Joe Vogel (politician)

Joe Vogel
Vogel in 2024
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates
from the 17th district
Assumed office
January 11, 2023
Preceded byJames W. Gilchrist
Personal details
Born
Joseph Vogel

(1997-01-04) January 4, 1997 (age 27)
Montevideo, Uruguay
CitizenshipUruguay
United States (since 2016)
Political partyDemocratic
EducationGeorge Washington University (BA)
Harvard University (MPP)
Signature
WebsiteCampaign website
Official website

Joseph Vogel (born January 4, 1997) is an Uruguay-born American politician who has served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from District 17 since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, his district includes the Montgomery County cities of Gaithersburg and Rockville; he represents the district alongside fellow Democratic delegates Julie Palakovich Carr and Ryan Spiegel.[1]

Early life and education[edit]

Vogel was born in Montevideo, Uruguay on January 4, 1997,[1][2] to mother Gabriela[3] and father David Vogel, an advisor to the Uruguayan government.[4] He immigrated to the United States with his family when he was three years old due to his father's job as a diplomat for the International Monetary Fund.[5] His family settled in Rockville, Maryland, upon immigrating to the United States.[6] He became a U.S. citizen in November 2016.[7]

Vogel graduated from Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School and attended George Washington University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 2018.[6] He later attended Harvard University, where he earned a master's in public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School in 2022.[6]

While a student at George Washington University, Vogel served as an at-large member of the Student Association Senate, but was impeached for violating its attendance policy by missing four meetings in January 2018 due to his involvement with Ralph Northam's 2017 gubernatorial campaign in Virginia.[8]

Career[edit]

Early career[edit]

Vogel developed an interest in politics while in school, where he had been active in student government.[7] He volunteered on Barack Obama's 2012 presidential campaign and later worked on Cheryl Kagan's 2014 State Senate campaign.[9] Vogel was a college intern for then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.[1][7]

Vogel took a year off of college at George Washington University to work on the national advance team of Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.[7] He later got involved in the March for Our Lives movement and in protests against the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh,[10] and worked as an advance lead for Ralph Northam's 2017 gubernatorial campaign and as advance director for Cory Booker's 2020 presidential campaign.[5] After Booker suspended his campaign, he worked the presidential campaigns of Michael Bloomberg and Joe Biden.[11][12]

Vogel served on the Maryland Youth Advisory Council from 2015 to 2016. He also worked as a policy fellow at Interfaith Works in Montgomery County and founded Learn It Together, a nonprofit organization to help students of essential workers as they transitioned to remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]

Maryland House of Delegates[edit]

Vogel (far right) and other members of the LGBTQ+ Caucus with Governor Wes Moore, 2023

In September 2021, Vogel announced he would run for the Maryland House of Delegates, challenging incumbent Democratic state delegate James W. Gilchrist, who later announced his retirement; Kagan, who had political differences with Gilchrest, recruited Vogel to run for the seat.[5][13] During the primary, Vogel strategized with Connecticut state senator Will Haskell and hosted campaign events featuring Cory Booker.[7] He won the Democratic primary with 27.9% of the vote and defeated Republican challengers Helene Meister and Donald Patti in the general election with 27.5% of the vote.[14][15]

Vogel was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 11, 2023. He represents District 17, which includes the cities of Gaithersburg and Rockville.[1] He is the youngest member of the Maryland General Assembly and, alongside Jeffrie Long Jr., is the first Generation Z member of the Maryland General Assembly.[6][7] He is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.[16]

2024 congressional campaign[edit]

Main article: 2024 Maryland's 6th congressional district election

In May 2023, Vogel announced he would run for the U.S. House of Representatives in Maryland's 6th congressional district to succeed David Trone, who is running for the United States Senate in 2024 to succeed retiring Democratic senator Ben Cardin.[17][18] If elected, he would be the first Latino, first Gen Z, and first openly LGBTQ member of Congress from Maryland.[19]

