Montgomery County voters deserve to hear the two nominees answer each other before choosing their next county executive.
Will Jawando has an answer for Esther Wells: NO!!!
No general election debate. No more candidate forums before November 3. His campaign says he has already attended 102 meet-and-greets and more than 45 forums, debates, and town halls since announcing his run for Montgomery County executive. That is a lot of appearances. It is also beside the point.[1]
The November ballot choice is between Jawando and Wells. A voter asking to see those two people answer the same questions, in the same room, is asking for something perfectly ordinary. Yet the Jawando campaign has decided the public has heard enough.
Why? Only Jawando and his advisers know their private calculations. We can judge the explanation they have offered, though, and it is remarkably thin.
Campaign manager Nicole Rios says voters have already had opportunities to compare the candidates. That is partly fair: Wells appeared at some earlier forums, and Jawando has certainly spent time with voters. But a crowded primary forum is a different event from a general election debate. In a debate, Wells can challenge a claim, Jawando can answer, and the voters can decide whose explanation holds up. A tally of meet-and-greets cannot replace that exchange.[1][2]
Rios also points to the primary vote totals. Jawando won 52,744 votes in the Democratic contest; Wells won 6,850 in the Republican contest. Those figures tell us who won each party’s nomination. They do not tell a Republican, an unaffiliated voter, or a Democrat still weighing the November choice that the conversation is over.[2]
Bethesda Today reports that Montgomery County had 189,088 active unaffiliated voters as of August 31. They could not choose a nominee in either partisan primary. Why should their first chance to vote in this race arrive without a direct exchange between the nominees?[1]
Jawando has every opportunity to make his case. He can explain what he would do about housing costs, taxes, school performance, public safety, traffic, and data centers. He can challenge Wells on her plans and ask how she would pay for them. Wells should have to answer those questions, too. A debate exposes both candidates to follow-up questions. That is precisely why it is useful.
There is a human complication here. Jawando suffered a heart attack on September 5. I wish him a full recovery, and nobody should turn a medical event into a campaign diagnosis. His manager says he is recovering well and will return to public campaign events soon. He attended the September 22 County Council meeting virtually.[1] If he needs more time, say so and schedule a debate later in October. A postponement would be understandable. A blanket refusal through Election Day is harder to defend.
Wells says she had asked for a debate before Jawando’s heart attack. She also says earlier forums do not provide the same opportunity for rebuttal. On that narrow point, she is right.[1] The candidate asking to lead the county should be able to defend his record while an opponent is present to disagree. The challenger should be equally willing to have her proposals tested.
Even Marc Elrich, when seeking reelection as county executive in 2022, took part in at least one general election forum with Republican Reardon “Sully” Sullivan. That precedent does not create a rule, but it makes this request look perfectly reasonable.[3]
Perhaps Jawando’s team believes a debate offers him little political upside. In a county where Democrats substantially outnumber Republicans, that would be a plausible campaign calculation. It remains an inference, not a fact about his motives. And a sound campaign calculation can still be a poor answer to the public.
There is time to change course. Pick a fair moderator, agree on a date that accommodates his recovery, and give both candidates the same clock. Let them question each other about the county they hope to run. If Jawando’s record and plans are as strong as his campaign believes, a debate gives him the chance to show it. If Wells has better answers, voters deserve to learn that too.
Montgomery County is being asked to hire a chief executive. The applicants should show up for the interview together.
Endnotes
- Ceoli Jacoby, “Jawando rejects calls to debate Wells ahead of general election,” Bethesda Today, September 22, 2026.
- Maryam Shahzad, “Jawando campaign says he will not debate Wells before Election Day,” Montgomery Community Media, September 22, 2026.
- Adam Pagnucco, “Jawando: No General Election Debates with Wells,” Montgomery Perspective, September 21, 2026.
Laura Holt writes on Maryland politics and government accountability for Direct Line News.
Direct Line News is a Maryland-based free-access publication committed to the Republican reform tradition.
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