State Sen. Charles Sydnor, who had been weighing a run for the Democratic nomination for Baltimore County Executive in 2026, announced Thursday he will instead run for another term in the Senate.

‘It was a hard decision,” Sydnor said.

But in the end he decided his time would be better spent in the legislature working to protect Maryland from a hostile federal government.

“We need to have as many good, strong legislators in the Maryland General Assembly ensuring that the citizens of the state are getting what it is that they need,” Sydnor said.

Sydnor is the State Senator for District 44. It is on the west side and includes Catonsville, Arbutus and Woodlawn.

Sydnor was elected to the House of Delegates in 2014. In 2020, he was appointed to the Senate by Gov. Larry Hogan to fill an open seat after Shirley Nathan-Pulliam resigned for health reasons.

So far, two Democratic candidates have officially entered the county executive’s race.

Pat Young is in his first term on the county council after serving eight years in the state legislature.

Nick Stewart is a former school board member and a co-founder of the smart growth group We The People-Baltimore County.

The Democratic field awaits two councilmen who have each raised more than $1 million and have made it no secret they intend to run, Julian Jones and Izzy Patoka.

County Executive Kathy Klausmeier, a Democrat, said she will not run for the position in 2026. Klausmeier was appointed county executive by the county council in January after Johnny Olszewski resigned to take a seat in Congress.

In order to be considered for the county executive appointment, Klausmeier had to promise council members she would not run for a full term in 2026.

So far, no Republican candidate for county executive has emerged. Recent general elections have not been close with the Democratic candidate winning easily over the GOP opponent. The last Republican county executive was Roger Hayden who was elected in 1990.

The primary is June 23, 2026.