Hogan Heaps Praise on Leggett at Charity Event

More than $1.7 million raised for outgoing county executive’s scholarship fund

County Executive Ike Leggett File photo

Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett hasn’t endorsed a candidate in the Maryland gubernatorial race, but Gov. Larry Hogan (R) made his best pitch Sunday afternoon.

Hogan was one of several elected officials who spoke at a charity event held at The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, which honored Leggett, who will leave office when he finishes his third term this year. The event, attended by hundreds of people, raised $1.7 million for The Ike and Catherine Leggett Scholarship, which helps underrepresented students in higher education as part of the Achieving Collegiate Excellence and Success (ACES) program. ACES is a partnership between Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery College and the Universities at Shady Grove in Rockville.

Hogan called Leggett a “true friend and a great Marylander,” recalling the first time they met at a breakfast in 2014, shortly after Hogan was elected, and discussed the then-proposed light-rail Purple line project.

“For him, it was a chance to lobby me on the economic benefits of the Purple Line. And that morning we committed to work together as partners to get some great things done for the people we represent. Two short years later, we broke ground on a $5.6 billion Purple Line project,” he said.

Hogan also praised Leggett for working to convince Marriott International to remain in Montgomery County, recalling the groundbreaking for its new $600 million downtown Bethesda headquarters in June. And the governor said Leggett had been instrumental in trying to sell Amazon on the county as a location for its new second headquarters, which Hogan called the “biggest development opportunity in a generation.”

“On these and so many other important issues and interactions, I’ve always found Ike to be honest, direct and principled. One belief Ike and I share is putting aside partisanship to do the right thing, and that’s exactly what he’s been doing for his entire career and all of his life,” Hogan said.

Later on, Leggett noted that Hogan had come from the Eastern Shore earlier that day to attend the event. Leggett, a Democrat, has not endorsed his party’s nominee, Ben Jealous, in the governor’s race. Jealous did not appear at Sunday’s event. Other politicians who spoke included Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin and County Council President Hans Riemer.

Riemer said his council colleagues agree that the county executive has earned a reputation as a committed public servant.

“You can ask any one of us, and we will say that there is no leader in this county who has earned more respect, admiration and good will than Ike,” he said.

Cardin echoed those sentiments.

“You have embraced the model of public service,” he said to Leggett.

The gathering, called Leggett Legacy Forward, was designed to honor Leggett’s legacy and to raise money for the Leggetts’ scholarship fund. National Public Radio reporter Cokie Roberts and former Washington Post columnist Bob Levey emceed the fundraising portion of the event, in which attendees either texted their donations or placed checks in envelopes, which they dropped into boxes.

The event also featured a number of musical interludes and dance performances. At the end, Leggett spoke about his own college experience, and how he was able to attend Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in the 1960s on a $12 scholarship.

“My pursuit in life has been these scholarships,” he said.

Leggett, the first African American County Council member, also recalled the first time he ran for a seat in 1986. He said he distributed brochures for the first six months of the campaign without a photo of him, due to the fact that there were no previous black council members.

“I am proud today that my photograph is on that brochure,” he said.

A video was also shown with the Leggetts talking to each other, in which the county executive told his wife that he didn’t plan to get involved in political activities after he left office. Catherine Leggett asked him if he was sure he wanted to take the time off.

“We’ll see,” he replied.

Dan Schere can be reached at Daniel.schere@bethesdamagazine.com