Bud Otis Explained

Bud Otis
Order:Frederick County Councilmember, at-large
Term Start:December 1, 2014
Term End:December 1, 2018
Predecessor:Office created
Birth Date:13 September 1938
Birth Place:Indiana
Birth Name:Harold F. Otis
Party:Unaffiliated (2016–present)
Republican(until 2016)
Alma Mater:Andrews University
Residence:Middletown, Maryland[1]

Harold F. "Bud" Otis (born September 13, 1938) is an Elder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and an American publisher and politician.

Early years

Otis attended Andrews University where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1965.[2]

Professional career

Otis was president of the Review and Herald Publishing Association from 1978 to 1988.[2] [3] In 1981, when Otis moved the company to new, $14 million facility in Hagerstown, Maryland,[4] the publishing house had 350 employees and an annual payroll of $6.7 million.[5] [6]

From 1989 to 1990, Otis served as assistant to the president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.[2] Based in Silver Spring, Maryland, the General Conference is the governing organization of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Otis was president of Family Enrichment Resources from 1991 to 1997.[2]

Otis served as chair of the Board of Directors of the Maj. Gen. Boyd C. Cook Foundation from 2012 to 2013.[2]

Political career

Otis was the campaign chair for Ruthann Aron's campaign for U.S. Senate in 1994.[7]

Otis joined U.S. Representative Roscoe G. Bartlett's staff in 2001, and he served as his chief of staff beginning in 2003.[8] [9] Bartlett considered not running for reelection in 2012, and Otis resigned from Bartlett's staff in December 2011 when the fact that he was actively lining up support to run for his boss's seat before Bartlett had decided to retire, made it impossible for him to continue as chief of staff.[9] [10] [11] [12] Otis ended up deciding not to run for the office.[13]

Otis served as chair of the Ethics Commission of Frederick County from 2012 to 2013.[14] [15]

Otis joined as a campaign adviser for David E. Vogt, who ran for U.S. Representative in 2014.[8] Vogt ended up withdrawing from the race.[16] [17]

Otis became a member of the Board of Elections of Frederick County in 2015.[2]

Frederick County Council

In 2014, Otis ran as the Republican candidate for one of the two at-large positions on the first elected council of Frederick County.[18] Otis was one of thirteen candidates for the two at-large seats.[19]

Otis campaigned to reduce traffic by increasing the number of jobs in the county.[20] Otis wanted to make sure roads were being built in pace with development, but he did not want development to be so dense that residents fail to interact with each other.[20] Otis said he would reduce the county's budget spending and increase long-term planning for future expenses, such as building roads and schools.[20]

Otis and Billy Shreve won the Republican primary election; Otis received 20 percent of the vote.[21]

In the general election, Otis won an at-large seat on the Council with 27 percent of the total vote.[22] [23] Otis was sworn in on December 1, 2014.[24]

Following his election to the Council, the editorial board of the Frederick News-Post endorsed Otis for council president.[25] The county voted 4–3 to elect Otis president of the Council.[26] Otis joined with three Democrats in repealing a law making English the official language of Frederick County.[27]

Otis changed his party affiliation from Republican to unaffiliated on May 19, 2016.[28] Otis said, "I think the direction of the Republican Central Committee is not where the majority of this county is, among Republican voters."[29]

Notes and References

  1. Otis, Bud. "County ethics policies need some adjustment". The Frederick News-Post. July 13, 2014.
  2. Web site: Harold F. (Bud) Otis, Member, County Council (Republican) . . April 30, 2015 . Bethany . Rodgers . May 3, 2014 .
  3. News: McChesney. Andrew. Made In Russia Review and Herald's remarkable story. 25 May 2018. Adventist World. 2 December 2014. 27 December 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181227040634/https://archives.adventistworld.org/2014/december/made-in-russia.html. dead.
  4. News: Wheeler. Tompaul. Innovate, Innovate, Innovate: The Review & Herald and the Dilemma of Adventist Publishing. 29 May 2018. Spectrum. 23 May 2014.
  5. News: Adventists to move to Hagerstown area. Baltimore Sun. 5 March 1981. .
  6. News: Peckham. Kim. Review and Herald Marks 30 Years Since Move to Hagerstown, Maryland. 29 May 2018. Adventist Review. 21 August 2013.
  7. Novak, Robert. "Maryland's GOP Cool to Outsider". Chicago Sun-Times. May 30, 1994.
  8. Bourg, Allison. "Political Notes: Maryland Republicans criticize Obama's vacation choice: Otis Joins Vogt Team". The Capital (Annapolis, Maryland). August 1, 2013.
  9. Dishneau, David. "Aide to Md.'s Rep. Bartlett quits; eyes House run". Associated Press. December 1, 2011.
  10. News: Pershing. Ben. Bartlett's chief of staff resigns amid campaign drama. Washington Post. 2 December 2011. .
  11. News: Livingston. Abby. Hopefuls Ramp Up Efforts to Succeed Bartlett. Roll Call. 6 December 2011. .
  12. News: Fritz. John. BARTLETT AIDE, A POTENTIAL CHALLENGER, RESIGNS: DEPARTURE OF LONGTIME CONFIDANT FUELS TALK THAT INCUMBENT MAY NOT RUN. Baltimore Sun. 2 December 2011. .
  13. Pershing, Ben. "On Md. ballot, Bartlett faces tough race, Edwards escapes challenge from Ivey". The Washington Post. January 11, 2012.
  14. "County commissioners appoint three to Ethics Commission". The Frederick News-Post. April 17, 2012.
  15. Rodgers, Bethany. "County makes appointments to ethics panel, appeals board". The Frederick News-Post. July 31, 2014.
  16. "David E. Vogt Announces Bid For Md.'s 6th District Seat". CBS Baltimore. July 3, 2013.
  17. Rodgers, Bethany. "6th District congressional race loses one". The Frederick News-Post. January 29, 2014.
  18. Bondeson, Jen. "Residents step up to run for county positions". The Frederick News-Post. February 26, 2014.
  19. "On the ballot". The Frederick News-Post. February 26, 2014.
  20. Rodgers, Bethany. "http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=AWNB&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=14F25431F87C6B30&p_docnum=92&p_queryname=2 County Council at-large candidate Bud Otis". The Frederick News-Post. May 3, 2014.
  21. Loos, Kelsi; Mullins, Patti Borda. "Voters pick County Council contenders". The Frederick News-Post. June 25, 2014.
  22. "Frederick County, Maryland, Election Returns, General Election, November 4, 2014". Maryland Manual On-line. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  23. "Rough four years to come: Ghost of Blaine Young will hang over new council". The Frederick News-Post. November 6, 2014.
  24. Rodgers, Bethany. "Gardner sworn in as first Frederick County executive". The Frederick News-Post. December 2, 2014.
  25. "Bud Otis should be council president". The Frederick News-Post. November 30, 2014.
  26. Rodgers, Bethany. "Otis bests Shreve for County Council's top spot". The Frederick News-Post. December 2, 2014.
  27. https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-frederick-english-20150904-story.html Official-English reversal reflects change in Frederick County
  28. "Bud Otis, County Council". Maryland Manual On-line. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  29. Gaines, Danielle E. "Republican groups call on Otis to step down, return donations: Otis says no". The Frederick News-Post. June 7, 2016.

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