By Dr. Deborah Bailey
AFRO Contributing Editor
Prince George’s County Councilwoman Krystal Oriadha was unanimously elected to serve as the new chair of the Prince George’s County Council during the Dec. 2 Exchange of the Gavel meeting. The annual election and ceremony, held at the Wayne K. Curry Administration Building in Largo, Md. drew an overflow crowd, and was attended by Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy. Oriadha will serve as council chair through Dec. 1, 2026.
The Kenyan American activist, elected in 2022 to represent District 7 in Prince George’s County, got right down to business in outlining her vision and priorities for the coming year.
“Our theme this year is ‘prototype for what is possible.’ This is more than a slogan,” Oriadha said. “It is a declaration. This year, Prince George’s County will shift from reacting to situations to becoming pro-active,” she declared.
Recent decisions over which the county had no control, including massive federal government layoffs and the federal government shutdown lasting from Oct. 1 to Nov. 12, have left county officials scrambling to meet the needs of laid off and furloughed workers all year.
Oriadha’s primary focus will be to lead the council in adopting an approach to child-care access and affordability that she hopes will become a national model. The county is currently home to 71,000 children under the age of five, with close to 13 percent of those children living in families below the poverty line, according to the 2025 Maryland Child Care Resource Network (MCCRN) report for the county.
“Entire neighborhoods in Prince George’s County are considered childcare deserts,” Oriadha added. The MCCRN report lists more than 20 legal districts throughout the county having two or fewer licensed child-care centers.
Other initiatives include strengthening the county’s capacity by launching a county-wide asset mapping initiative, strengthening the county’s economic capacity with workforce initiatives, and modernizing council processes.
Oriadha was most enthusiastic in her hopes for a county-wide listening tour and survey to connect with every resident in Prince George’s County.
“This will keep us grounded in a simple truth. Effective government starts with listening,” she said.
Long time council member, Eric Olsen (D-District 3) was elected for his third round as council vice chair, having previously held the role from 2008-2009 and 2022-2023. Olsen was first elected to the council in December 2006 – December 2014 and was re-elected in 2022.
Braveboy supported Oriadha in closing comments for the day’s session and set a respectful and collaborative tone during her remarks.
“We are going to have some long but exciting days ahead,” said Braveboy, who will need to work closely with the council in the coming months on another tough annual budget. In May 2025, the county council passed a 5.46-billion-dollar budget, after plugging a 171-million-dollar budget deficit. The county is expected to face another deficit going into the coming year’s budget negotiations.
Braveboy closed with high hopes for the council that she will work with to secure a bright future for the county that has faced the blow of federal government personnel and program cuts throughout 2025, added to the decision by the Trump Administration to rescind the FBI headquarters relocation to Greenbelt.
“The best is really yet to come in Prince George’s County,” Braveboy said.