STATE OF THE CAMPAIGN & MOVING FORWARD
Authored 01 March 2018
To my friends, colleagues, supporters, citizens of Legislative District 42B, all citizens of Baltimore County, and all citizens of the great State of Maryland:
As I indicated in a social media post yesterday, I've been on radio silence for several days due to a very serious recent emergency: a very near and very dear friend to me has been in extremely poor health, and for a number of days it was looking like this would be, as they say, ‘the end.’ Out of respect for privacy, I have refrained from further detail, other than to say that it brought my life to a screeching halt since the end of last week. Over the course of the last decade of my life I've lost too many friends & acquaintances before their time. That being said, the recent situation really, for lack of better words at the moment, ‘hit me hard’ for fear that I'd lose another - but thankfully, things are looking up.
I am also faced with my own handful of personal life changes that have come to fruition in the last several weeks which have cumulatively made a significant impact upon the routine of my life and my responsibilities - one is that a personal partnership of a number of years has come to an end, and that has necessitated a number of changes for me personally.
As my life is changing – some priorities and endeavors both public and personal having been neglected over the course of the last year, and still others coming into the forefront of my immediate focus, combined with a number of unavoidable unknowns in both the immediate and distant future – I have come to the conclusion over a number of days, and after consulting with a plethora of confidants and resources, that while I COULD continue my campaign for Maryland State Delegate, the absolute truth is that, at the present time, I lack the resources, time, and ultimately, the cumulative ability, to continue to be at the forefront of a significant political campaign – one that I have grown and fostered passionately with zest and vigor – one that deserves one hundred percent of what I might otherwise be able to give were I not faced with a number of recent circumstances and changes that inhibit my ability to give it my ALL. While I COULD, the question has become one of whether I SHOULD. I chose to become a candidate for representative public office because I want to do the best by the community in which I am so incredibly proud to have known virtually my entire life. And if I can’t give my ALL to this campaign, and thereby to the community I have aimed to intend to serve, then the campaign is not worth pushing forward. It is not an easy choice – believe me, it has been nearly my sole focus for over a year, since before its official formation – but I am an honest man, with myself and with my community, and with all of you reading this address. So I know the honest choice that must be made.
Today, 01 March 2018, I have officially withdrawn my candidacy for Maryland State Delegate in this upcoming 2018 election primary in June.
Throughout the course of this campaign, before its actual formation, when I was still just conceiving the possibility of running for an office of public representation, I came to the table with a set of values that paired fiscal responsibility with individual liberty, first and foremost. I stand by my convictions today, and will continue as such. I have throughout my life been a registered Democrat, and then a Libertarian, and today, a Republican. I have ALWAYS strived to put principle before Party, and to put people before Party – but never have my values changed, regardless of Party affiliation. I have enjoyed an amazing opportunity to open myself up, to make public my personal convictions, and MOST importantly, to have been blessed with the opportunity to be receptive to my fellow members of the community, and to hear what so many of them want for their (OUR) community. I built a campaign that aligned with my personal convictions – because I became keenly aware that so many in the community, regardless of political Party or affiliation (or lack thereof), shared the very same values. I am so thankful to have been blessed with the opportunity to see that reality in a very hands-on fashion over the past year. From the start, I knew that my campaign would bear the slogan, “For Liberty; For Our Community.” I know those very words I selected resonate with my neighbors and my peers and so many of you in the community. I hope that such an idea will continue to resonate. I have great personal faith that it will. I have great personal faith in YOUR ability to elect the best leaders for our community in the state legislature.
