Wikipedia

Chao Wu (politician)

Chao Wu (born 1977) is an American politician who has served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates since 2023, representing District 9A in Howard and Montgomery counties. A member of the Democratic Party, he was previously a member of the Howard County Board of Education from 2018 to 2022.

Chao Wu
Wu in 2023
Member of the Maryland House of Delegates
from the 9A district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 11, 2023
Serving with Natalie Ziegler
Preceded byTrent Kittleman
Member of the Howard County Board of Education at-large
In office
December 3, 2018 – December 5, 2022
Preceded byBess Altwerger
Sandra French
Christine O'Connor
Cynthia Vaillancourt
Succeeded byJacky McCoy
Linfeng Chen
Personal details
Born1977 (age 48–49)
Yingshan County, Hubei, China
CitizenshipChina
United States (since 2016)
PartyDemocratic
Children2
EducationUniversity of Science and Technology of China (BE)
National University of Singapore (ME)
University of Maryland, College Park (PhD)
ProfessionEngineer, data scientist
WebsiteCampaign website

Early life and education

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Wu was born in 1977[1][2] in Yingshan County, Hubei, China.[3] He attended the University of Science and Technology of China, where he earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree in 2001; the National University of Singapore, where he earned a master degree in electrical and computer engineering in 2003.[4] Wu came to Maryland in 2003[5] to attend the University of Maryland, College Park, where he received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in electrical and computer engineering in 2009.[6][7] While at the University of Maryland, Wu served as president of the local Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA) chapter.[8] As CSSA president, Wu stated that he helped other Chinese graduate students find places to live and learn to how pay tuition and register for classes.[9] He also campaigned against Tibetan independence and perceived biased content in The Diamondback towards the 2008 Summer Olympics being held in Beijing.[8]

Career

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After graduating, Wu served as an Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Fellow for the Food and Drug Administration from 2009 to 2010, afterwards working as a senior electrical engineer for defense contractor Maryland Aerospace until 2011. He also worked as an aviation software engineer for Garmin from April to June 2011.[9] Wu became a U.S. citizen in 2016.[2]

Political involvement

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Wu represented the River Hill community of Columbia, Maryland on the Columbia Association's board of directors until 2018,[10] and served as a board member of the River Hill Village Association from 2012 to 2018.[11] During this time, Wu was instrumental in initiating Columbia's sister city agreement with Liyang.[8][12] In November 2017, Wu filed to run for the Howard County Board of Education.[11] He won the nonpartisan primary election on June 27, 2018,[13] and later won election to the board on November 6.[6] In December 2020, Wu was elected as the Board of Education's chairperson, becoming the first Asian American to lead the board.[14] In October 2021, Wu was named to serve as a board member to the Maryland Association of Boards of Education.[15]

Maryland House of Delegates

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In February 2022 Wu filed to run for the Maryland House of Delegates.[16] He won the Democratic primary on July 19, 2022, and later won the general election on November 8, narrowly defeating incumbent state delegate Trent Kittleman with Natalie Ziegler.[17]

Wu in the Ways and Means Committee, 2024

Wu was sworn into the Maryland House of Delegates on January 11, 2023.[3] During his tenure, he has maintained a relatively low profile and been described by colleagues as a moderate.[2] He has served in the House Ways and Means Committee since 2023,[18] and as a deputy majority whip since 2026.[19]

Political positions

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In June 2021, Wu voted against ending the school system's school resource officer program. The school board voted 5–3 to continue the program.[20]

During the 2025 legislative session, Wu introduced a bill that would require generative artificial intelligence developers to publish specific information detailing data and datasets used to train their AI products.[9]

Personal life

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Wu lives in Clarksville, Maryland.[16] He is a father of two children, a son and a daughter.[2]

Electoral history

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Howard County Board of Education primary election, 2018[21]
Candidate Votes %
Vicky Cutroneo 20,602 14.1
Bob Glascock 17,503 12.0
Robert Wayne Miller 16,469 11.3
Chao Wu 15,600 10.7
Jen Mallo 13,545 9.3
Sabina Taj 13,326 9.2
Anita Pandey 10,041 6.9
Danny Mackey 9,980 6.9
Carleen Pena 8,301 5.7
Saif Rehman 7,582 5.2
Mavourene Robinson 5,828 4.0
Timothy Hodgson Hamilton 3,691 2.5
Christopher Michael Hilfiger 3,171 2.2
Howard County Board of Education general election, 2018[22]
Candidate Votes %
Vicky Cutroneo 58,426 15.1
Chao Wu 54,254 14.1
Jen Mallo 53,766 13.9
Sabina Taj 51,842 13.4
Bob Glascock 46,929 12.2
Robert Wayne Miller 43,847 11.4
Anita Pandey 38,109 9.9
Danny Mackey 36,923 9.6
Write-in 1,685 0.4
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A Democratic primary election, 2022[23]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Natalie Ziegler 5,308 41.8
Democratic Chao Wu 3,942 31.0
Democratic Steven M. Bolen 3,448 27.2
Maryland House of Delegates District 9A general election, 2022[24]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Natalie Ziegler 17,767 26.68
Democratic Chao Wu 17,486 26.43
Republican Trent Kittleman (incumbent) 17,373 26.26
Republican Jianning Zeng 13,609 20.56
Write-in 44 0.07

