  4. Kawata, Lisa (April 4, 2012). "GenderStrategy: Career advancement shouldn't be a catfight". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  5. "Trent Kittleman, Republican". Carroll County Times. August 7, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  6. "Governor Ehrlich Announces Trent M. Kittleman to Lead Maryland Transportation Authority". Office of the Governor of Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. (Press release). Maryland State Archives. October 28, 2004. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  7. Dresser, Michael (January 27, 2007). "Transit authority chief quits". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  8. Carson, Larry (December 31, 2006). "Howard's Republicans in Annapolis moving on". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  9. Carson, Larry (September 16, 2004). "GOP begins talk of Kittleman's successor". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  10. Lazarick, Len (October 26, 2009). "Ehrlich appointees consider getting back in the game". MarylandReporter.com. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  11. Carson, Larry (February 2, 2010). "T. Kittleman plans to run for Howard Co. executive". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  12. "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. July 16, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  13. "Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. December 2, 2014. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  14. "2012 Presidential Primary Election Results". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  15. Yeager, Amanda (July 11, 2013). "Trent Kittleman enters race for District 9A". Howard County Times. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  16. Yeager, Amanda (June 25, 2014). "New faces eager to join Howard State House delegation as results come in". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  17. "Official 2010 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Howard County". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  18. Kelvey, Jon (November 4, 2014). "Red letter night: Ready, Krebs and Shoemaker win District 5". Carroll County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  19. "Official 2010 Gubernatorial General Election results for Howard County". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  20. Bixby, Ginny (November 23, 2022). "Ziegler, Wu declare victory in tight District 9A House of Delegates race". Bethesda Magazine. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  21. Collins, David (February 21, 2019). "Bill would allow charge for killing fetus when pregnant woman murdered". WBAL-TV. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  22. Mann, Alex (February 21, 2019). "Laura and Reid's Law would allow prosecution in murder of nonviable fetus; pro-choice group opposed". Carroll County Times. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  23. "Legislation - SB0561". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  24. Yeager, Amanda (February 12, 2015). "Education, environment and election laws top list of concerns for Howard citizens testifying on state bills". Howard County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  25. Yeager, Amanda (March 5, 2015). "Howard parents fight to shift IEP burden of proof". Howard County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  26. "Legislation - HB0344". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  27. Logan, Erin B. (February 6, 2019). "State bill to bring plastic bag fee to Howard County advances in General Assembly". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  28. Logan, Erin B. (April 5, 2019). "Howard's plastic bag fee proposal passes General Assembly, heads to Hogan". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  29. Danley-Greiner, Kristin (December 3, 2019). "Plastic Bag Fee Passed By Howard County Council". Patch. Archived from the original on December 6, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  30. Gaines, Danielle E. (December 5, 2019). "115 Lawmakers Earn Perfect Scores from PIRG for 2019 Session". Maryland Matters. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  31. Mongilio, Heather (February 11, 2017). "Md. senator to remove name from disqualifying crime gun bill". Carroll County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  32. "Legislation - HB0294". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  33. Anderson, David (January 31, 2018). "Harford delegate files bill to allow school employees to carry guns". The Aegis. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  34. "Legislation - HB0611". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  35. Mongilio, Heather (February 5, 2017). "Carroll delegate supporting 'right to defend property' bill". Carroll County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  36. Waseem, Fatimah (June 28, 2016). "On Trump, Howard Republican officials are 'a mixed bag'". Howard County Times. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  37. Gaines, Danielle E. (March 7, 2019). "After Emotional Testimony, a Divided House Passes End-of-Life Bill". Maryland Matters. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  38. DePuyt, Bruce (February 4, 2022). "Undimmed by Past Defeats, Advocates Renew Push for End-of-Life Options Bill". Maryland Matters. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  39. Gaskill, Hannah; Kurtz, Josh; Shwe, Elizabeth (April 6, 2022). "Legislative Roundup: Patterson's Decision, House Debates Hate Crime Bill, Centenarian Tax Cuts and More". Maryland Matters. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  40. Cook, Chase (February 20, 2015). "Bill would remove tax on income for seniors, disabled". Carroll County Times. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  41. "Legislation - HB0250". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  42. "Official 2018 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. July 31, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  43. "Official 2018 Gubernatorial General Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. December 11, 2018. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
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