Mckayla Wilkes

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Mckayla Wilkes

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

May 14, 2024

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Campaign YouTube

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Mckayla Wilkes (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Maryland's 5th Congressional District. She lost in the Democratic primary on May 14, 2024.

Biography

Wilkes is a community organizer. In 2020, Wilkes founded Schools Not Jails, a group describing itself as "a grassroots, community-based organization fighting for a dismantling of the school-to-prison pipeline and broader carceral state."

Elections

2024

See also: Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2024

Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2024 (May 14 Democratic primary)

Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2024 (May 14 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Michelle Talkington in the general election for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer (D)	67.8	283,619
		Michelle Talkington (R)	32.0	133,985
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	999

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 418,603
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Quincy Bareebe, Mckayla Wilkes, and Andrea Crooms in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on May 14, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer	72.3	69,723
		Quincy Bareebe	10.3	9,970
		Mckayla Wilkes	10.1	9,743
		Andrea Crooms	7.2	6,955

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 96,391
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Leonard Proctor (D)
• Joey Thompson (D)
• Lindsay Donahue (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Michelle Talkington advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on May 14, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michelle Talkington	100.0	27,202

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 27,202
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Wilkes in this election.

2022

See also: Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Chris Palombi in the general election for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer (D)	65.9	182,478
		Chris Palombi (R)	33.9	94,000
		Other/Write-in votes	0.2	442

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 276,920
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Mckayla Wilkes and Keith Washington in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on July 19, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer	71.3	68,729
		Mckayla Wilkes	19.1	18,403
		Keith Washington	9.6	9,222

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 96,354
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Elaine Belson (D)
• Colin Byrd (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on July 19, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Palombi	67.5	24,423
	Submit photo	Vanessa Marie Hoffman	9.8	3,538
	Submit photo	Tannis Villanova	6.8	2,445
		Michael Lemon	5.0	1,818
	Submit photo	Toni Jarboe-Duley	4.4	1,578
	Submit photo	Patrick Stevens	3.7	1,344
	Submit photo	Bryan Duval Cubero	2.8	1,024

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 36,170
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

See also: Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2020

Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 2 Democratic primary)

Maryland's 5th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 2 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Chris Palombi in the general election for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer (D)	68.8	274,210
		Chris Palombi (R)	31.0	123,525
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	1,104

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 398,839
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Rashad Dwayne Lloyd (Unaffiliated)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Incumbent Steny Hoyer defeated Mckayla Wilkes, Vanessa Marie Hoffman, Briana Urbina (Unofficially withdrew), and William Devine III in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steny Hoyer	64.4	96,664
		Mckayla Wilkes	26.7	40,105
	Submit photo	Vanessa Marie Hoffman	4.2	6,357
		Briana Urbina (Unofficially withdrew)	2.7	4,091
		William Devine III	1.9	2,851

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 150,068
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Darryl Kevin Jones (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5

Chris Palombi defeated Douglas Sayers, Kenneth Lee, Lee Havis, and Bryan Duval Cubero in the Republican primary for U.S. House Maryland District 5 on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Palombi	36.0	11,761
		Douglas Sayers	29.8	9,727
		Kenneth Lee	15.3	5,008
		Lee Havis	11.0	3,593
	Submit photo	Bryan Duval Cubero	7.9	2,585

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 32,674
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Mark Leishear (R)

Endorsements

In 2020, Wilkes received the following endorsements:

• Democracy for America
• Democratic Socialists of America
• Brand New Congress
• 350 Action
• Senator Mike Gravel
• Marianne Williamson
• Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America
• Our Revolution Maryland
• Blue America
• Income Movement
• Climate Voters for Bernie
• Women for Justice
• Progressive's View
• youngPAC
• Salisbury University Democrats
• Frostburg State University College Democrats

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Mckayla Wilkes did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Mckayla Wilkes did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Mckayla Wilkes completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2019. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Wilkes' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

What would be your top three priorities, if elected?