I made the decision to run for office because I believe that public representation is in desperate need of an influx of “everyday Joe’s” who aren’t wrapped-up in allegiance to political parties, who haven’t been ushered into politics and public representation by “party insiders,” and who, rather than subscribing to “politics as usual,” are legitimately devoted to the people & well-being of our community. An informed public is close to my heart – and the factors that have set me apart from other candidates in so many of these races are significant. I’m not a current or former politician, because we sure have enough of those; I’m not bought and sold, and will not be obliged to “party insiders” - though I welcomed their support if they truly believe in my message; I’ve refused the “red tape” and conditions we sometimes find in political circles that can present as deterrents from new faces entering races. I’ve honestly and earnestly guaranteed you that my only allegiance has been to YOU in this campaign, and to the conservative values and fiscal responsibility that matter to so many in our communities. I’ve never been one to subscribe to “politics as usual.” I don’t run local political clubs with access to high-profile favorites & insiders. I’m a “free agent” who wants the same common-sense values and fiscally-conservative approaches to legislation concerning our community – just like so many of you. And I chose to jump in. I am proud of that. I always will be.
But more than anything else, I am SO INCREDIBLY PROUD of the support you’ve all shown me, and even MORE than that (if that’s even possible!), I’m so PROUD that folks have taken the time to share their ideas, their own convictions, to have the conversation (we must ALWAYS remain willing to have the conversation, as a community) – it’s been a mind-blowing experience, one of the very greatest of my life, sincerely. To connect with so many people of differing ideas, convictions, proposals, and viewpoints. I’ve garnered support not only from fellow Republicans, but from many Libertarians, Constitutionalists, Democrats, a Green Party member or two, Independents, and unaffiliated citizens. How many other folks can say the same?
I am so, SO incredibly grateful to all of you. Beyond my ability to find the words to express it. It has been an honor.
So, as for moving forward: I want to direct your attention to two of the other candidates in the race from which I have withdrawn. These two gentlemen deserve your attention and I hope that you will lend them the consideration of taking the opportunity to let them know what YOU want from your legislative representatives – because I know them personally, I know that they care, and I know that they both have distinguished records of public service to the community. They are “in this” for the right reasons. They’re not mere “agents of the political machine” with mile-long list of endorsements from former and current politicians, riding on the “politics as usual” notion that “Big Money” and endorsements by the “political machine” will get them elected. There ARE candidates out there who would seem to (definitely) operate that way, unfortunately, and they aren’t worth your consideration – but the two gentlemen in this particular race for District 42B (much of Baltimore County) who are putting in the REAL grunt work, who I hope that you will take the time to give consideration, the two VERY good men who I will ABSOLUTELY support, endorse, and for whom I will vote on June 26th because their convictions and my own are so closely aligned, are THESE two gentlemen:
Justin Kinsey for State Delegate: https://www.facebook.com/mjustinkinsey/
Ray Boccelli for Delegate: https://www.facebook.com/BoccelliforDelegate/
Certainly, my friends, this is not a goodbye – rather, this is a show of my utmost appreciation, my respect for each and every one of you, and my sincere hope that you will stand by your convictions, uphold the principles of fiscal responsibility and individual liberty that make our nation the greatest on earth.
I hope that, if you aren’t already curious about politics at a local and state level, you start. Because the fact is, you can turn on the news any night of the week and hear about national politics and the happenings in the White House, sure. But the changes that really impact YOU are the happenings at the local and state level. And YOU have the power to choose WHO makes those decisions legislatively – such is the nature of the democratic republic that is the United States of America.
At the local level, my friends: whatever your political identity, and whatever your convictions, I hope that we, as a community, can agree that Marylanders deserve the best. Let’s all do our part to work to preserve liberty together, and keep the right principles and conscience at the forefront of our Maryland communities.
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for everything. It has been an honor, and most certainly, a most-distinguished privilege.
God Bless You, my friends.
And God Bless America.
In Liberty, Now and Always,
Joseph D. Sandy
[By Authority of FRIENDS OF JOSEPH SANDY – Maurice Grace, Treasurer]
UPDATE: 03 March 2018
I want to thank all of you for the kind words and the tremendous outpouring of support, in response to my announcement that I have elected to suspend my campaign in lieu of a lot of other responsibilities to family, projects, endeavors, volunteerism in the community, and even life changes that are moving me in a better direction looking toward the future. My friends, I am not out of the "scene," but a campaign with me at the head of it deserves 100% of my attention, and that's something I intend to pursue in the next election cycle locally. Thank you all SO much for all of your consideration and support!
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