Answers to what neighbors ask most often about the campaign and the election. Included here are Elizabeth's answers to the League of Women Voters candidate questions.
Questions marked LWV come from the League of Women Voters (LWV) of Maryland VOTE411 Voters' Guide. Elizabeth's answers appear exactly as submitted. Read every candidate's answers at Vote411.org. The League of Women Voters does not support or oppose candidates.
Elizabeth Lawton is a North Beach resident, homeowner, business owner, and former Town Council member who has invested her own life and livelihood into the community she hopes to serve as Mayor. Her professional career spans business, organizational leadership, and public service. Her approach is straightforward: ask thoughtful questions, do the homework, and follow through.
Elizabeth believes good local government begins with stewardship: understanding what we have, protecting what we value, and making thoughtful decisions about what comes next.
Visit About Elizabeth to read more about her background and the experience behind her approach.
Yes. Elizabeth has served North Beach in both appointed and elected roles since 2007, including on the Board of Appeals, Town Council, and currently as an alternate to the Planning Commission.
Along the way, she has seen firsthand how decisions made at Town Hall affect the people who live, work, own property, and build their lives here. That experience has taught her the value of listening, asking good questions, understanding the facts, and remembering that every decision ultimately lands somewhere in someone's life.
LWV · Qualifications
My service to North Beach began with a 2007 appointment to establish a neighborhood program that introduced National Night Out to Calvert County. I have served on the Board of Appeals, Town Council, and Planning Commission. My Navy career and work in systems engineering, finance, and business and nonprofit leadership taught me to turn plans into accountable results. I am running for Mayor so North Beach can preserve its character, manage growth with care, and build the capacity to sustain both.
Elizabeth is running because the people who have invested their homes, livelihoods, businesses, time, and futures in North Beach don't deserve to feel like spectators in the Town they have helped build. Too often, residents are left frustrated, trying to understand how decisions are made, where priorities come from, and how those decisions affect the things they value most. Elizabeth believes the people who have invested so much in North Beach have earned a meaningful connection to its future.
LWV · Vision
I see North Beach as a welcoming, walkable waterfront town that preserves its history and natural environment while offering modern conveniences people enjoy. Realizing that promise calls for stability and consistency in how we govern. I envision Town Government managing change carefully, so North Beach maintains its character and scale as a place to live well or find rest and renewal by the Bay.
“A vision matters when people can see how leadership decisions move it into reality.”
The PEACE Platform is Elizabeth's framework for reconnecting residents with how their Town is governed. It focuses on five high-touch areas residents feel first: how Town priorities are decided, accomplished, and communicated; what the Town publishes and archives; how we build on what we have; how we care for the land; and how financial resources are committed. It is not another Town plan.
Grounded in North Beach's adopted Comprehensive Plan, the PEACE Platform provides a practical way to assess what is working, identify what needs attention, and bring governing, budgeting, and action into greater alignment with the Town's long-term vision.
Visit The PEACE Platform to see each of the five areas in detail.
LWV · Town Hall Meetings
Good communication shows people how their participation informs decisions, even when the answer is no. I would hold monthly Ask Me Anything sessions to hear concerns early, then Town Hall meetings before Council deliberation and voting. A Community Committee, shaped with residents and brought to Council, would spark a standing way to cultivate citizen leadership. Every forum would offer a way to participate remotely, assign follow up, and report back on what was heard, what changed, and why.
LWV · Climate Change
Yes. Climate Change causes and effects are best managed together. North Beach has begun reducing energy use that drives emissions. I would measure results, expand what works, and fill gaps. Flood pumps and shoreline projects address climate impacts, while stormwater runoff remains a concern. Both efforts belong in the Comprehensive Plan and Annual Budget, with priorities proposed by impact and progress reported publicly. Managing change means building on progress before a crisis forces our hand.
LWV · Beach Access
A reduced cost or free beach day is worth exploring. The first question is how many guests our beach can welcome safely and what staff and services that requires. I would review attendance patterns, hear from residents and visitors, and propose a trial the Town can manage well. A public report would follow, covering changes in access, the beach experience, and costs. Financial results matter. The real test is whether we can sustain equitable access and an enjoyable beach experience.
The PEACE Platform grew out of a close review of North Beach's own public record: the Comprehensive Plan, Town budgets and audits, ordinances, meeting records, planning documents, and other published materials. Together, these sources ground the Platform in what the Town has actually said and done, void of assumption, recollection, speculation or impression.
Visit On The Record to see the sources, follow the research, and draw your own conclusions.
During her first ninety days, Elizabeth would lead an operational assessment to affirm what is working, identify what requires attention, and determine where greater alignment is necessary.
Guided by the Comprehensive Plan, the results would establish clear priorities for governing, budgeting, and action over the next four years and beyond.
LWV · Town Plan
The updated Plan is under Maryland review. As Mayor, I would bring the public and Council a comparison of the proposed and 2012 Plans, especially environmental and historic preservation priorities, showing how closely the update reflects resident and Planning Commission input. Maryland's new resilience element also belongs in the Plan. Once Council adopts the revision, I would propose an implementation approach tied to the Annual Budget, with progress reported publicly across Administrations.
Building On What We Love
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Putting Our Plan To Work
LWV · Recreational Facilities
Yes. Young people and families help keep a town vital and vibrant. I would begin by inviting them to identify what is missing. Options might include a small court, flexible play area, or gathering place for older youth. We would then examine space, safety, costs, and upkeep before I propose feasible options and funding to Council. That work would show what the Town can deliver and sustain, with young people involved from the first conversation through the final choice.
The Town of North Beach election for Mayor and Town Council will be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. North Beach elections are nonpartisan, so there is no primary election. The Mayor and Town Councilmembers are elected to four-year terms.
Voter eligibility for North Beach Town elections is established by the Town Charter. Generally, qualified voters must be U.S. citizens, be at least 18 years old by Election Day, and meet the Town's residency and/or real-property ownership requirements. Because municipal voting requirements are specific to North Beach, voters should confirm their registration and eligibility with the Town before Election Day.
North Beach residents cast their ballots for Mayor and Town Council at North Beach Town Hall, 8916 Chesapeake Avenue.
Because the Town election is being held on the same day as the State general election, your polling location for other offices may be different. Be sure to check your general-election polling location separately.
For absentee ballot deadlines and other voting details, see the Town's election FAQs.