Julie Yang, a Democrat and former Montgomery County Public Schools employee, is running for the District 1 seat on the Montgomery County Council. She faces Republican Reardon Sullivan in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.
Yang, who describes herself as an educator and community advocate, has outlined positions on education, economic development, housing, taxes and the environment, according to responses posted on her campaign website.
Candidate information
- Party: Democratic
- Office sought: Montgomery County Council, District 1
- Education: Master's in education, University of Hawaii at Manoa
Experience and public service
Yang worked at Montgomery County Public Schools for a decade, according to BallotReady profile data. She served as an instructional data analyst from 2011 to 2017, then as a college and career information coordinator from 2017 to 2021. Since 2022, she has worked as a self-employed educator and community advocate.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Yang's candidate responses via BallotReady.
Education
Yang said she wants to expand STEM offerings in areas such as artificial intelligence, data science, cybersecurity, environmental studies and business entrepreneurship. She said she would work with MCPS to convert all part-day pre-K seats to full-day seats and increase program capacity. She also called for directing funding toward school-based wellness centers or telehealth centers through collaboration with the County Council and the county Department of Health and Human Services.
Yang said she supports partnering with industries to create green job apprentice programs, such as training solar panel installers and EV car technicians. She also said she would push for short-term credentials of eight to 12 weeks tied directly to jobs, and co-designed programs with employers.
Economy and housing
Yang said she wants to expand support for the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation, targeting tech, biotech, AI and healthcare industries. She called for tax abatements for new small businesses under 250,000 to help them establish in the county.
On housing, Yang said she would leverage publicly owned sites from government or local churches, without touching parks or green spaces, to create mixed-income workforce housing for teachers, police officers, firefighters, nurses and county employees. She said she wants to create incentives for development beyond Bethesda and North Bethesda, encouraging housing across all parts of the county. She also called for streamlining the planning, permitting and approval process to reduce costs and expand housing supply.
Taxes and budget
Yang opposes broad tax increases.
"As a county, we must live within our means. I do not support broad tax increases," Yang said in her questionnaire response. She said the county needs to find efficiencies, evaluate programs based on results and grow the economy so the county is not asking more from residents already under pressure.
Environment and transportation
Yang said she supports smart growth that fits a neighborhood's scale with appropriate infrastructure in place. She called for protecting tree canopies, which she described as functionally necessary to manage stormwater, reduce heat and protect air quality. She also said she wants to advance investments in green infrastructure such as reduced-cost solar and algae-to-energy innovations.
Her transportation platform centers on walkable, connected neighborhoods and planning growth near transit and commercial corridors.
Endorsements
Yang has been endorsed by the Maryland State Education Association, according to BallotReady profile data, which attributes the endorsement to the endorser.
Candidate positions were drawn from questionnaire responses submitted via BallotReady. The Bethesda Beacon presents this information to help voters evaluate candidates and does not endorse in elections.