Medicare For All

The Green New Deal

Criminal Justice Reform

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

My life experiences have taught me that working class people don’t have real representation in Congress. So politicians who don’t represent our experiences and our interests create policies that negatively affect us.

Based on these experiences, I am personally most passionate about Medicare for All, Criminal Justice Reform, and The Green New Deal. When I was pregnant, my health insurance company denied me life-saving medication. The hospital eventually negotiated on my behalf, saying they would have to hospitalize me at a much higher cost if the insurance denied the medicine. I know personally that we have to take profit out of healthcare insurance and insure absolutely everyone.

I am a working-class person who commutes to work in a car in a context where minor traffic violations -- especially by people of color -- are targeted. As a person trying to make ends meet, I could not afford to pay my tickets, and with the lack of reliable public transit, I had no options but to drive to work on a suspended license. When I was seven months pregnant, a judge sent me to jail for it. I have learned first-hand just how broken our criminal justice system is.

That experience also showed me that we need a public transportation system that can get everyone where they need to go in a quick, affordable, reliable way -- like what The Green New Deal could provide. Besides, none of our reforms are possible if we don’t tackle climate change. I feel the urgency because not only will I, as a 29-year old, continue to feel the consequences of climate change, my children will, too. I am passionate about The Green New Deal because it is an environmental framework that centers working-class, frontline, and marginalized communities with real solutions that acknowledge how enormous our climate change and economic inequality problems are.

We need people who get these experiences in Congress because we need to government to work for us, not the interests that profit from our struggles.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I am inspired by Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. I admire them for their political courage and willingness to stand up, even to their own party’s leaders. This is the first time in my life I’ve seen members of Congress really speaking for people and for the planet. These women embody the spirit of representative government.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

An elected official, first and foremost, should have a deep belief in the inherent dignity of every person; they should believe that this dignity affords every person the right to be free from cruelty and exploitation. Second, an elected official should have an understanding of the ways in which America's economic and societal structures can be a source of indignity. They should have first-hand knowledge of how regular, working people are treated like they're less than human and prevented from exercising their full autonomy. And finally, elected officials should be able to translate their basic moral principles into public policy solutions, which remedy the societal injustices they've come to observe.

Suggestion for a revision (although I really like the first one): Second, an elected official should take their duty to represent their constituency, and the American people at large, seriously. This means that elected officials must engage directly with movements and communities in order to advocate for policies that improve the lives of the many, not the few. This also means that an elected official cannot also be beholden to corporate lobbies and the funding they flood into our political system. Finally, an elected official must always have the courage to do what is right--especially if the action involves preserving the aforementioned dignity of all persons--even if it is not politically convenient.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I will be a successful office holder because of my ability to listen to and connect with the communities I represent. I am a life-long Maryland resident who has experienced the very real flaws in our system, and these experiences already give me credibility to speak to the district’s issues. I would continue to draw from these experiences and continue to regularly meet with community groups during my time in office. I know that we can only build a better world together.

I also possess the integrity that many current Congress members lack: my promise to not take money from corporate donors means that I will be able to represent the people instead of the businesses that I would otherwise be beholden to.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

I believe the core responsibility of someone elected to congress is to AMPLIFY the voices of her constituents. Beyond that, an elected official’s responsibility is to push through legislative change that directly addresses people’s concerns. In particular, I believe that elected officials have a duty to the most vulnerable and powerless in our society.

Due to the undemocratic nature of our current campaign finance laws, our elected officials suffer from a lack of accountability and concern for the working class people of their districts. That is why we see so many people, old and young, democrat, republican and independent, who have given up and chosen to disengage from the political process altogether.

As an elected official, my core responsibility would be to make sure people are heard and that their concerns are elevated to the national stage so that we can formulate the policy solutions that we need. It is important to me that my candidacy serves as a vehicle for empowering and amplifying the voices of those that have been left out or ignored.

What is your favorite holiday? Why?

