New Carrollton mayoral race pits former mayor against council member

New Carrollton residents will decide between two distinct approaches to municipal governance on Nov. 9. The special election, held to fill the vacancy created by the removal of Mayor Phelecia Nembhard, offers voters a choice between restoring the previous administration and restructuring the city’s executive branch.

The city has a population of approximately 13,600. The winner of the contest will serve the remainder of Nembhard’s term, concluding in May 2027. Polls will open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. that Monday.

Former Mayor Katrina Dodro, who served on the City Council for 14 years before taking office in 2023, argues that the city’s operational systems require stabilization. She stated that she inherited a government lacking a chief of police, a head of public works, and an assistant city administrator. Her platform focuses on rebuilding staffing levels and implementing a manual to track staff responsibilities and deadlines.

Dodro said her first actions in office would involve meetings with human resources, the comptroller, and department heads to assess vacancies and finances. She cautioned against attempting a major structural overhaul during a short term, noting that such changes could further destabilize operations. “People need someone to be a stabilizer .. and it can’t be something that you think is going to happen overnight,” Dodro said.

City Council member Briana Urbina, who has served since 2021, proposes moving away from the strong-mayor system. She advocates for a council-manager model in which a professional manager oversees daily operations while elected officials share policy responsibility. Urbina believes this structure will provide consistency in services such as trash pickup and snow removal regardless of who holds the mayoral office.

“I’m very confident that less power for the mayor equals more power for the people,” Urbina said. She cited her five years of service as evidence that city operations vary widely based on the mayor’s behavior. A city charter review commission is currently studying governing structures used by other municipalities, and Urbina is awaiting its recommendations.

Both candidates agree that the city must generate additional revenue to fund infrastructure improvements. Dodro noted that the costs of asphalt, concrete, and labor have increased exponentially. She has not specified exact tax changes but said the city must reconsider its tax structure. Urbina proposes raising taxes on commercial properties to incentivize the development of grocery stores, gyms, and sit-down restaurants. “What we are going to try to aim to do through creative tax policy is reward these commercial developers when they provide the kind of retail that our residents want,” Urbina said.

The election follows a 4-1 City Council vote on Sept. 9 to remove Nembhard from office. The removal stemmed from allegations that she violated a hiring freeze. Nembhard denies the allegations and is urging supporters to write her name on their ballots. Charles Davis, chair of the city’s elections board, stated that Nembhard is not a certified candidate because her candidate package was rejected due to her removal. Consequently, write-in votes for her will not be counted.

The city is currently under an indefinite hiring freeze that took effect on Oct. 22. The freeze resulted from council concerns regarding hiring processes and inflated salaries. Key positions, including the county clerk and city manager, remain vacant. Despite the short term of the special election, both Dodro and Urbina stated they plan to run for the regular mayoral election scheduled for May 2027.