Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend launched her bid yesterday to become
                                             Maryland's first woman governor, asking supporters to "join me in a mission of
                                             rededication and renewal for the great state of Maryland."

                                             "This election is about the future. It is time to make Maryland live up to its
                                             greatest potential," Mrs. Townsend said during a speech in Annapolis.

                                             She said the accomplishments of the last eight years put Maryland in a strong
                                             position to be an economic powerhouse in the 21st Century.

                                             And she promised to continue many of the policies that she said have reduced
                                             crime, improved education and health care and given Maryland one of the
                                             nation's strongest economies.

                                             Mrs. Townsend made her long-awaited announcement that she will seek the
                                             Democratic gubernatorial nomination at a rally outside the State House attended
                                             by hundreds of supporters from across Maryland.

                                             Mike Morrill, her campaign communications director, said more than 2,000 people
                                             attended, many of them coming in buses from as far away as Garrett and Somerset
                                             counties.

                                             Hillary Spence, a Talbot County commissioner, described Mrs. Townsend as "a
                                             great listener, very open, very approachable."

                                             She said Mrs. Townsend spends a lot of time outside suburban areas of the state
                                             to see what people in rural areas are thinking.

                                             "For us on the Eastern Shore, that means a lot," Ms. Spence said.

                                             Ron Zepp, who came from Carroll County for the rally, said Mrs. Townsend is just
                                             what Maryland needs, "a person that you can trust who will look out for the
                                             people who put her there."

                                             Mrs. Townsend was introduced by her husband, David Townsend, a professor at
                                             St. John's College in Annapolis. Other members of her family included two of her
                                             four daughters and her mother, Ethel Kennedy.

                                             "I may be a little biased, but I believe my wife Kathleen is a natural at the art of
                                             leadership," Mr. Townsend said. "I am delighted to share this dear and loving
                                             wife and mother with all Marylanders."

                                             The lieutenant governor spoke for about 25 minutes, mostly discussing what she
                                             sees as the accomplishments she and Gov. Parris Glendening achieved over the
                                             last eight years and her hopes for the future.

                                             She said crime has dropped sharply in Maryland, but that more must be done.

                                             "I know what it's like to lose a loved one. I know what it's like to experience the
                                             sadness and the pain," Mrs. Townsend said in an apparent reference to her
                                             father, Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated as he campaigned in California for
                                             the Democratic presidential nomination.

                                             The speech was devoted mostly to outlining general themes of her campaign, but
                                             Mrs. Townsend advanced one new proposal, a plan to seek a state family leave
                                             law to allow parents "to be involved with their kids' schools and with their
                                             education."

                                             She said after the speech that details have not yet been worked out.

                                             Mrs. Townsend's rally drew a racially diverse crowd, including large numbers of
                                             African-American supporters. Many of the state's top Democrats were also on
                                             hand, including Mr. Glendening and three former governors -- Marvin Mandel,
                                             Harry Hughes and William Donald Schaefer.

Published May 06, 2002, The Capital, Annapolis, Md.
                                             Copyright © 2002 The Capital, Annapolis, Md.