Vogel is seen as a frontrunner, alongside April McClain-Delaney, in the Democratic primary,[20] during which he received endorsements from various national groups and local officials,[12] and ran on a platform including support for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and LGBT rights, expanding health care access, addressing climate change, and fighting right wing extremism.[21][22]

Political positions[edit]

During his House of Delegates campaign, Vogel ran on a platform that included climate, mental health, and economic issues.[6][7] He has described himself as a "pragmatic progressive" and cited Cory Booker as his political role model.[18]

Education[edit]

Vogel supports making public colleges tuition-free as well as codifying President Joe Biden's cancellation of up to $20,000 in student loan debt into law.[18] During the 2023 legislative session, he introduced a bill to forgive up to $30,000 in student debt for mental health professionals employed at Maryland public schools.[23] During the 2024 legislative session, Vogel supported a bill to create a statewide health education framework.[12]

Environment[edit]

During the 2023 legislative session, Vogel introduced legislation to provide funding for climate startups.[24]

Gun policy[edit]

Following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Vogel advocated for gun control.[21] During his House of Delegates campaign, he said he supports legislation to hold gunmakers liable for school shootings; he also said he supports banning ghost guns, increasing funding for violence prevention programs, and requiring gun owners to have liability insurance.[25]

Health care[edit]

Vogel supports Medicare for All but opposes making people give up their private insurance plans and prohibiting health care companies from covering procedures covered by Medicare.[18]

Vogel supports increasing funding for drug intervention and treatment programs.[24] During the 2023 legislative session, he introduced the Josh Siems Act, which would require emergency rooms to include fentanyl testing in toxicology screens. The bill was named for Baltimore native Josh Siems, who died from a fentanyl overdose on his 31st birthday in 2022.[26] The bill unanimously passed the Maryland General Assembly[27][28] and was signed into law by Governor Wes Moore.[29]

During the 2024 legislative session, Vogel introduced legislation to give state employees four hours of leave for cancer screenings[12] and another that would allow students to possess and administer Narcan.[30]

Immigration[edit]

During his 2024 congressional campaign, Vogel expressed support for efforts to support DREAMers and DACA recipients.[3][31] He supports the American Dream and Promise Act, which would codify provisions of the DACA program into law.[3]

Israel[edit]

Vogel describes himself as an "outspoken supporter of Israel".[8] In 2016, he stated that his "commitment to the U.S.-Israel is a direct result of Hillel International and AIPAC".[32] He supports a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and does not support conditioning U.S. foreign aid on Israeli actions.[33][18] He supports the working definition of antisemitism promoted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, stating in an interview with Jewish Insider that he accepts "fair criticism of the Israeli government", but views the "delegitimization and demonization" of Israel as antisemitic.[34]

While a member of the GWU Student Association Senate, Vogel opposed a student government resolution encouraging the university to divest from companies accused of violating Palestinian human rights.[35] The Senate voted to reject the resolution by a vote of 14–15, with one abstention, in May 2017.[36] After Vogel was impeached from the GWU Student Association Senate for missing four consecutive meetings in violation of its attendance policy in 2018,[37] he accused three of its members of being "closely aligned with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement" and of launching an effort to kick him out of the Senate following his efforts against the pro-Palestinian divestment resolution.[38][39] In March 2018, after one of the three senators, Brady Forrest, was accused of antisemitism after old Facebook posts resurfaced showing Forrest calling for a boycott of a campus event sponsored by Jewish student groups that he claimed supported the 2014 Gaza War, Vogel drafted a letter signed by nearly 70 student leaders calling for Forrest's resignation.[40] He spoke out against members of the Student Association Senate for failing to censure Forrest in April 2018.[41]

