UPDATE: Coale to Run for Delegate District 9B

Update - 6:43 p.m. - This article has been updated to report that Coale will run for the District 9B Delegate seat.

Dorsey Search's Tom Coale has been blogging regularly about local, state and national politics since 2009 on his Blogger site HoCo Rising. He has also provided an insider's perspective on Columbia Association's Board of Directors.

But after Tuesday night, Coale, 31, said he'll stop blogging about individual candidates and races because he will become a candidate.

At an event Tuesday evening at the Rumor Mill in Ellicott City, Coale announced he'll run as a Democrat for the delegate seat in the newly drawn District 9B, which encompasses Ellicott City.

"This is Ellicott City's district," said Coale. He added that he'd like to represent the area in issues such as flood protection, dealing with CSX and supporting independent business owners.

Coale said he decided to announce early, almost 18 months until the November 2014 election, because he's not interested in the "whisper campaign."

"Once I decided this is what I wanted to do, I figured out a date for my announcement," said Coale. "I don't want to be coy, I don't want to be cute."

He said his campaign slogan would be, "good government, smart government, your government."

On hand for Coale's announcement were Democratic County Council members Courtney Watson, Calvin Ball, Mary Kay Sigaty  and Jen Terrasa.

"I support all of the Democratic candidates running for office," said Watson, who is often talked about as a 2014 Howard County Executive candidate.

On July 1, Coale said he'll resign as a Columbia Association board member and his seat will be filled by Tom O'Connor.

Due to conflict of interest policies at CA, Coale must resign his board position because he's running for political office.

"I've enjoyed it so much," said Coale. "I can not understate how much valuable experience I've obtained from being on the CA Board."

Coale, a former registered Republican, switched to the Democratic party in the last two years.

"The transition was one that I've given a lot of thought to," said Coale.

He said he identifies with the party's civil rights ideology, but would like to be thought of as a good government advocate and a centrist.

"I learned recently in a report by NPR and PBS that Maryland is one of the least transparent in the country with its citizens," said Coale. "That's something we can look to improve."

Coale said, if elected, he'll use his daily blog to write about issues and explain how conclusions are reached in government.

Coale often wades into environmental issues, gay rights, local land use, and national politics on his blog, among countless other issues. He was profiled last year on Patch for his work fundraising for the Howard County homeless.

Coale grew up in Highland. He graduated from Calvert Hall High School, a private Catholic School; received an undergraduate degree from Lycoming College in PA, and a law degree from Georgetown University.

Coale said his father, Edumund Coale, who is an accountant, would serve as his campaign treasurer.

Coale works for the law firm Goodell Devries representing security clearance applicants whose clearances are revoked or denied and doctors in healthcare litigation.