Mary-Dulany James (born February 1, 1960) is an American politician who has represented District 34 in the Maryland Senate since 2023. She was previously a member of the District 34A in the Maryland House of Delegates for sixteen years, representing Harford and Cecil Counties along the U.S. Route 40 corridor. Mary-Dulany James represented district 34A, formerly district 34, for 16 years having first been elected in 1998. In 2014 and 2018, James unsuccessfully ran for the Maryland Senate in District 34. In 2022, she launched her third bid for the state senate seat, this time defeating Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities and former state delegate Christian Miele in the general election. Early life, education, career James was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to father William S. James, then a state senator for Harford County, and mother Margaret James, a homemaker. and grew up and still lives on her family's farm in Harford County. She attended Havre De Grace High School and the University of Maryland, College Park where she earned a B.S. in psychology with honors in 1981. She attended the University of Maryland School of Law, earning a Juris Doctor degree with honors in 1986. While studying for the bar exam, she clerked for Judge Edward Skottowe Northrop in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. She was admitted to Maryland Bar in 1986. She worked for law firms in Baltimore, then set up her own practice in Harford County where she lived. James ran for the Maryland House of Delegates in 1998, seeking to replace one of two outgoing state delegates in District 34 (Mary Louise Preis and Nancy Jacobs, both of whom ran for state senate). She won the Democratic primary with 22 percent of the vote, and later won the general election on November 3, 1998, with 18 percent of the vote. Political career Maryland House of Delegates James was elected to the House of Delegates on November 3, 1998, representing District 34 (Harford County). James was re-elected to the newly redistricted District 34A (Harford and Cecil counties) in November 5, 2002, and was subsequently re-elected in 2006, and 2010. Committee assignments Member, Appropriations Committee, 1999-2014 oversight committee on personnel, 1999–2003 oversight committee on program open space & agricultural land preservation, 1999–2002 vice-chair, transportation & the environment subcommittee, 2003–2006, member, 1999–2006 chair, oversight committee on pensions, 2003–2006, member, 2003-2014 chair, health &