Current County Council members Chuck Callahan and Dave Stepp have our complete endorsement and support, as well as candidates Frank Gunsallus, Christian Mackendrick, and Wade Strickland.
Council member Lynn Mielke is Not endorsed or supported by the Talbot County Republican Central Committee.
Below are a few highlights of her voting record.
Source: Public information Talbot County Council proceedings: https://talbotcountymd.gov/meetings
Vote #1 Multiple Votes – Fiscal Responsibility, Silence Public Comments – Jeopardized approximately $56.8 Million dollars in Federal Funds, including $48.6 million for the Airport Modernization Project for Talbot County, repealing Administrative Resolutions.
Mielke voted to silence taxpayers. Then voted to risk our Federal Funds. Then finally recognized the federal ultimatum and changed her vote.
February 25, 2025 – Council member Mielke, along with Democrat Pete Lesher, voted AGAINST allowing the public to make comments on the proposed repeal of DEI administrative resolutions.
March 11, 2025 – Council member Mielke voted with the Democrats to KEEP DEI policy training for the County Employees, in spite of President Trump’s January 20, Executive Order, and despite of knowing the risk of losing Federal Funds that benefit ALL of Talbot County. The Council vote 2 – 3 as follows: Callahan and Stepp-Aye, Lesher, Haythe and Mielke -Nay
June 10, 2025 after an open letter received by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy dated 4/24/25 threatening to stop any current federal grant funding, stop any future funding, and claw back previous federal grant funding from any recipient with DEI Policies, finally Mielke, along with Democrat Pete Lesher, grudgingly reverse her vote and DEI was removed.
Vote # 2 October 28th, 2025 – Fiscal Responsibility, Individual Liberty, Limited Government and Free Markets
Bill 1622 Short-Term Rental Regulations (STR)
Council member Mielke co-introduced with Democrat Pete Lesher, Bill 1622 to implement broad-stoke legislation that would have crippled Talbot County Short-Term Rental (STR) property owners and businesses. The bill appeared designed to deny freedom and persecute ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate business and after the public hearing November 26, 2025 it was so poorly received throughout the county that on December 9, 2025 even her Democrat co-sponsor pulled his support of the bill, and only then did Council member Mielke grudgingly pull her support and the bill died. She indicated she would bring it back sometime in the future.
Vote #3 September 24, 2024 – Government Accountability
Election Integrity Letter
Council member Mielke vote to “abstain” when County Council member Dave Stepp motioned, and Chuck Callahan seconded, to send a letter to Executive Director of Talbot County Elections Tammy Stafford and the Talbot Board of Elections urging them to follow election law on judge parity for elections. Sheriff Joe Gamble sent a letter requesting the same of the Board of Elections. It passed with a 4-0-1 vote.
VOTE #4 May 28, 2024 – Fiscal Responsibility
FY ’24-’25 Talbot County Annual Budget (Bill 1553)
Council member Mielke voted “no” to this annual budget bill. It passed with a 4-1 vote. This vote solidified Mielke’s position on not funding all government services, including, but not limited to, the Talbot County Sheriff’s Office, Talbot County Emergency Services, and Talbot County Public Schools
Shari Wilcoxon
Chair, Talbot County Republican Central Committee
It’s very disturbing to learn that all the Democrats , and 1 “ republican” Lynn Mielke -on our Talbot County Council voted to deprived all of us Talbot County taxpayers of $57 million of our hard earned US tax dollars to come back to Talbot county to help our children and families.
I applaud any elected official who votes based on the facts, merits and consequences of any specific measure in lieu of voting a party line. As such, GOOD ON YOU Council Members Mielke for acting in a responsible way and voting according to those facts, your conscience and with much consideration for your constituents; versus following party orders. It is going to take elected women and men with the courage of their convictions to come together, stepping over party lines, to protect us and bring us back from the brink. This post reads as an endorsement to me, just not the one the author intended.
I totally agree with Rick Hughes that Council member Mielke votes on specific issues affecting constituent issues rather than on party lines. That is why is support her.
Shari, this would be interesting if you had afforded council member Mielke the opportunity to speak to your points. I am sure you are accurate regarding vote counting. However, you editorialize about what those votes mean about Mielke. I’m not so sure that that part of it is accurate. I would like to hear what Mielke has to say about it.
