Challenger to incumbent Ross Arnett (D) and candidate Julie Mussog (R)

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The name “Moyer” is familiar name to all Annapolitans because two Moyers have been mayors: Roger “Pip” (from l965-1973) and his former wife, Ellen (from 2001-2009). Their son, John “Bumper” Moyer, wants to continue the family tradition of community service by representing Ward 8 as alderman. He is challenging Ross Arnett, who has been alderman since 2007. Moyer was born and educated in Annapolis, attending public and private schools. He lives in Eastport with his wife and two young children. He has been interested in comic books since high school and has a business in Glen Burnie that sells comic books.

 

Because of Moyer’s close connection to the workings of city government, he believes that he has great insight into how to get his agenda enacted. He understands the importance of working with other City Council members and knows that no legislation can pass without five votes. From his father he learned that two things are critical in political life: earning constituents’ trust and making sure that voters understand that they are important. His mother has a vast store of knowledge that she drew on in making her decisions as mayor. She was not afraid to take positions on issues so that voters knew where she stood. From both parents, Moyer learned that being of service to the community is important.

 

Moyer wants to involve citizens in government. As alderman he would sit down with constituents, listen to their concerns, and invite them to contribute to solving the issues. He was inspired by the Women’s March following the 2017 presidential inauguration, which he believes energized people to become involved and which affected his decision to run for alderman.

 

Some of the issues that Moyer would like to work on include the environment, the city comprehensive plan, and quality of life and growth within the city. He believes that revisions to the comprehensive plan should occur more frequently than once every ten years, because technology is changing so rapidly that innovations need to be incorporated into the planning. Changes could also include responses to growth in the city, which affects quality of life for all residents. Moyer acknowledges the complexities of managing growth, since there is a need for housing, jobs, and tax revenues. He hasn’t figured out how to balance these competing needs but wants to work with the community on a solution.

 

Moyer also wants to think creatively about how best to do the city’s business. He suggests “deconstructing the system,” by which he means seeing if there are new ideas to replace those that no longer work. For example, he suggests investigating ways to obtain more citizen involvement in City Council meeting. He knows that peoples’ lives are busy and getting to Monday night meetings at 7 p.m. is difficult. He would consider live-streaming the meetings and adding ways in which citizens can participate from home. In short, Moyer wants to consider any methods that will make government more interactive.