Adrienne Alease Jones (born November 20, 1954) is an American politician who has served as the 107th Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she is the first African-American and first woman to serve in that position in Maryland. She has represented District 10 in the Maryland House of Delegates since 1997.
Early life and education
Born in the historically African-American community of Cowdensville in Arbutus, Maryland, Jones was the second of five children. She attended Baltimore County public schools and graduated from Lansdowne High School, and later attended the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where she earned a B.A. degree in psychology in 1976.
Career
Early career
After graduating, Jones worked as a clerk in the Baltimore County's Office of Central Services. She first became involved in politics in 1979, when started working as a legislative officer for Baltimore County Executive Donald P. Hutchinson. In 1987, Jones became a member of Woman Power, Inc., a voter education organization. From 1989 to 1995, she worked as the director of the Office of Minority Affairs in Baltimore County, Maryland, afterwards working as the executive director of the Office of Fair Practices and Community Affairs until 2011. Jones later worked as the deputy director of the Office of Human Resources until 2014.
Maryland House of Delegates
Jones was a member of the Baltimore County Democratic Central Committee and applied to fill a vacancy in the Maryland House of Delegates following the death of then-state delegate Joan N. Parker in 1997. Her candidacy was backed by several local area politicians, including Baltimore County Executive Dutch Ruppersberger, state senators Delores G. Kelley and Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, and state delegate Emmett C. Burns Jr. The Baltimore County Democratic Central Committee voted to nominate her out of a field of 16 candidates. Her nomination was confirmed by Governor Parris Glendening, and she was sworn in on October 21, 1997.
From 2003 to 2019, Jones served as the speaker pro tempore of the Maryland House of Delegates, the first African-American woman to serve in this position. In this capacity, she filled in for House Speaker Michael E. Busch when he was absent.
In December 2008, following a unexpected drop in state revenues, Governor Martin O'Malley ordered a furlough for state employees. Jones voluntarily participated in the state employee furlough later that month. The constitutionality of doing this was unclear, as the Constitution of Maryland prohibits the state government from furloughing state legislators.
In May 2020, Jones was named co-chair of the Maryland Women for Biden group, alongside Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, State Senate President Pro Tem Melony G. Griffith, and Maryland Democratic Party Chair Yvette Lewis. In January 2021, she condemned the January 6 United States Capitol attack, calling it "nothing less than sedition".
In April 2022, Jones signed 103 Maryland measures into law together with Republican Governor Larry Hogan and Maryland Senate president pro tempore Melony G. Griffith. It was the first time that two Black women had taken part in such a ceremony as Maryland's presiding officers.
Committee assignments
Member, Appropriations Committee, 1997–2003, 2003–2019 (public safety & administration subcommittee, 1997–2003; oversight committee on program open space & agricultural land preservation, 1999–2003; vice-chair, oversight committee on personnel, 1999–2003, member, 2007–2019; oversight committee on pensions, 2004–2015; health & human resources subcommittee, 2011–2012; chair, capital budget subcommittee, 2003–2019, member, 1999–2019; chair, education & economic development subcommittee, 2015–2019, member, 2004–2010, 2013–2019) Member, Ways and Means Committee, 2003 (finance resources subcommittee, 2003; tax & revenue subcommittee, 2003) House Chair, Joint Committee on Fair Practices, 1999-2009
Election as Speaker
Jones took over as Acting Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates on April 7, 2019, following the death of then-Speaker Michael E. Busch. A few days later, following Busch's funeral, she announced that she would run for Speaker, becoming the first candidate to declare an intention to run. She withdrew her candidacy later that month after failing to secure enough support, and endorsed state delegate Dereck E. Davis.