The description of Bill 1622 and its sponsors is grossly inaccurate. The bill wasn’t designed to cripple or persecute anyone –it would not have shut down existing or new STRs. Residents throughout the County have raised concerns about security and quality of life when an STR enters their neighborhoods. Bill 1622 was an attempt by the sponsors Mr. Lesher and Ms. Mielke to do what legislators should do — balance the needs of full-time residents with the interests of STR owners (many of whom aren’t Talbot residents). The public comment record shows that the bill had both supporters and opponents. Mr. Lesher and Ms. Mielke listened carefully to all sides. They explained the decision to withdraw the bill and work on a new STR bill that considered public input. Again, just what responsible legislators should do.
True , Lynn was the ONLY council member who met with STR neighbors to hear their concerns . She has my support !
Why don’t you simply go to the videos of the meetings online and watch the proceedings?
That’s what I did for the votes that wasn’t in attendance for….
Very enlightening.
Any vote to deny the public from being able to comment has no justification.
Ms Wilcoxon, or at least her online persona here and on Next Door would not be well known for good faith debate. She continually attacks the messenger much like her far flung idol Trump. When people attempt to debate in good faith, she says “Y’all are the nastiest people on here”. What is truly troubling is that a person of such limited tolerance (and perhaps skill) is in a position to help decide which candidates are endorsed and which get cast aside. This is a betrayal of the public trust. Unfortunately, there remains a significant portion of Talbot Republicans that WANT Trump-like behavior in spite of the damage being done to us by those behaviors. America has been transformed almost overnight into a second rate power in much the same way as Putin’s Russia. Meanwhile China is rising above us due to unforced errors. And now, we have folks here in Talbot running over the cliff like lemmings with regard to our local policy making. This is a freaking disaster of massive proportions for our county. The Talbot GOP needs to start looking at itself and asking if these are the American values they truly believe in or have they been hoodwinked by a corrupt national agenda.
Council member Mielke has distinguished her service by focusing on facts rather than rhetoric, and on achieving the best results for her constituents. She is willing to cross party lines to achieve those goals, apparently to the reproach of the Talbot County Republican Central Committee. Shall we fill our Council seats with thoughtful and independent minded leaders, or with shills of the Central Committee ideology?
I wasn’t planning to vote for Council member Mielke, but I think I will now. Any candidate that ruffles the feathers of the current Republican establishment this much is on the right side of history.
Personally l think the lack of republican endorsement for council member Mielke underscores why everyone should vote for her over the sycophant republican lineup. I seem to remember Frank Gunsalus being summarily drubbed out of the Town of Easton council for his appalling views.
Anyone remember Lakeside?
Councilwoman Mielke consistently voted against that illegally approved project at every opportunity, and did her utmost (along with Pete Lesher) to require a full and proper review of that project by the Planning Commission. Callahan and Steppe executed every maneuver the developer’s lawyers devised to successfully dodge the proper Planning Commission review legally required (as did Keasha Haythe, who was elected by 81 votes then promptly reneged on her commitment to require such a review).
IMO the GOP Central Committee’s opposition to Mielke is due in no small part to her steadfast and principled position on that matter, as well as her refusal to be owned by Wilcoxon et al on cultural issues. Big money continues talks.
Dan Watson,
Acting Chairman
The Talbot Integrity Project
I applaud Lynn Mielke for using independent judgment in representing the people, all people, of Talbot County. Her responsibility as a Council member is not to take orders from the Central Committee but to vote her conscience and her own best judgment based on the facts.
Let’s take DEI. The Republican Central Committee uses her independent vote as a disqualification. If you think racism in America, and in Talbot County, is a thing of the past, think again.
Look at how Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other States are rushing to rig the midterms by re-gerrymandering congressional districts to disenfranchise black voters. Look how racial hatred and right-wing violence and intimidation is becoming normalized. Look at Trump’s interference in local policy decisions, demanding obedience in advance from local governments under threat of unlawful retaliation by an Administration that rides roughshod over the rule of law, both internationally and at the local level.
The Talbot County Republican Central Committee oversteps its own authority in demanding Republican Candidates get in line or get out. They do not represent Talbot County, Lynn Mielke does and she has acted with honor and distinction.
Wow. I had not been aware of all this. Thank you for putting it all in one place and thanks too to the other commenters. I will be looking forward to any way I can to support Ms Mielke or anyone else willing to work across the aisle.