In May 2023, Vogel said he supported the protests against proposed judicial reforms in Israel.[33] In October 2023, he said he would support increasing the U.S. military presence in the region to deter future conflicts and called on Congress to provide Israel and Palestine with monetary support to help Israel defend itself and to assist with humanitarian efforts in Palestine.[42] Vogel also criticized activist groups Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow as "fringe organizations" after they released statements accusing Israel of provoking the 2023 Israel–Hamas war,[43] and cosigned a letter with other congressional candidates supporting President Joe Biden's actions toward the war.[44] In November, he attended the March for Israel in Washington, D.C.[45] and called for the resignation of Zainab Chaudry, the director of the state Council on American–Islamic Relations chapter, from the state Commission on Hate Crime Response and Prevention after making Facebook posts comparing Israel to Nazi Germany and calling attendees of the March for Israel "genocide sympathizers".[46] Chaudry was suspended from the commission by Attorney General Anthony Brown the following day.[47] During the 2024 legislative session, after Chaudry was reinstated to the board in December 2023, Vogel introduced legislation to remove Chaudry from the board and replace her with "two members of the Muslim community"[48][49] and another bill allowing for the removal of commission and task force members for "misconduct, incompetence, neglect of duties, or other good cause".[50] He called for the removal of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March 2024, saying that peace could not be achieved in Israel with him in office.[51]

Social issues[edit]

During the 2023 legislative session, Vogel introduced a bill to establish a commission on hate crime response and prevention following an uptick in hateful acts in Montgomery County, which was signed into law by Governor Moore.[23][52] He also introduced the Event-Goer Rights and Accountable Sales (ERAS) Act following the 2022 Ticketmaster controversy, which requires ticket issuers to enforce a ticket refund policy and ban restrictions on ticket resales and transfers.[23]

During his 2024 congressional campaign, Vogel supported the Equality Act[51] and the Women's Health Protection Act.[53]

During the 2024 legislative session, Vogel introduced a bill that would require police to notify property owners to remove hateful graffiti from their properties.[12] He also spoke against proposed bills to ban transgender students from competing on girls' sports teams in schools and another that would ban sexually explicit materials from school libraries, saying that the introduction of both would be "detrimental" to the trans community,[54] and supported a bill to prohibit school boards from banning books in school libraries.[51] In March 2024, Vogel voted against a bill that would legalize online gambling in Maryland.[55]

Taxes[edit]

During the 2023 legislative session, Vogel introduced a bill to provide tax credits to Maryland-based news media outlets with fewer than 50 employees for advertising costs.[23]

Personal life[edit]

Vogel lives in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He is Jewish and openly gay.[7][56]

Vogel is trilingual; he speaks English, Spanish, and Hebrew.[57]

Electoral history[edit]

2022 Maryland House of Delegates District 17 Democratic primary election[58]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Julie Palakovich Carr (incumbent) 11,058 31.7
Democratic Kumar P. Barve (incumbent) 10,324 29.6
Democratic Joe Vogel 9,745 27.9
Democratic Joe De Maria 3,770 10.8
2022 Maryland House of Delegates District 17 election[59]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Julie Palakovich Carr (incumbent) 28,463 28.6
Democratic Kumar P. Barve (incumbent) 27,995 28.1
Democratic Joe Vogel 27,414 27.5
Republican Helene F. Meister 7,835 7.9
Republican Donald "DP" Patti 7,560 7.6
Write-in 324 0.3

