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The Democratic candidates in the District 14 Senate and House races used a forum last week — less than three weeks before the Sept. 14 primary election — to distinguish themselves from each other.

Sen. Rona Kramer (D-Dist.14) of Olney, who is being challenged by Del. Karen S. Montgomery for the seat, said she was eager to use the Aug. 25 gathering to highlight her time in the State Senate, which includes positions on the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and the Public Safety, Transportation and Environment Sub-Committee.

"Our accomplishments," Kramer said. "That's what separates us."

Kramer and Montgomery (D-Dist. 14) of Brookeville are on the same page with some issues, such as increasing the state alcohol tax and lowering the proposed toll rate for the Intercounty Connector, the $2.6 billion east-west toll road that will connect Gaithersburg and Laurel and go through the district.

However, they did not agree on all issues.

When the topic of the death penalty was raised, Kramer said she thinks there are times in which it is needed, but Montgomery said otherwise.

"I believe it's a moral issue," Montgomery said. "But it's not up to us to kill somebody."

Kramer and Montgomery also were separated on the topic of slot machines. Montgomery said she objects to slots, but Kramer said they are a stream of revenue. Kramer said revenue generated by the lottery and Keno support the school system.

Montgomery has served on the Environmental Matters Committee, the Veterans Behavioral Health Advisory Board, the Autism Task Force and the Health and Government Operations Committee, according to her website.

Later in the evening, the crowded field of House candidates — Vanessa Ali, Neeta Datt, Jodi Finkelstein, Eric Luedtke, Robert Bo Newsome, Gerald Roper, Craig Zucker and incumbent Del. Anne Kaiser (D-Dist. 14) — were limited to one minute to answer prepared questions from moderator Matt Bush of WAMU radio and 30 seconds to address those submitted by the audience.

"Montgomery County is a fabulous place to live," Finkelstein said. "But we've changed — we work harder for less and we need to educate the state that our needs are changing."

Transportation united the eight candidates, all of whom offered support of the construction of Purple Line, road repair, increased public transportation and more pedestrian access.

"If we don't have a [transportation] plan, we'll just keep filling up potholes," Datt said.

Kaiser cited the growing need for sidewalks on roads such Md. 108, where heavy traffic is hazardous to students walking to Sherwood High School.

"It's also about fixing our neighborhood roads," she said, adding her support of the gas tax.

Luedtke spoke highly of the need for increased funding for transportation efforts.

"We need to wall off that transportation money," he said. "We also need to stop investing in massive transportation projects and start working on smaller projects that will get people around."

An audience-submitted question regarding the extension of benefits to same-sex couples in Montgomery County elicited the most reaction from the crowd.

Ali, a Christian minister whose answers seemed uncertain for most of the event, sounded most confident when giving her opinion of same-sex unions.

"I strongly oppose," said Ali, the only District 14 candidate who had failed to submit a campaign finance report to the Maryland Board of Elections by Monday. "It's something of the church. The church says [marriage] is between a man and a woman."

At the end of the forum, some candidates said they felt frustrated by the time allotment set for answering questions.

"I thought the forum was excellent. We were on the same page," Roper said. "But the time was the only thing that hurt."

Datt reiterated Roper's sentiments.

"One minute is not enough, but everyone received the same amount of time," she said.

Even with the limited time, candidates still found a way to make their ideas known. Zucker discussed jobs in the bio-tech and life sciences sectors as an opportunity to tap into job growth, while Newsome referred to job creation as detrimental in alleviating the county's budgetary concerns.

"We're not going to tax our way out of this deficit," he said.

The forum was staged at Sandy Spring Friends School with an audience of more than 100.

The forum, sponsored by the Greater Olney Civic Association, Sandy Spring Civic Association, League of Women Voters, Greater Colesville Civic Association and Sandy Spring Ashton Rural Preservation Consortium, opened with an informal meet-and-greet in the halls of the school's Performing Arts Center, where candidates spoke candidly with voters.

District 14 is comprised of all or parts of Ashton, Brinklow, Brookeville, Burtonsville, Calverton, Cloverly, Colesville, Damascus, Fairland, Goshen, Laytonsville, Montgomery Village, Olney, Sandy Spring, Silver Spring, Spencerville and Sunshine.

The top three finishers in the Democratic primary will face off against Republican candidates Maria Peña-Faustino, Patricia Fenati and Henry Kahwaty in the House general election Nov. 2. The winner in the State Senate primary election will face Republican challenger Eric Cary Nov. 2.

nnourmohammadi@gazette.net