Mary Ann Lisanti


Mary Ann Lisanti is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party, who represents District 34A in the Maryland House of Delegates. Previously she represented district F on the Harford County Council, representing Havre de Grace, Abingdon, Belcamp/Riverside and Aberdeen Proving Ground. In January 2014 Lisanti filed to run for the Maryland House of Delegates and to not seek a 3rd term on the County Council. In early March 2019, the House of Delegates unanimously censured Lisanti for a racial slur directed at the African-American majority Prince George's County, with her own county's Democratic Party calling for her resignation.

Political career

On February 26, 2019, The Washington Post reported that Lisanti referred to Prince George's County, Maryland as a "nigger district" in conversation with another Democratic legislator. She was removed as the chair of a subcommittee. Two days later she was unanimously censured by the House of Delegates in a 136-0 vote, but refused to resign her seat. On March 2, 2019, the Harford County Democratic Central Committee called for Lisanti to resign for using the racial slur.

2014 Maryland State Delegate candidacy

Lisanti entered the race for Delegate in district 34A after much speculation that she might run for the seat left open when Delegate Mary-Dulany James decided to run for Maryland State Senate. On June 24, 2014 Lisanti led the Democratic primary by nearly 10 percentage points, with Marla Posey-Moss coming in second, after a heavily contested race with five candidates vying for two seats. Lisanti and Posey-Moss faced Republicans Glen Glass and Mike Blizzard in the General election in November. Glass and Lisanti finished 1 and 2, thus gaining election.

Election results