Councilwoman Lynn Mielke has filed an ethics complaint against the Talbot County Republican Central Committee (TCRCC) for its unethical behavior in the current Republican primary. In her letter to the Maryland Republican Party, Lynn describes how the TCRCC has been campaigning against her, even though she is a Republican and was elected to the County Council four years ago with more votes than any other Republican.
In short, Lynn observes that there are 6 Republican candidates in the primary. The TCRCC has given active support to five of them, and publicly stated that “Councilmember Lynn Mielke is not endorsed nor supported by the Talbot County Republican Central Committee.” Lynn explains in her letter how she has been excluded from all events sponsored by the TCRCC to showcase its favored five candidates.
In her complaint, Lynn also described how the TCRCC has actively and unfairly opposed her by, among other actions, publishing a letter that mischaracterized the facts about her votes and support as an incumbent Councilwoman.
Lynn asked the MDGOP to rectify this improper conduct so that all Talbot County Republicans have a full, fair and just opportunity to hear from all candidates, as a central committee is supposed to do.
Lynn demonstrated and confirmed her commitment to long-standing values of the American political process, the Republican Party, and Talbot County throughout her four years of service on the County Council. She deserves better than the treatment she has received from a committee of nine unelected persons who believe themselves to be the arbiters of who is and who is not a Republican in Talbot County.
Esther Montgomery
Easton
They also have excluded all Republican gubernatorial candidates in favor of just one. It seems that they are choosing the candidates they approve of, having done the same in past elections, telling candidates they “weren’t Republican enough” for them. That’s not the job of the Committee. They apparently have lost track, or perhaps never knew what their purpose is, to promote REPUBLICAN candidates. Let the people choose by hearing what each stands for, not just the preference of one person.
Letter to Editor in response to multiple allegations in the Talbot Spy and The Star Democrat
The voting record is very clear and speaks for itself.
Council member Mielke has asked voters to trust her account of her votes over the Talbot County Republican Central Committee’s presentation of dates and facts. We agree with her on one thing: voters should not trust her or us, they should go look for themselves.
Every vote referenced below is part of the public record. We encourage every voter to do exactly that, go look for yourself. The dates of the meetings/votes are included for ease in finding them online. You can listen/watch the recorded Talbot County Council meetings at their website https://talbotcountymd.gov/meetings . There are written minutes as well.
Vote 1 — DEI Resolution and Federal Funding (February and March and June 2025)
On February 25, 2025, Council member Mielke voted alongside Democrat Pete Lesher to block public comment on the proposed repeal of DEI administrative resolutions. Vote 3-2.
On March 11, 2025, she voted with the Democratic members of the Council to keep DEI policy training for county employees, despite President Trump’s January 20 Executive Order and despite knowing the risk of losing federal funding. The vote was 2-3: Callahan and Stepp voted Aye; Lesher, Haythe, and Mielke voted Nay.
On June 10, 2025, after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent an open letter dated April 24, 2025, threatening to freeze, stop, and claw back federal grant funding from any recipient with DEI policies, outlining clearly for those still not understanding the risk of Talbot County losing approximately $56.8 million in federal funds, including $48.6 million for the Airport Modernization Project, only then did Council member Mielke reverse her vote.
She only changed her vote when she had no other choice.
Vote 2 — Short-Term Rental Legislation, Bill 1622 (October 2025)
Council member Mielke co-introduced Bill 1622 with Democrat Pete Lesher, imposing broad regulations on short-term rental property owners across Talbot County. The bill was so poorly received at the November 26, 2025 public hearing, and from Talbot County citizen communications, that by December 9, 2025, even her Democratic co-sponsor Lesher withdrew his support of his own/their bill. Only then did Council member Mielke withdraw her support as well.
It is also a matter of public record, reported in the Maryland Campaign Finance Reporting System, that the largest single donor to Lynn Mielke’s 2022 campaign was/is a registered Democrat – the same individual she subsequently voted to appoint to the Short-Term Rental Review Board, where he became Chairman. Mielke then co-authored the STR Bill 1622 with Pete Lesher. Did Council member Mielke disclose this relationship to the other council members or the public? We could find no record of such. We know she didn’t recuse herself, nor did she abstain from any vote involving her donor, that board appointment, nor did it stop her from introducing legislation concerning that board with her largest donor as Chairman.
Vote 3 — Election Integrity (September 24, 2024)
When Council members Dave Stepp and Chuck Callahan motioned to send a letter to the Talbot County Board of Elections urging compliance with election law on judge parity — the same request made independently by Sheriff Joe Gamble — Council member Mielke abstained. The motion passed 4-0-1.
Vote 4 — FY 2024-25 County Budget (May 28, 2024)
Council member Mielke was the sole vote against the annual county budget, which funded the Talbot County Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Services, and Public Schools. The budget passed 4-1.
Another fact, in a 2023 campaign report filing, Lynn Mielke was named along with a few other candidates who benefited from nearly $45,000 in campaign expenditures from the Talbot Integrity Project (TIP)/Dan Watson, alongside Democrat Ronald “Pete” Lesher, Democrat Phillip Jackson, Democrat Michelle Dappert, Democrat Scott Kane, Democrat Keasha Haythe, and William “David” Montgomery. Voters can draw their own conclusions.