References

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  1. ↑ Ehrenhaft, Ethan (December 1, 2022). "As Vicky Cutroneo and Chao Wu end terms on Howard school board, they say last four years were challenging and rewarding". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Reed, Lillian (May 14, 2026). "Mocked in a racist video, Del. Chao Wu doesn't regret participating in democracy". The Baltimore Banner. Archived from the original on May 15, 2026. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Chao Wu, Maryland State Delegate". Maryland Manual On-Line. Maryland State Archives. January 19, 2023. Archived from the original on January 21, 2023. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Members – Delegate Chao Wu". mgaleg.maryland.gov. Maryland General Assembly. January 11, 2023. Archived from the original on January 11, 2023. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
  5. ↑ Brown, Danielle J. (May 12, 2026). "Lawmakers condemn 'deeply offensive,' 'racist' video targeting immigrant delegate". Maryland Matters. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Alum Chao Wu wins public office in Howard County". ece.umd.edu. University of Maryland, College Park. December 6, 2018. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Q&A Series – Next Generation Leaders: Dr. Chao Wu". Committee of 100. August 3, 2022. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 Hamilton, Clive; Ohlberg, Mareike (September 3, 2020). "Political elites on the periphery". Hidden Hand: Exposing How the Chinese Communist Party Is Reshaping the World. Simon and Schuster. pp. 93. ISBN 978-1-78607-784-4. OCLC 1150166864.
  9. 1 2 3 Gaskill, Hannah (May 11, 2026). "Peña-Melnyk calls for apology after racist video". The Daily Record. Retrieved May 11, 2026.
  10. ↑ Greisman, David (April 9, 2012). "Few contested races in upcoming CA board, village elections". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  11. 1 2 Michaels, Andrew (November 6, 2017). "Candidates eyeing Howard Board of Education seats in 2018". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  12. ↑ Holzberg, Janene (June 15, 2018). "Columbia poised to add China's Liyang as sister city". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved March 10, 2023. Han's attention focused on Columbia after she was introduced to Chao Wu, a Chinese-American who is a member of the Columbia Association village board, is running for a seat on the Howard County Board of Education and writes a blog about Columbia. He is serving as a vice chair on the Liyang Sister City Committee.
  13. ↑ Nocera, Jess (June 27, 2018). "Eight Howard County school board candidates advance". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  14. ↑ Meyer, Jacob Calvin (December 7, 2020). "After swearing in of new members, Chao Wu becomes first Asian American to serve as Howard school board chair". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  15. ↑ Shwe, Elizabeth (October 15, 2021). "Virginia McGraw Named New Maryland Association of Boards of Education President". Maryland Matters. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  16. 1 2 Haynes, Allana (March 1, 2022). "Three candidates running for two seats on Howard County school board". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  17. ↑ Bixby, Ginny (November 23, 2022). "Ziegler, Wu declare victory in tight District 9A House of Delegates race". Bethesda Magazine. Archived from the original on November 23, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  18. ↑ Gaines, Danielle E. (January 5, 2023). "Jones announces new Democratic caucus, committee leaders for 2023 General Assembly session". Maryland Matters. Archived from the original on January 6, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  19. ↑ Jacoby, Ceoli (January 15, 2026). "What MoCo state legislators are prioritizing this General Assembly session". Bethesda Magazine. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  20. ↑ Haynes, Allana (June 25, 2021). "Resource officers will remain in Howard County schools next year, Board of Education decides in 5–3 vote". Howard County Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  21. ↑ "Official 2018 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Howard County". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. July 31, 2018. Archived from the original on December 1, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  22. ↑ "Official 2018 Gubernatorial General Election results for Howard County". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. November 12, 2018. Archived from the original on November 9, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Official 2022 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. August 24, 2022. Archived from the original on February 2, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  24. ↑ "Official 2022 Gubernatorial General Election Results for House of Delegates". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. July 12, 2022. Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
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