As remaining mail-in ballots are counted and Maryland’s general election comes to a close, two new legislators have quietly made history — for their age.

Jeffrie Long Jr., 26, and Joe Vogel, 25, who are members of Generation Z, won election this year to the Maryland House of Delegates.

The Pew Research Center defines Gen Z as those born between 1997 to 2012, but ultimately, there isn’t an official start or end. And even though Long was born just before 1997, he still considers himself to be Gen Z.

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Long, who was born and raised in Calvert County, has now been elected to the Maryland House of Delegates. After winning the Democratic primary with 54.33% of the vote, Long ran unopposed in Tuesday’s general election and will now represent District 27B, encompassing parts of Calvert and Prince George’s counties.

Long got his start in Maryland politics working as a legislative aide under former Senate President Emeritus Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., an opportunity he said gave him a chance “to see Maryland and see public service in a whole different vantage point, and believe ‘I think I can do that, too. I believe there’s a place for me there, too.’”

He went on to work in the offices of state Sen. Joanne Benson and then-Del. Michael Jackson. Jackson previously represented District 27B, and now serves the area in the Maryland Senate.

Long spoke with The Baltimore Banner on Friday afternoon about his campaign and preparation, as well as Gen Z’s future in the political arena. The interview was edited for length and clarity.

The Baltimore Banner: How did you campaign?

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Jeffrie Long Jr.: I campaigned vigorously because I believed that I had so many hurdles to overcome. And by me being young, I had to prove that I belonged, and that I wasn’t going to get there just by political power, influence, but that hard work and grit was going to get me there. So I knocked on over 19,000 doors. I worked my labor connections.

I received labor’s endorsement, which was unprecedented to receive not being an incumbent. My parents belong to labor, I worked those connections, I was able to pull on what I could from my time in Annapolis to get labor support. And I believe that the support of labor, coupled with campaigning, coupled with the fact that I just genuinely like people, like hearing conversations, like meeting people, all of that really just took me over and made it possible for me to get here.

BB: What do you feel are the issues plaguing Gen Z?

JL: Where do we go from here? Being able to handle the various bills that we’re being faced with, getting out on our own two feet, having a strong economy, wrestling with social issues, wrestling with trying to find identities and be secure and solid in those identities, the burden of student loan debt, trying to prove to people that relief for us is just as important as relief for a billionaire or a Wall Street executive. Being able to find a job after getting out of college and fighting for a seat at the table once you get into the workforce.

People underestimate you because you’re young and they think that you don’t have any experience or know what you’re talking about.

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Portrait of Jeffrie Long Jr. (Courtesy of: Jeffrie Long Jr.)

BB: How prepared are you to step into your new role? Is ageism a concern when you think about how you will begin your work at the capitol?

JL: I don’t believe that ageism is present in that particular regard. I believe people will give us a chance and that they’re eager and excited to see us come in. However, I believe there’s a small minority of people that may feel that we have bitten off more than we can chew, we don’t have any experiences, or that we don’t know what we’re talking about.

But I do believe I’m bringing certain levels of experience and exposure to the General Assembly. Although I did not have the weight of that seat on me, I do believe I’m bringing in a certain level of institutional knowledge, given my work over the past six years that others may not have. And so, I do believe that gives me a good foundation.

Now, I’m not coming in like I know it all. I’m coming in ready to sit there and to learn and become acclimated. I think it’s very important. I want to highlight I’m coming not to be a wonder, not to be a know-it-all, like I have it all together.

I want to come, I want to listen. I believe that the old know the way, and that the old can learn from the young and the young can certainly learn from the old. I value our senior statesmen, legislators, and so I definitely look forward to learning and hearing from them, their perspectives, what works, what doesn’t work.

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I feel very prepared, I feel the weight of that responsibility on my shoulders. Because I want to make my God proud, my community proud, and my constituency proud, and my family proud. So I do feel well-prepared, I’m preparing, I’m reading, having various forums, town halls to work through and hear even more issues that concern them.

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BB: What do you think about the future of this generation in the political sphere?

JL: I believe that this is our time, this is our hour, this is our era.

BB: Why is this your time, why is this your era?

JL: I believe that we’ve been overlooked so long, and so I think that society and the nation and the community are really excited to see something different. Perhaps we won’t give the status quo, or keep the status quo any longer. We’ll put people above politics, we’ll put people above, perhaps, loyalties to a certain system.

cadence.quaranta@thebaltimorebanner.com

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