Steven A. Silverman (born April 25, 1954 in

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

), also known as Steve Silverman, is an American

lobbyist In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

, politician and lawyer. Until December 2014, he was Director of the

Montgomery County Montgomery County may refer to: Australia * The former name of Montgomery Land District, Tasmania United Kingdom * The historic county of Montgomeryshire, Wales, also called County of Montgomery United States * Montgomery County, Alabama * Mon ...

Department of Economic Development. Silverman was appointed by Montgomery County Executive

Isiah Leggett Isiah "Ike" Leggett (born July 25, 1944) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Maryland and former executive of Montgomery County, Maryland. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Born in Deweyville, Texas, Leggett attended Southe ...

as Director of the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development in April 2009. Just prior to his appointment, Silverman served as the Director of Aging, Health Care, and Special Projects, for Maryland's Attorney General's Office. Prior to that, he served as the Chief of that office's Consumer Protection Division. Previously, Silverman was a politician and an at-large County Councilmember in

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous county in the state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat and largest municipality is Rockville, although the census-design ...

where he served two four-year terms. He chaired the Council's Planning, Housing, and Economic Development Committee and was twice chosen by his peers to serve as President of the Council. Silverman, a liberal

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, ran on the Democratic Party ticket for Montgomery County Executive, a position being vacated by

Doug Duncan Douglas Michael Duncan (born October 25, 1955) is a former American politician from Maryland who served as Rockville City Councilman, Rockville Mayor, Montgomery County Executive, and candidate for Governor of Maryland. He is a member of the Dem ...

, who did not seek re-election. Councilmember Silverman focused his campaign around the issues of relieving traffic congestion, improving education, and increasing affordable housing among many others. Silverman lost the County Executive primary election, garnering 36% of the vote. Isiah "Ike" Leggett won the primary, receiving 61% of the vote. (Leggett later won the general election.) Candidate Robert Fustero (who had run for

Governor of Maryland The Governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive power ...

in 2002 but lost in the primary to

Kathleen Kennedy Townsend Kathleen Hartington Kennedy Townsend (born July 4, 1951) is an American attorney who was the sixth Lieutenant Governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003. She ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Maryland in 2002. She was the first female lieutenant ...

) received 3% of the vote. Silverman appeared in debates against Democratic Party candidate Isiah Leggett, and occasionally debated against independent candidate

Robin Ficker Robin Ficker (born April 5, 1943) is an American disbarred attorney, real estate broker, former state legislator, political activist, sports heckler, and perennial political candidate. Ficker ran unsuccessfully for Montgomery County Executive i ...

or Republican candidate Chuck Floyd. Silverman is widely recognized for his strong support of taxpayer-funded social services and low-priced housing. He has been instrumental in persuading the Montgomery County Council to fund

CASA de Maryland CASA (formerly ''CASA of Maryland'') is a Latino and immigration advocacy-and-assistance organization based in Maryland. It is active throughout the state, but has major foci in Prince George's County, Montgomery County and Baltimore. CASA infl ...

, a group that runs

day laborer Day labor (or day labour in Commonwealth spelling) is work done where the worker is hired and paid one day at a time, with no promise that more work will be available in the future. It is a form of contingent work. Types Day laborers (also kn ...

centers and provides social services to

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...

. He resigned from his position as Director of the

Department of Economic Development in December 2014 to launch a government relations firm, SSGovRelations, LLC. In 1998, he was the co-chairman of the Silver Spring Redevelopment Steering Committee (

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially Unincorporated area, unincorporated, in practice it is an edge cit ...

). In the 1990s, he was an attorney at Silverman and Schild, LLP in Silver Spring, Maryland.

References

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Silverman, Steven Living people George Washington University Law School alumni American University alumni 1954 births Maryland Democrats Politicians from Portsmouth, New Hampshire Maryland lawyers People from Silver Spring, Maryland Lawyers from Washington, D.C. American lobbyists 21st-century Maryland politicians