"Yet many members of the party’s old guard in Baltimore, who watched Mr. O'Malley climb from
the City Council to the governor’s mansion, said they are not afraid to buck the state’s favorite son to side with Mrs. Clinton.
Former Baltimore City Council member Paula Johnson Branch served alongside Mr. O'Malley when he first won a council seat in 1991 and remained a staunch ally when he became mayor in 1999. But she said she didn’t feel a need to be loyal to Mr. O'Malley this time.
“As far as owing him anything, I don’t,” said Mrs. Branch. “I was one of his major supporters, and he could always count on me. But he doesn’t owe me anything, and I don’t owe him anything.”
Mrs. Branch said she didn’t plan to attend Mr. O'Malley’s rally Saturday in Baltimore, where he is expected to make his White House bid official. She also hasn’t decided whether she will back Mr. O'Malley or Mrs. Clinton, though she readily volunteered her reasons for supporting the former secretary of state.
“She’s very popular, and she has a lot more experience,” she said. “I like her. I like him, too.”
Mrs. Branch stressed that she was not opposing Mr. O'Malley but was not yet sold on his candidacy for president." WP
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