My favorite holidays are my children’s birthdays.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Over fifteen Republican representatives in Congress owe their seats to extreme partisan bias in the drawing of their respective district maps. Voters across the country made clear in the last midterm election that they favor citizen-led redistricting commissions.

I support a constitutional amendment that would create a citizen-driven redistricting commission to redraw both legislative and congressional districts.

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

The U.S. House of Representatives is the most representative institution within the 3 branches of government. Elected House members have a 1-to-1 relationship to a specific geographic region, as opposed to an entire state. Each geographic region has unique challenges and strengths that need representation in a larger governing body, and the U.S. House of Representatives provides that representation.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

It certainly can be beneficial, but I believe that the traditional interpretation of what makes someone “qualified” to hold public office is overly narrow. My qualifications to represent the people of Maryland’ 5th Congressional District primarily stem from the shared experiences I have with working-class people. I understand the struggles of everyday families to survive on less than a living wage because I’ve done it. I understand the toll that the healthcare crisis has on people who are uninsured or underinsured because I’ve been denied life-saving healthcare. I understand the scope of the housing crisis because I have family and friends who have been homeless for years – stuck on a permanently closed waiting list for housing assistance. Ultimately, while it can be beneficial to have previous experience in government or politics, it is more important for representatives to be in touch with the deepest concerns of their constituents.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

The greatest challenge facing the United States is the greatest challenge facing the entire world: climate change. Without courageous action, climate change will affect nearly every aspect of our lives. Rising sea levels will threaten millions of coastal homes; deadly wildfires will consume the American West every year. Maryland summers will come to feel like Mississippi. We must take aggressive steps in the near term to head off this threat. The only solution is a massive deployment of this country's economic and intellectual resources to make our energy sector entirely renewable, create millions of green union jobs, and to put frontline at the forefront.

In the next decade, we must also take on, once and for all, the greed of the health industry. This means transitioning away from a system in which insurance and pharmaceutical executives call the shots. It means Medicare for All.

Finally, we have to reform our criminal justice system, which currently extends the legacy of white supremacy and class hierarchy. The over-policing and disproportionate incarceration of people of color, working-class, and poor people have ravaged communities across the country, while for-profit prison executives get rich off of cheap and vulnerable prison labor. We must reform our criminal justice system to one of rehabilitation, not punishment for profit. Mass incarceration and the War on Drugs has been a failure, and it’s time for a new era in the justice system.

If you are not a current representative, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

House Committee on Education and Labor

House Committee on Appropriations
House Committee on the Judiciary
House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis
House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
House Committee on Agriculture

House Committee on Oversight

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

---

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

---

Mckayla Wilkes campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House Maryland District 5	Lost primary	$8,414	$2,866
2022	U.S. House Maryland District 5	Lost primary	$184,741	$184,627
2020	U.S. House Maryland District 5	Lost primary	$444,239	$444,239
Grand total			$637,394	$631,732
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

See also

2024 Elections

What's on the ballot? U.S. President U.S. Congress U.S. Congress special elections State executives State legislatures State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards Election analysis hub

Government

Who represents me? U.S. Congress State executives State legislators State courts Ballot measures Municipal government School boards

Newsletters

The Daily Brew The Weekly Brew The Ballot Bulletin Checks and Balances Economy and Society Hall Pass Number of the Day Robe & Gavel

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

U.S. House Maryland District 5

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

YouTube

Personal

Facebook

LinkedIn

Footnotes

[show]

Maryland's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Angela Alsobrooks (D)

Chris Hollen (D)

Representatives

District 1

Andrew Harris (R)

District 2

John Olszewski (D)

District 3

Sarah Elfreth (D)

District 4

Glenn Ivey (D)

District 5

Steny Hoyer (D)

District 6

April McClain-Delaney (D)

District 7

Kweisi Mfume (D)

District 8

Jamie Raskin (D)

Democratic Party (9)

Republican Party (1)