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MD Legislative Black Caucus announces new leadership
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Maryland’s Legislative Black Caucus elected Del. N. Scott Phillips as its new chair last week after House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk appointed former leadership to head standing committees.
Sen. Shaneka Henson, D-Anne Arundel, was selected to be the first vice chair
“I am honored by the confidence of my colleagues and grateful for the strong foundation laid by those who have led before me,” Phillips, D-Baltimore County, said in a statement Thursday. “The Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland is well positioned to continue advancing policies that strengthen Maryland’s families and communities.”
The changes come as Peña-Melnyk, the first Afro-Latina speaker, sourced former Legislative Black Caucus Chair Jheanelle Wilkins, D-Montgomery, and former first Vice Chair Melissa Wells, D-Baltimore City, to serve as the heads of the House Ways and Means and Government, Labor and Elections committees, respectively. Both resigned from their caucus leadership positions.
The Maryland Legislative Black Caucus has 67 members.
Phillips, a lawyer, is a first-term delegate. He serves on the House Judiciary Committee.
Henson was appointed to the House of Delegates in 2019. After a successful 2022 election campaign, she was appointed to the Senate in 2025 after U.S. Rep. Sarah Elfreth was elected.
Also a lawyer, Henson currently sits on the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.
She was honored as one of The Daily Record’s Top 100 Women in 2024.
“I look forward to working alongside Chair Phillips and our members to build on the Caucus’s legacy and move forward with unity, purpose, and resolve,” Henson said.
Senate President Bill Ferguson, D-Baltimore City, said during a Thursday floor session that “it’s nice to have some Senate leadership in the caucus.”
The Maryland Legislative Black Caucus has yet to announce its priority legislation for 2026.
