Dion Guthrie, who was removed from his District A seat on the Harford County Council in November, has officially filed to run for that seat in the 2026 election. Guthrie said he’s running to clear his name and reputation and continue his unfinshed work on the council.

Guthrie, 86, of Joppatowne, is the third Democrat to file for the seat; current District A council member Nolanda Robert and Kelly Bryant are the others. One Republican, Jeff Beck, has also announced his intention to run.

Guthrie joined the Harford County Council in 2002 as the District A representative and served in that role for three consecutive terms. He was elected to a fourth term in 2023, and was removed from office on Nov. 15 after he entered a plea of nolo contendere, or no contest, in a Baltimore County felony theft case. Guthrie was accused of stealing between $5,000 and $25,000 from the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers Local 1501 in Baltimore County between Oct. 1, 2017, and Sept. 30, 2021. The plea Guthrie entered acknowledged that prosecutors had sufficient evidence to convict him without admitting guilt; he had paid more than $23,000 in restitution.

On Thursday Guthrie said he wants to continue working on issues in District A, such as building a community center in Joppatowne, making improvements to Mariner Point Park and potentially placing a dog park in a vacant lot on Route 7.

“I decided to run because I had these issues that if I hadn’t been put off the council I probably would have had these moving along and they would get done before I ended my term next year,” he said.

As Guthrie embarks on another election, he said he doesn’t believe the Baltimore County court case will have any effect on his ability to get votes. He said he had to put numerous initiatives on hold while dealing with legal issues that he called “political” and he’s eager to get back onto the council to finish what he started.

“I decided to run again to make sure those things get done,” he said.

The Democratic primary is on June 23, 2026.

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