| Birth Date: | 29 May 1988 |
| Birth Place: | Kingston, Jamaica |
| Residence: | Silver Spring, Maryland, U.S. |
| State Delegate: | Maryland |
| District: | 20th |
| Appointer: | Larry Hogan |
| Term Start: | January 25, 2017 |
| Predecessor: | William C. Smith Jr. |
| Party: | Democrat |
| Alma Mater: | University of Delaware (B.A.) American University (M.P.A.) |
Jheanelle K. Wilkins (born May 29, 1988) is an American politician who has represented District 20 in the Maryland House of Delegates since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served as the Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland since 2022.[1]
Wilkins was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and moved to the United States with her family when she was five.[2] She grew up in New Castle, Delaware,[3] where she graduated from William Penn High School and later attended the University of Delaware, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology in 2009; and American University, where she earned a Master of Public Administration in social policy in 2011.
Wilkins started as an intern at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights in 2008 and has served in various roles, including field assistant, field associate, and field manager. She now serves as the group's Director of State and Local Government Affairs. During her tenure at The Leadership Conference, she has worked to advance immigration reform, education equity, and civil rights legislation, including the Justice Reinvestment Act, which eliminated mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent offenders in Maryland.[4]
She served on the board of the Montgomery County Association of Black Democrats and was active with the Montgomery County Young Democrats. In 2014, she was elected to the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee.
In December 2016, after state delegate William C. Smith Jr. was appointed to the Maryland Senate following Jamie Raskin's election to the U.S. House of Representatives in Maryland's 8th congressional district, Wilkins applied to fill the vacancy left by Smith in the Maryland House of Delegates.[5] The Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee voted 19–9 to nominate Wilkins to the Maryland House of Delegates on January 10, 2017. She was appointed to the seat by Governor Larry Hogan on January 24,[6] and was sworn in the following day.[1] She is the first African-American woman to represent this district,[7] and became the first Black woman elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in county history alongside Pamela Queen and Charlotte Crutchfield[8] after winning election to a full term in 2018, during which she ran on a slate with Smith, state delegate David Moon, and Lorig Charkoudian.[9]
In 2020, Wilkins ran for convention delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Maryland's 8th congressional district, pledged to U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren.[10] She was a delegate to the 2024 Democratic National Convention, pledged to Kamala Harris.[11]
In December 2022, Wilkins was elected as the chair of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland, succeeding Darryl Barnes.[12]
In August 2018, Wilkins participated in a protest in Silver Spring, Maryland following the killing of Robert White, who was shot multiple times during an encounter with the Montgomery County police, where she called for reforms to the criminal justice system.[13] In May 2019, she participated in another demonstration after the Montgomery County Police Department released body camera recordings showing a white officer using the N-word during a loitering investigation.[14]
In August 2020, Wilkins called on Governor Larry Hogan to fire Arthur "Mac" Love IV, the deputy director of the Governor's Office of Community Initiatives, after he posted memes on Facebook showing support for Kyle Rittenhouse, who fatally shot two protesters during the Kenosha unrest. Love was fired on August 29.[15] In April 2021, after Derek Chauvin was sentenced in the murder of George Floyd, Wilkins released a statement calling for an end to police violence.[16] In February 2023, following the killing of Tyre Nichols, she released a statement expressing outrage with Nichols' "heartless" killing.[17]
In October 2012, Wilkins attended a rally at the U.S. Supreme Court in support of the University of Texas in Fisher v. University of Texas, which held that colleges have some discretion to consider race when making admissions decisions.
During the 2019 legislative session, Wilkins introduced legislation to expand discrimination prohibitions that apply to private schools.[18]
During the 2021 legislative session, Wilkins introduced the "Counselors not Cops Act", which would redirect state funding for school resource officers toward mental health services in schools,[19] and the Police Qualified Immunity and Accountability Act, which would abolish qualified immunity for police officers.[20]
In December 2022, administrators of Maryland's 529 college savings plan discovered a calculation error affecting all 31,000 prepaid accounts, which led to the Maryland Prepaid College Trust suspending interest payments and preventing families from accessing their prepaid plans.[21] During the 2023 legislative session, Wilkins said she would support legislation to increase transparency in the agency.[22]
During the 2019 legislative session, Wilkins introduced legislation that would prohibit landlords from evicting tenants without providing a "just cause".[23] The bill was rejected by the House Environment and Transportation Committee,[24] and was reintroduced in 2021 and 2022.[25]
During the COVID-19 pandemic in Maryland, Wilkins led a letter to Governor Larry Hogan calling on him to cancel rent and mortgage payments for residents and businesses affected by the pandemic.[26] During the 2021 legislative session, she introduced legislation to prevent landlords from raising rent or issuing charges during public health crises.[27]
In 2023, Wilkins introduced legislation to allocate $15 million toward rental assistance vouchers.[28]
In January 2016, Wilkins said she would support the legalization of recreational marijuana in Maryland, but said she wanted the state's marijuana industry to reflect the state's diverse population.[4] During the 2023 legislative session, Wilkins said she supported equity provisions in House Bill 556, which established the framework for the state's marijuana industry following the passage of 2022 Maryland Question 4, calling them an "important starting point".[29]
In January 2019, Wilkins was one of nine Maryland lawmakers to add their names to a manifesto signed by 326 state legislators to reaffirm their commitment to protecting abortion rights.[30] In 2022, Wilkins said she opposed the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade, saying that the ruling would disproportionately affect marginalized people.[31]
During the 2019 legislative session, Wilkins introduced legislation that would require the state to disclose how much it pays prisoners who work while serving prison sentences. The legislation passed and became law.[32]
In March 2020, Wilkins said she supported the CROWN Act, which would ban discrimination based on hairstyle in Maryland.[33]
During the 2018 legislative session, Wilkins opposed bills providing tax breaks to corporations and the wealthy, including one that would benefit the Marriott International.[34] She voted for a bill to provide $8.5 billion in incentives to Amazon to build its second headquarters in Maryland, which she initially declined to back until she could see the bill in its final form.[35]
In 2020, Wilkins introduced legislation to provide tax breaks to small businesses affected by the construction of the Purple Line.[36]
During the 2021 legislative session, Wilkins supported legislation to extend the state's earned income tax credit to Individual Taxpayer Identification Number taxpayers.[37]
During the 2021 legislative session, Wilkins introduced legislation that would allow voters to opt into a permanent vote-by-mail list.[38]
During the 2023 legislative session, Wilkins argued against legislation that would create special elections to fill vacancies in the Maryland General Assembly, saying that she felt that candidates of color would struggle to fundraise in special elections and that the central committee nomination process led to more minority candidates serving in the legislature.[39]