Proven community leader.
Respected state legislator.
Cathi Forbes never intended to run for office. But after two decades as a successful community leader and education advocate, the office found her. She was appointed to fill a vacancy in the House of Delegates in 2019, and elected to the office in 2022. She sees it as an opportunity to get even more done for the people of Baltimore County.
Cathi does her homework on every issue she takes on, arguing not with vitriol but with facts. From education to the environment to issues of race and social justice, she has pledged to always vote on the right side of history.
That’s why Cathi has earned the support of so many in Towson, and beyond!
FORBES FACTS
Member, House of Delegates, since 2019
Member, House Appropriations Committee
Chair, Oversight Committee on Pensions
Chair, Baltimore County Delegation Education Subcommittee
Member, Capital Budget Subcommittee
100% lifetime voting record, MD League of Conservation Voters
Towson resident, married with two children
Early community work
Cathi grew up believing that we all have a role to play in making our communities better. As early as 2001, she was speaking out on issues affecting our neighborhoods. She volunteered countless hours as a board member of the West Towson Community Association. And with two kids at Rodgers Forge Elementary, she was proud to co-chair “Tech Trek,” the school’s popular fundraiser.
By 2008, Rodgers Forge had become the most overcrowded elementary school in the state. Yet there were no plans in place to solve the problem. So Cathi founded Towson Families United, a coalition of residents and businesses.
Their efforts resulted in the construction of West Towson Elementary, where she co-founded “Westy’s Walk,” Mays Chapel Elementary, plus additions or major renovations at Stoneleigh and Hampton Elementary, and Dumbarton Middle.
Learn more about her efforts in this Baltimore Sun profile.
Serving in Annapolis
Cathi hit the ground running when she assumed office in October of 2019. She serves on the House Appropriations Committee, where she’s proud to have helped balance the state’s operating and capital budgets and produce record surpluses, while at the same time providing significant small business relief and aid to individuals hit hard by the pandemic.
She’s sponsored important statewide legislation that has since become law, and has secured substantial capital funding for projects in her district, from large-scale construction at Towson University and the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center, to important community efforts like the new Six Bridge walking trail.
And Cathi has been a solid vote for education reform, climate change, health care access, voting rights and issues of social and racial justice. She is known in Annapolis as someone who does her homework, and comes prepared.
Serving at home, throughout the year
Constituent service is one of Cathi’s highest priorities. She and her Chief of Staff, Susan Parts, thrive on helping people resolve problems, and try hard to answer every phone call, email and letter. If there’s a local issue that involves the state, they’re on top of it.
When COVID-19 hit in March of 2020, they worked overtime to help people whose unemployment claims were stuck, businesses caught up in red tape and in need of resources, and more. Cathi also took the lead in expanding the Student Support Network’s food distribution program, serving thousands of food-insecure residents every Friday for the rest of the year.
