County Executive Marc Elrich will veto James Hedrick's re-appointment to the Montgomery Planning Board, he announced Wednesday, Aug. 26, during his weekly media briefing.

The council overrode Elrich's first veto in 2023. Now the standoff is repeating.

"I expect the same outcome in 2026," Council President Natali Fani-González told Bethesda Magazine in a text message Wednesday, signaling the council intends to override again.

The County Council voted unanimously on July 28 to re-appoint Hedrick, a housing policy professional and executive director of Rockville Housing Enterprises, to a new four-year term. His previous term expired June 14.

Elrich's objection

Elrich said Hedrick failed to engage with residents during the Planning Board's review of the University Boulevard Corridor Plan. That plan covered zoning, transportation and open space along a 3.5-mile stretch from Four Corners in Silver Spring to Wheaton. The Planning Board advanced it unanimously, and the County Council approved it 7-3 in December 2025.

Elrich said Hedrick appeared "uninterested in the comments of thousands of residents," including those who argued increased development pressure would displace people already living in the area.

Under Maryland law, Elrich must send the council a formal letter explaining his disapproval. Fani-González said she had not received that letter as of Wednesday afternoon.

2023 veto and override

Elrich first vetoed Hedrick's appointment in 2023, saying then that Hedrick had "made insulting and dismissive statements about those with opposing viewpoints" on housing. The council overrode that veto unanimously. State law allows the council to appoint a Planning Commissioner over the county executive's objection with nine or more votes.

Then-councilmember Gabe Albornoz said in 2023 that he, too, had been the subject of Hedrick's social media posts disagreeing with his positions, but did not consider that a valid reason to block the appointment.

What's next

The board is on recess in August and resumes weekly meetings Thursday, Sept. 10, at 2425 Reedie Drive in Wheaton. No date has been announced for a council vote on overriding the veto.