Parris Nelson Glendening (born June 11, 1942), a member of the United States Democratic Party, was the 59^th Governor of Maryland in the United States from 1995 to 2003. He was also County Executive of Prince George's County, Maryland from 1982-1994.

Glendening was born in the Bronx, a borough of New York City, but spent much of his youth in the state of Florida. Growing up in poverty, Glendening sought a scholarship to Broward Community College. Other financial aid later enabled him to attend Florida State University, where he received a bachelor's degree (1964), a master's degree (1965), and a Ph.D. (1967), becoming the youngest student in FSU history to receive a doctorate in political science and urban administration . Upon graduation, he began a career as a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he taught Government and Politics for 27 years. In 1984, he co-authored Pragmatic Federalism, An Intergovernmental View of American Government, a textbook used in over 400 colleges and universities.

Glendening's career in public service began in 1973 as a city councilman in the town of Hyattsville, Maryland. He was elected to the county council of Prince George's County, Maryland in 1974 and twice served as council Chair. In 1982, he was elected County Executive of Prince George's County, and was the first county executive in Maryland history to be elected to three terms (1982-1994)/

Under Glendening's leadership, Prince George's County was selected as an All America County by the National Civic League, and City and State Magazine named him the "Most Valuable County Official" in the nation. In 1994, he was elected to his first term as Governor despite winning only three jurisdictions (the most urban areas of Maryland) of twenty-four. In 1998, Governor Glendening overwhelmingly won re-election to a second term, relying on his same urban/suburban voter base. Rumors of corruption (dead people voting, drunkeness, and a $2 billion budget deficit, among other accusations) and signs of ineffectiveness (unpopular gay civil union legislation and an illogical state legislative redictricting plan that was quickly overturned by the courts) plagued the last year of his administration; his second term also featured him divorcing his wife and impregnating, then marrying an office staffer half his age. His Lieutenant Governor, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, ran unsuccessfully to succeed him as governor, losing to U.S. Congressman Robert Ehrlich.

Glendening was widely criticized by rural voters, especially farmers, for what they considered overzealous environmental legislation that significantly raised the cost of participating in agribusiness. Robert Ehrlich largely relied on these counties for his victory in 2002.

Bilbiography

Parris N. Glendening. June 17, 2004. Maryland State Archives. [1]