Bob Ehrlich was raised by two loving parents in the working class suburb of Arbutus, just outside of Baltimore. His father, Bob, Sr., was a Marine Corps veteran of the Korean War and a car salesman. His mother Nancy was a legal secretary.
Bob Ehrlich and his family
Bob earned athletic scholarships to the Gilman School in Baltimore and later to Princeton University. In 1979, he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Politics from Princeton, where he also captained the freshman and varsity football teams. He earned his Juris Doctorate from Wake Forest University in 1982, where he worked his way through school as a Graduate Assistant under coaches John Mackovich and Al Groh.
After returning home to Maryland, he rose through the state legislature and the U.S. Congress to become Maryland’s first Republican Governor in 36 years in 2002.
His tenure as governor led to broad improvements in Maryland’s quality of life, including:
Balanced budgets and a stronger economy: He improved Maryland’s fiscal condition by turning $4 billion in inherited budget deficits into a budget surplus. His pro-growth economic policies helped create 100,000 new private sector jobs and he defeated $7.5 billion in taxes proposed by the Maryland General Assembly. He is an advocate for Maryland’s world-class technology economy, enacting policies that positioned Maryland as a national leader in education, biotechnology, health care, and minority business advancement.
Schools that work: Maryland students enjoyed increases in reading and math scores throughout his tenure. He made record investments in public schools and authored Maryland’s first public charter schools law, enabling more than 12,000 students to attend 42 new public charter schools. He doubled funding for need-based college scholarships, helping college enrollment reach an all-time high.
Restoring the Chesapeake Bay: He authored the historic Chesapeake Bay Restoration Act to restore America’s largest estuary. The Act rebuilds outdated wastewater treatment plants, thereby reducing wastewater pollution in the Bay by nearly half. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation called it “the most important environmental achievement in twenty years.”
Bob earned national commendation for empowering individuals with disabilities. He created the nation’s first cabinet-level Department of Disabilities, for which he earned the “Highest Recognition Award” from the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, among other accolades.
Prior to serving as Governor, he won four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. In Congress, he served as a member of the House Majority Whip team, where he helped pass comprehensive tax relief, greater access to health care, federal education reform, and the first balanced budget in a generation.
He also served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 1986 to 1994, representing Baltimore County. He served on the House Judiciary Committee and was instrumental in shaping state policy on tort reform, juvenile justice, and child abuse and neglect.
Prior to running for public office, Ehrlich was associated with the Baltimore law firm of Ober, Kaler, Grimes and Shriver, where he practiced civil litigation for 11 years.
Bob has been named “Guardian of Small Business” by the National Federation of Independent Business, “Legislator of the Year” by the Maryland States’ Attorneys Association, “Federal Official of the Year” by the National Industries of the Blind, “Man of the Year” by the Better Business Bureau of Greater Maryland, and “Governor of the Year” by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
In 2007, he joined the law firm Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, where his primary responsibility was business development.
Bob is married to Kendel Sibiski Ehrlich, Esq., a former public defender and prosecutor. Kendel sits on the board of Bank Annapolis and is active in local charities, including the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Hospice of the Chesapeake. The Ehrlichs have two sons, Drew (10) and Joshua (6), and live in Annapolis, Md.
