Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who briefly challenged Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, will ring in 2017 on his old stomping grounds. His Irish folk-rock band is the scheduled entertainment for the New Year’s Eve party at a popular Annapolis music venue.

“Get ready to celebrate New Year’s Eve Irish-style with a premium buffet dinner, dancing, and a night with Celtic rockers O’Malley’s March!” reads the website for Rams Head Tavern Annapolis.

Tickets are on sale for $115 a person, which covers everything from the pre-dinner appetizer to the champagne toast at midnight.

Mr. O’Malley formed his band in March 1988 and has performed onstage, mostly in Baltimore or Annapolis watering holes, throughout his nearly three-decade political career in Maryland.

According to The Baltimore Sun, Mr. O’Malley performed a “send-off” concert in late January at a Baltimore pub prior to the Iowa caucuses, but the luck of the Irish did not translate on the campaign trail. He dropped out of the presidential race after a dismal performance — 0.6% of caucus votes — in the Hawkeye State.

Mr. O’Malley and company subsequently returned to the stage at the Creative Alliance in Baltimore on March 13, followed by two gigs on St. Patrick’s Day and one at the Rams Head in June.

The Baltimore Democrat was most recently in the headlines for turning down the opportunity to run for Democratic National Committee chairman.

“The DNC needs a chair who can do the job fully and with total impartiality. The national interest must come first,” he told supporters in an email, NBC News reported Wednesday.

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.