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "Joseph Vogel, Maryland State Delegate". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. January 30, 2023. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  2. ^ "2022 Primary Election Voters Guide: General Assembly District 17". Bethesda Magazine. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Meléndez, Milagros (January 11, 2024). "Joe Vogel, la nueva generación de demócratas que aspira al Congreso" [Joe Vogel, the new generation of Democrats aspiring to Congress]. El Tiempo Latino (in Spanish). Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  4. ^ Custodio, Luis (February 21, 2021). "El FMI: Paso de la inflexibilidad a la irrelevancia hasta que llegó el quiebre, la autocrítica y la búsqueda de nuevos liderazgos" [The IMF went from inflexibility to irrelevance, until bankruptcy, self-criticism and the search for new leadership arrived.]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c DePuyt, Bruce (September 3, 2021). "Facing Primary Challenge Orchestrated by Senator, Gilchrist Opts Out of 2022 Race". Maryland Matters. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e Blackwell, Penelope (November 12, 2022). "Q&A: Joe Vogel, one of the first members of Gen Z elected to the state legislature". Baltimore Banner. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Tan, Rebecca (April 21, 2022). "Hungry for change, Gen Z tries something new: Running for local office". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Schere, Daniel (April 4, 2018). "Candidate sparks ire among GW students". Washington Jewish Week. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Bohnel, Steve (September 16, 2021). "With four-term delegate not seeking re-election, activist poised to run". Bethesda Magazine. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  10. ^ Gray, Julia (October 19, 2022). "Trump's presidency motivated Joe Vogel to get U.S. citizenship. Now, he's running for office". Chegg. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  11. ^ "Junior Board of Directors". jewishunity.net. Jewish Unity PAC. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  12. ^ a b c d e Ford, William J. (February 29, 2024). "Meet the state lawmakers running for Congress: Del. Joe Vogel". Maryland Matters. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  13. ^ Herron, Patrick (September 20, 2021). "Joe Vogel Declares Candidacy for Delegate in District 17". MoCo Show. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  14. ^ Zhu, Christine (August 8, 2022). "Here's where candidates stand after final tally of primary election results". Bethesda Magazine. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  15. ^ Chery, Samantha (November 11, 2022). "Gen Z announces itself in midterms with Democratic boost, historic wins". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  16. ^ Gaines, Danielle E. (January 5, 2023). "Jones announces new Democratic caucus, committee leaders for 2023 General Assembly session". Maryland Matters. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  17. ^ Bixby, Ginny (May 4, 2023). "Del. Joe Vogel files to run for Rep. David Trone's seat". MoCo360. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  18. ^ a b c d e Marans, Daniel (May 8, 2023). "Joe Vogel Is Running To Be The Second Gen Z Member Of Congress". HuffPost. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  19. ^ Kravis, Isabelle (July 27, 2023). "Victory Fund endorses Joe Vogel for Congress". The Washington Blade. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  20. ^ Kurtz, Josh (April 25, 2024). "Political notes: Reunion on the airwaves, Johnny 'O,' Parrott snags CPAC nod, Martinez's theory of the case". Maryland Matters. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  21. ^ a b Hippensteel, Chris (July 10, 2023). "He Wants a New Generation of Dems in Congress—Starting With Him". The Daily Beast. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  22. ^ Sarralde, Andrea (January 8, 2024). "Congressional Candidate Vogel Announces Plan During Latino Campaign Event". Montgomery Community Media. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  23. ^ a b c d Bixby, Ginny; Espey, Em (February 16, 2023). "Gen Z delegate Joe Vogel hits the ground running with 10 new bills". MoCo360. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  24. ^ a b Larry, Greg (August 31, 2023). "Vogel says energy needs can create jobs". Cumberland Times-News. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  25. ^ Brownlee, Chip (November 9, 2022). "Young, History-Making Candidates Ran on Gun Violence Prevention — and Won". The Trace. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
