By Jacob Bell
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (Sept. 11, 2015)—The Maryland House of Delegates has two vacant seats following the announcement on Thursday of the death of Delegate James E. Proctor, Jr., a Democrat who represented parts of Charles and Prince George’s counties, and the resignation of Delegate William A. Campos (D-Prince George’s) on Thursday.
Eyes are expected to turn to the Prince George’s County Democratic Central Committee, which has 30 days to submit to Gov. Larry Hogan a potential replacement delegate for Campos. That committee, as well as the Charles County Democratic Central Committee, will also provide Hogan with a possible candidate to fill Proctor’s seat, said Cheryl Landis, the Prince George’s County committee chair.
The Democratic Central Committees will select their nominees from a pool of interested candidates who attend committee-run public hearings. The Prince George’s County committee will hold its public hearing in early October, Landis said.
Hogan will then have 15 days to select the new delegates. Del. Michael E. Busch, the House speaker, will appoint the successor for Proctor’s position as vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
Those replacement candidates, once appointed, will complete the remainder of Campos’s and Proctor’s 4-year terms, which end in 2018.
A member of the House of Delegates since 1990, Proctor died at the age of 79. He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth “Susie” Proctor, two children and three grandchildren.
“Jim was a great mentor to many members of the House and always had an open door and a good story to tell,” Busch said in a statement. “Jim was a long-time personal friend. My heartfelt sympathies to his family, especially his wife, Susie.”
Before joining the House, Proctor served in the U.S. Air Force twice during the 1960s. He graduated from Bowie State College in 1969 with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, and later worked as a teacher and principal.
“Jim and I worked very closely together in the ‘90s,” Maryland State Senator Jim Rosapepe said. “He was very effective, a great legislator.”
Hogan ordered the State House flags to fly at half-staff in honor of Proctor, according to a news release from the governor’s office.
Proctor’s family is working on funeral arrangements, according to an official with the House of Delegates.
Campos, 40, was a member of the House of Delegates since January. He was a member of the Judiciary and Prince George’s County Bi-County committees. He was also one of six members on the Maryland Latino Legislative Caucus, and had been a Prince George’s County Council member for 10 years.