Ms. Wilcoxon—It’s interesting that Republican County Council candidate Lynn Mielke is not being supported by The Republican Central Committee since she doesn’t always vote with fellow Republicans on issues that come before the Talbot County Council. Regardless, she deserves as much an opportunity to speak as any other Republican, especially since she is an incumbent office holder. You, chair of the Republican Central Committee, supported and promoted Frank Gunsallus IV, running as an Independent candidate for Town Council President when he ran against Republican candidate Al Silverstein. You also neglected to support both Robert Rankin and Mayor Willey, both Republicans, in their bid for office. In fact, you recruited unproven candidates to run against Republicans. Please explain why Independent candidates deserved your support as a member of the Republican Central Committee, when your most important responsibility is to recruit and support REPUBLICAN candidates who can win.
One more vote for Mielke. Thank you for pointing out her courage. Nothing would be worse for our community than voting for someone who just does what she’s told by her “party”—or by the writer of this massive backfire.
Thanks for making that distinction. Of course, this raises another question. If a voter supports Mielke because she is loyal to the overall Talbot County community over the party (while still being largely loyal to the party), why would voters vote for any Republican who pledges party loyalty just to ensure they are nominated by that party?
Lynn Mielke is a problem for Maga and Shari. Mielke is a lawyer, in fact the only lawyer on the current council. Lawyers are trained to have a little better nose for unconstitutional actions than the average person. Trump’s agenda is loaded with unconstitutionality, which Maga dutifully accepts. Shari’s mission is to crush any opposition to Trump’s unconstitutional measures. Let’s take vote #1. The President issued an executive order declaring anything with the label “DEI” unacceptable and applied it to already appropriated funds, the $56.8 million. That violates the Constitution first, because only Congress appropriates funds, not the President. Second, the President was offended by the DEI provision in the County employees handbook. The 10th Amendment grants authority to the states, not the President, to regulate its own employees. Another unconstitutionality. Third, the President’s Secretary of Transportation tried to block federal monies to any county that had DEI policies. Another unconstitutional act. The DEI measures in fact had the label “DEI” but were not discriminatory. The County Attorney said so.
Shari’s effort, probably unauthorized by Republican rules, to drum Lynne Mielke out of her office and the Party should be seen for what it is — an effort to lessen opposition on the Council to Trump’s unconstitutional actions.
You are correct about the votes that Lynn Mielke made, but your characterizations of Mielke’s positions, actions and impacts on the issues that I followed are way out of line. I hope the readers will spend the time to dig into the issues behind the votes to understand the nuances. I find it to be a sad day when the Republican party chooses to exclude and ostracize an incumbent candidate of its own party because she does not vote as instructed by the party bosses. Council Member Mielke is thoughtful, thorough, and focuses on the facts. She is a Council Member who listens to citizens, gathers facts, and takes actions in the best interests of Talbot County based on the merits and consequences. She works with both parties and has courage. She deserves the opportunity to speak and make her thoughts known. Let’s not let the nasty partisan environment of national politics get in the way of good policy on local issues that are fundamentally nonpartisan. She is exactly what we need on the Council.
Constitution does not mandate party loyalty. An official cannot be removed from office or arrested for voting against their party. This is a quote from a Google answer. Just tossing it there for thoughts?
I remind the author that Ms. Mielke was the top vote-getter in the Council election of 2024. The voters correctly perceived her personal integrity and dedication to serving all the citizens of Talbot County. Since that election Ms. Mielke has remained pragmatic, worked “across the aisle” and maintained the courage of her own convictions. She gives tirelessly of her time and energy . I respectfully suggest that Ms. Mielke is the most deserving and electable candidate in the Republican field. I ask that all registered Republicans turn-out for the Republican primary – if for no other reason than to support the candidacy of Lynn Mielke.
I fully support Lynn Mielke. We, the voters of Talbot County want a representative that represents US and NOT an automation of a party that, quite frankly, many of us are getting fed up with. Go Lynn Go!…. You Got This!!
Constituents have a right to assume that a candidate running on a certain ticket will vote a certain way the majority of the time. If a Democrat candidate always voted with Republicans then Democrats would have a fit. It is better to be honest and join the party that best expresses a candidate’s views. Otherwise the voters are deceived. Shari W and the rest of the RCCTC have a right to endorse candidates who best represent Republican ideals.
You said “Shari W and the rest of the RCCTC have a right to endorse candidates who best represent Republican ideals.” Which ideals are those? I’m hearing from a lot of Republicans that MAGA ideals and traditional conservative Republican ideals are not the same. I think the point many are making here is that MAGA ideals represent such a small minority that they should not be the loyalty test for all in the Party. There a lot of purple square pegs being unsuccessfully jammed into red or blue holes around here. How about we recognize that and create the hole that fits our unique community?