  26. ^ Wood, Pamela (February 22, 2023). "From loss to legislation: Overdose death prompts push for more fentanyl testing". Baltimore Banner. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  27. ^ Morgan, Jeff (March 20, 2023). "Maryland General Assembly busy as crossover deadline looms". WMAR-TV. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  28. ^ "Legislation - HB0811". Maryland General Assembly. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  29. ^ Wintrode, Brenda; Wood, Pamela (May 3, 2023). "Gov. Moore signs cannabis, reproductive rights and trans healthcare bills into law". Baltimore Banner. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  30. ^ Bansil, Sapna (March 7, 2024). "Opioid deaths spur push for kids to carry naloxone". Capital News Service. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  31. ^ Bixby, Ginny (December 18, 2023). "Speed dating in District 6: Voters get personal with Democratic congressional candidates". MoCo360. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  32. ^ International, Hillel (2016-03-22). "Hillel students speak out for Israel at AIPAC". Hillel International. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  33. ^ a b Kornbluh, Jacob (May 10, 2023). "This Gen Z, gay, Latino Jew leans into his identities and launches a bid for Congress". The Forward. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  34. ^ Kassel, Matthew (May 24, 2023). "A pro-Israel progressive and loyalist to the Zionist government, Joe Vogel seeks to make history in Maryland". Jewish Insider. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
  35. ^ Roach, Sarah; Roaten, Meredith (April 16, 2018). "Pro-Palestinian divestment resolution lands in SA Senate for second consecutive year". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  36. ^ Harris, Cayla; Mercuri, Monica (May 2, 2017). "SA Senate rejects pro-Palestinian divestment resolution that stirred campus-wide debate". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  37. ^ Harris, Cayla. "SA Senate kicks out senator for missing committee meetings". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  38. ^ Harris, Cayla (January 23, 2018). "SA Senate kicks out senator for missing committee meetings". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  39. ^ Ball, Molly (October 31, 2023). "The Left Is Tearing Itself Apart Over Israel". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  40. ^ Harris, Cayla (March 28, 2018). "Nearly 70 student leaders call for SA senator accused of anti-Semitism to resign". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  41. ^ Roach, Sarah (April 24, 2018). "Student leaders denounce SA Senate's failure to censure senator accused of anti-Semitism". The GW Hatchet. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  42. ^ Bixby, Ginny (October 31, 2023). "How do Maryland's Sixth Congressional District candidates think the Israel-Hamas crisis should be handled?". MoCo360. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  43. ^ Kassel, Matthew (October 19, 2023). "Pro-Israel progressives begin to crack down on growing far-left extremism toward Israel". Jewish Insider. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  44. ^ Kassel, Matthew (November 2, 2023). "Youngest House Democratic recruits speak out for Israel". Jewish Insider. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  45. ^ Lavers, Michael K. (November 15, 2023). "Hundreds of thousands attend pro-Israel rally in D.C." The Washington Blade. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  46. ^ Deutch, Gabby (November 20, 2023). "Maryland hate crimes commission member under fire for pro-Hamas posts". Jewish Insider. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  47. ^ Shepherd, Katie (November 21, 2023). "Member of Md. hate crimes task force suspended for anti-Israel remarks". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  48. ^ Bixby, Ginny (December 6, 2023). "Attorney General reinstates suspended member of Maryland Hate Crimes Commission". MoCo360. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  49. ^ Gaskill, Hannah (February 20, 2024). "Legislation seeks to remove Maryland hate crimes commission member following Israel-Hamas war remarks". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  50. ^ Bixby, Ginny (February 21, 2024). "State lawmakers debate whether to remove CAIR from hate crimes commission". MoCo360. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  51. ^ a b c Lavers, Michael K. (March 27, 2024). "Joe Vogel would make history if elected to Congress". Washington Blade. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  52. ^ Ford, William J. (May 16, 2023). "Moore signs gun bills, measures that bolster responsibilities of the Attorney General's office". Maryland Matters. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  53. ^ King, Trevor (April 4, 2024). "Democratic MD-06 candidates answer questions at forum". Garrett County Republican. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  54. ^ Engel, Amanda (January 31, 2024). "Heated testimony on bills in Ways and Means". WMAR-TV. Retrieved February 1, 2024.
  55. ^ Sears, Bryan P. (March 14, 2024). "Atterbeary says House will do 'the right thing,' send revenues, gaming to Senate". Maryland Matters. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  56. ^ Longo, Adam (May 3, 2023). "First on WUSA9: Maryland State Delegate teases possible run for Congress". WUSA-TV. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  57. ^ Nash, Ashley (July 8, 2022). "Gen Z is old enough to run for office". Deseret News. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  58. ^ "Official 2022 Gubernatorial Primary Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  59. ^ "Official 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. December 7, 2022. Retrieved November 28, 2022.

External links[edit]

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