If he decides to run, Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall can keep his mayor’s seat while trying to get elected to the U.S. Congress.

Exploratory committee will assess 1st Dist. chances

By Brian Shane

Staff Writer

Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall is considering running for Congress against eight-term Republican incumbent Andy Harris and won’t run for re-election as mayor.

Calling rural Eastern Shore communities “overlooked and underserved,” Tyndall, a Democrat, said he’s formed an exploratory committee towards a campaign for Maryland’s First Congressional District seat in the 2026 election.

“I have chosen to create a Congressional Exploratory Committee because the people of Maryland’s First Congressional District deserve a representative who is not only visible and accessible but also responsive and a partner,” he wrote. “I believe that I am the person to help bring Eastern Shore values back to Washington.”

In his statement Tuesday, Tyndall noted a “disconnect” between the Shore and Washington creates issues when it comes to federal support and funding for critical projects in the areas of public safety, healthcare, and infrastructure.

Berlin recently lost out on nearly $1 million in federal funding when the government rescinded a transportation grant. The money was supposed to help Berlin study how to bridge the geographical divide created by U.S. Route 113 through town.

Public service is at the heart of what motivates him, Tyndall said in an interview Tuesday, with inspiration from his father, a lifelong firefighter.

“I really never expected to even enter politics,” he said, “but some folks said, ‘hey, look, you’re, you’re good at serving the community and maybe you should take a look at this.’ I enjoyed the work and the things that I could do for Berlin as a council member that’s evolved over the years, to the work I can do as mayor.”

When it comes to running for federal office, election rules allow for a “testing the waters” committee, where a potential candidate can suss out their chances without actually filing as a candidate.

A candidate is no longer testing the waters when they raise more than $5,000 and begin to conduct campaigning in earnest, which would then require formally filing candidacy, according to Federal Elections Commission rules.

Jake Day, Maryland’s housing secretary and a former Democratic mayor of Salisbury, has also established an exploratory committee but has not yet publicly stated whether he’ll pursue a campaign. Day did not respond to a request for comment for this report.

Four Democratic candidates have filed for the opportunity to run against Harris. The only one who’s raised any money is Dan Schwartz, who has about $56,000 cash on hand, according to Federal Election Commission records. A newcomer to electoral politics, Schwartz works in the field of consumer protection and hails from Talbot County, according to his campaign website.

The other three people who have filed as candidates for the First District seat include Rev. Terrence Rogers, George Martin Walish Jr., and Randi White, online records show.

Tyndall background

A Berlin native and Stephen Decatur High School graduate, the 35-year-old Tyndall spent the last six years working for Salisbury University before starting his own consultancy in the burgeoning field of medical simulations.

Before that, he was a career firefighter/EMT with the towns of Berlin and Ocean City, having started in fire service as a cadet at age 14.

In 2013, Tyndall sued the Berlin Fire Company in federal court for discrimination and harassment. Tyndall, now a married father of two with wife Chelsea, alleged in court documents that colleagues created a hostile work environment by bullying him with gay slurs and physical confrontations. The case was eventually dismissed in late 2015 after both sides settled out of court.

Less than a year later, Tyndall won a seat on the Berlin Town Council. After an unsuccessful run for county commissioner in 2018, was elected mayor in 2020 and went unopposed for his re-election in 2024.

Tyndall won’t run for a third term as mayor when his office expires in 2028, he confirmed.

“I think many folks would agree that Berlin is doing very, very well under our leadership and the team that we’ve built,” he said. “A change in leadership is a good thing. … After 12 years of public service to Berlin, I think it’s time to pass that baton and get a fresh perspective.”

He’s has burnished his public image of late with an appearance on CBS Sunday Morning (about Assateague Island’s lifeguard shortage) and interviews in national press about the loss of the transportation grant.

Accusing incumbent Harris of being unresponsive to constituent needs, Tyndall added that he’s engaged with issues and hears from a lot of people throughout Maryland and throughout the Eastern Shore.

“I hear the frustrations and largely I think the frustrations come from the lack of cooperation and the lack of support that, really, you look to for this type of position,” Tyndall said. “Mayors are on the front lines dealing with issues that face everybody – kitchen table issues. And Congress is really not that different.

“It might seem like it’s so much further removed,” he added, “but the issues remain the same. People still want somebody they can see in their district. You want to be accessible.”

When asked how he’d handle stepping into Washington’s tumultuous and tribal partisan divide, Tyndall pointed anecdotally to the growing number of voters across Maryland who are quitting their party affiliation and registering as unaffiliated or independent.

The state Board of Elections reports 22% of the 1st District’s 600,000 voters are independent, with 42% registered as Republican and 33% as Democratic.

“So, when I see that,” Tyndall said, “it makes me think that people are disgruntled with both sides of the major parties and maybe they’re focused on more things that actually matter, right? We need more people that are focused on getting things done and not the bickering. That’s what we’ll bring to Washington, DC.

“Let’s roll up our sleeves,” he added. “If we have a disagreement – I always say to the council when we disagree – that’s a good thing because we’re able to take that feedback, construct it into something that’s better for the people we serve. And as long as you’re focused on that, I think that a really good work product comes out of it.”