Katie Fry Hester | |
|---|---|
 Hester in 2022 | |
| Member of theMaryland Senate from the9th district | |
| Assumed office January 9, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Gail H. Bates |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kathryn A. Fry (1974-12-31)December 31, 1974 (age 50) New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Children | Two daughters |
| Residence(s) | Ellicott City,Maryland |
| Education | Cornell University (B.Sc.) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | https://katiefryhester.com/ |
Kathryn Fry Hester (born December 31, 1974) is an American politician who has served as aDemocratic member of theMaryland Senate from the9th District, based inHoward County andMontgomery County, since 2019.
Hester was born on December 31, 1974. She attendedCornell University in 1997, earning aBachelor of Science degree in agricultural and biological engineering. After graduating, she worked as a senior analyst atArthur D. Little from 1998 to 2001 and as the manager of research and advocacy at SustainAbility from 2001 to 2009. She also is a Marylandfirst responder and volunteers for WISP Ski Patrol.[1]
Hester got involved in politics following the2016 presidential election out of concern that political divisiveness inWashington was spilling over into her community. Hester joined liberal groups likeIndivisible and Do the Most Good and created a small group called Building Bridges with the aim of bringing civility back to her community. She attended the2017 Women's March on Washington with her two daughters, Sierra and Alexa.[2]
In July 2017, Hester filed to run for Maryland Senate, challengingRepublican incumbentGail H. Bates.[3][4] She was uncontested in the Democratic primary, andstate Senate Democrats viewed the District 9 Senate election as a potential pickup opportunity given thenational environment.[5]Maryland Matters ranked her election among the eight most competitive elections in theMaryland General Assembly that year.[6] She defeated Bates in the general election by 531 votes, and was the only Democrat to oust a Republican senator in Maryland in the2018 Maryland Senate election.[2]
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Hester was sworn into the Maryland Senate on January 9, 2019.[1] She is the first Democrat to represent District 9 in the Maryland Senate since SenatorCharles Smelser in 1994.[7]
Hester is a self-describedmoderate Democrat, seeking to find common ground with Republicans.[2]
In March 2019, Hester worried that a bill banning the use ofplastic foam food containers in Maryland would hurt farmers, including those in her district. After the bill passed the legislature passed the Maryland Senate, she proposed passing legislation to help egg farmers transition to different kinds of materials, appealing to a compromise offered by Republican senatorJack Bailey.[2]
In 2020, Hester worked alongsidestate delegateCourtney Watson to secure $8.25 million dollars in funding from the state to supportHoward CountyexecutiveCalvin Ball's Safe & Sound Plan, a multi-phase proposal to advance flood mitigation projects and support local business and property owners inEllicott City, Maryland.[8]
In 2021, the MarylandLeague of Conservation Voters gave Hester a perfect score in their annual environmental scorecard.[9]
In November 2023, Hester and eight other state senators signed a joint letter that threatened to defund immigrants rights groupCASA de Maryland because it had called for an immediate ceasefire in the2023 Israel–Hamas war and condemned the "utilization of US tax dollars to promote the ongoing violence."[10]
In March 2019, when the Maryland General Assembly was deciding whether to overrideGovernorLarry Hogan's veto of a $15 minimum wage bill, Hester was tempted to vote against the minimum wage veto override, joining Republican senators who said a $15 wage would lead to job losses and hurt places in her district. She ultimately decided to vote to override the governor's veto on the bill, viewing it as a step toward economic equity, but she also supported GOP proposals to vary the minimum wage in different parts of the state and offered an amendment to give certain small businesses more time to pay the higher wage, both of which were rejected by Senate Democrats.[2]
In April 2019, Hester convened a bipartisan workgroup consisting of Democratic senatorsGuy Guzzone andBrian Feldman and Republican senatorsAndrew Serafini,Christopher R. West, andMary Beth Carozza to look at possible aid for small business owners in light of the $15 minimum wage veto override.[11]
A 2021 analysis by the Maryland Free Enterprise Foundation, a business advocacy group, gave Hester a score of 33 percent, making her the second most business-friendly Democrat in the Maryland General Assembly.[12]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Katie Fry Hester | 9,761 | 100.0 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Katie Fry Hester | 33,493 | 50.8 | |
| Republican | Gail H. Bates (incumbent) | 32,347 | 49.1 | |
| Write-in | 52 | 0.1 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Katie Fry Hester (incumbent) | 31,214 | 57.92 | |
| Republican | Reid Novotny | 22,637 | 42.00 | |
| Write-in | 42 | 0.08 | ||
| Total votes | 53,893 | 100.00 | ||
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