The TCRCC has endorsed five candidates who have demonstrated a consistent commitment to Republican principles and to the people of Talbot County:
Chuck Callahan
Dave Stepp
Frank Gunsallus
Christian MacKendrick
Wade Strickland
We ask every Republican voter to go to the Council meeting records and verify the truth, make up your own minds, and then please vote in the Republican Primary on June 23. Early voting is June 11-18 at the Easton Firehouse. We ask that you vote for all five true Republican candidates listed above.
Shari Wilcoxon
Chair, Talbot County Republican Central Committee
For more information, please go to https://talbotcountyrepublicancc.org/
Setting the Record Straight
I write this letter on the morning of June 23, 2026, to set the record straight—not to influence the outcome of the Republican primary election. As I write, the results are unknown to me. I do hope Lynn Mielke is re-nominated, as she was the top Republican vote-getter in the 2022 primary election. In the past four years , Lynn has worked tirelessly for all the citizens of Talbot County.
Recently, the Chair of the Talbot County Republican Central Committee (TRCC) has repeatedly invoked my name and my role in attacks directed at Councilwoman Mielke’s candidacy. In my experience, these are highly unusual activities by a Central Committee representative.
Because those assertions misrepresent both the facts and my role in local government, they deserve a response.
Lynn Mielke is a friend of mine. We first met around 1998 while participating in the Follies, an amateur theatrical production that benefits a local nonprofit organization. Over the years, our paths have crossed many times, both socially and professionally. In 2013, when Lynn retired from private law practice, she asked me to handle a real estate transaction on her behalf.
Our political views are not identical. In 1994, I sought the Republican nomination for Maryland State Senate in the 37th District, running against my friends Rich Colbourn and Ken Gelletly. I finished a distant second. My brand of moderate Republicanism—fiscally conservative with a social conscience, in the tradition of Senator Charles “Mac” Mathias and Congresswoman Helen Delich Bentley, both of whom endorsed my candidacy—appealed to fewer than 25 percent of Republican primary voters. As the Republican Party evolved further, I ultimately changed my party affiliation in 2016. Nevertheless, I still consider myself, at heart, a moderate Republican.
Lynn Mielke, by contrast, is a mainstream Republican conservative. She is intelligent, thoughtful, and committed to serving all citizens of Talbot County—not merely those who share her political views. She possesses the courage of her convictions and has served the county with dedication and integrity.
Given our longstanding friendship and professional association, I contributed to Lynn’s 2022 County Council campaign. I had no idea that my contribution would become her campaign’s largest individual donation, and it was hardly an extraordinary sum. There was no quid pro quo—none was requested, implied, or expected.
Following an unsuccessful effort as a private citizen to oppose a short-term rental application in my neighborhood in 2023, I shared my view that Talbot County’s short-term rental law could benefit from review and improvement. When a vacancy later arose on the Short-Term Rental Review Board (STRRB), I submitted a letter of interest to the entire Talbot County Council. I was subsequently nominated and unanimously confirmed by the full Council.
Serving on the STRRB has been both challenging and rewarding. The position is administrative rather than political. Board members do not create policy; we administer the law as enacted by the County Council. In 2026, my fellow board members elected me Chairman. Councilwoman Mielke played no role in that decision.
I have no conflicts of interest. I do not own short-term rental properties, nor do I manage them.
What the position does require is a significant commitment of time and effort. My colleagues and I devote many hours each month to reviewing cases, listening to residents, and carrying out our responsibilities. We serve without compensation or reimbursement. While the work is often demanding, it is also an opportunity to contribute to the community. It is certainly not the sinecure some have portrayed it to be.
Let me be clear: Councilwoman Mielke is a dedicated and ethical public servant whose record should be evaluated on its merits. My 2022 campaign contribution was made out of friendship, gratitude, and my exercise of First Amendment rights. It was not part of any arrangement or understanding. Likewise, my service as Chairman of the STRRB is a responsibility entrusted to me by my peers, not a political favor.
I encourage any Talbot County citizen who values public service and good government to consider volunteering for boards and commissions such as the STRRB. Our community benefits when residents are willing to contribute their time and talents. I look forward to the day when we can disagree respectfully and work together toward common goals.
Hugh M. Smith
Ms. Wilcoxin is simply out of touch with Talbot Republicans and is too hell bent on her own rigid MAGA agenda. Political parties are living and breathing things that bend, change and morph as do its members. The Talbot GOP needs to change with the times and Wilcoxin, Stepp and Gunsaullus are one in the same.
Leading in a representative government is a difficult and often messy process. Officials are often elected by members of one party, but their job is to represent all of the constituents in their district. They have to balance this against their own convictions, and at times choose to vote for they consider to be best for the community, even when it is counter to their own convictions. When looking at any issue before a local government, there are almost always competing schools of thought. I want to be represented by officials who can see both sides of an argument, and look for compromise. Almost nothing in life is either/or, and politics is no exception. Talbot GOP should allow all Republican voices to be heard, and let the people decide.
This is a HUGE over step of our Republican Committee. They assume we can’t think for ourselves and want to dictate to us how we should vote and manipulate the election by purposely snubbing a republican who has represented our local interests fairly and responsibly. Just for this I will vote for Lynn since I know she is an independent thinker. My recommendation is to vote for Lynn Mielke and only Lynn. This will greatly magnify your vote to ensure she makes it into the top 5.