Challengers in the District 30 House of Delegates race say voters would be better served by a more balanced slate of representatives.

Even though the district has only about 3,000 more Democrats than Republicans among its roughly 70,000 voters, the incumbents - Dels. Michael E. Busch, Virginia P. Clagett and C. Richard D'Amato - are all Democrats.

"One-party rule is not a good thing," said Republican candidate Herbert H. McMillan, a former Annapolis alderman and his party's nominee for mayor last year.

Four years ago, the district's only Republican delegate, Phillip D. Bissett, was ousted by D'Amato.

This year, the challengers - three Republicans and one Green Party candidate - are trying to persuade constituents who voted Democratic last time that they are a better choice for the district, which covers Annapolis, the lower Broadneck Peninsula and part of South County.

Republican stockbroker Nancy Almgren, 54, of Annapolis portrays herself as an independent-minded alternative to professional politicians in the race.

"Their goal is not to get results, their goal is to be elected," Almgren said. "I have been a stockbroker for 24 years, so I understand finance, I understand economics, I understand industries."

Almgren also points out her service as a board member of Chrysalis House and the Annapolis Rotary Club, and as vice chairwoman of the county schools' Citizen Advisory Committee. She is a pro-choice moderate, she says, who is interested in improving education and finding new technology to solve environmental problems.

Michael Collins, editor of the Naval Academy's alumni magazine, emphasizes his blue-collar, union roots. Despite being raised in a Democratic household in Massachusetts, he said he became a Republican because he believes in "individual empowerment."

"When I knock on Democrats' doors they sometimes say, 'Well, I am a Democrat.' And I say, 'So was my father and my mother,'" Collins said.

Collins, 40, of Cape St. Claire is a commander-select in the Naval Reserve. He opposes wasteful government spending, wants to strengthen enforcement of gun laws and improve sewage treatment plants to help the environment.

McMillan, 44, an American Airlines pilot and commander in the Naval Reserve, says he is a fiscal conservative who will break with his party to do what is best for constituents. He points to his time on the City Council, where he worked with some Democrats to lower the city's tax rate.

"We are either going to go down the same old big government, tax-and-spend, one-party path, or we will embrace an agenda of individual freedom, fiscal reform and free enterprise," he said.

David M. Gross, 31, of Arnold offers another option: Vote Green.

"Primarily, I want to give voters the chance to elect someone who is not a Democrat or a Republican," said Gross, whose petition to get on the 2000 ballot to challenge Rep. Wayne T. Gilchrest was denied.

Gross, a disability services coordinator, said he would bring new ideas to the General Assembly, including single-payer universal health care. He also wants to reduce class sizes in schools, establish rail service from Annapolis to Baltimore and Washington, and strengthen enforcement of environmental laws.

Meanwhile, the Democratic incumbents say they have worked well together - and with their party's majority - to pass initiatives important to voters.

"I think what the voters deserve and want is someone who tries to solve problems by building consensus and getting a large number of delegates to support their initiatives," said D'Amato, 59, of Bay Ridge.

A lawyer and retired captain in the Naval Reserve, D'Amato worked for West Virginia Sen. Robert C. Byrd for 18 years. Now D'Amato is vice chairman of Congress' U.S.-China Security Review Commission.

D'Amato says he has found money for programs important to the community, including research into crab breeding and underwater grasses, the cleanup of the Broadneck Nike missile site and scholarships for teachers. If re-elected, he would resubmit a bill that would overhaul the state pension system and study ways to regulate assisted-living facilities, he said.

Clagett, 59, of West River served on the County Council for 20 years, including eight years as chairwoman, before her election as delegate in 1994.

"One thing you have about me is 28 years of a record that has not wavered," she said.

Clagett calls herself a pioneer in land conservation and a steadfast supporter of the environment. She wants to bolster the enforcement of environmental laws. Among recent accomplishments, she points out the creation of task forces to study campaign financing and the effects of MTBE, a gasoline additive, on ground water.

Busch, 55, of Annapolis works for the county's recreation department. He has served in the legislature since 1986 and is chairman of the House Economic Matters committee.

"I have played a significant role not only in gaining funds for education, the environment and health care, but have taken a lead in shaping the health care agenda for the state," Busch said.

Despite the state's projected $1.7 billion budget deficit, Busch said, the state is in a relatively good financial position compared with surrounding states, especially in job growth and its bond rating. He said he wants to play a major role in restructuring the state budget to make sure initiatives on education, the environment and health care stay in the forefront.

Of the Democratic incumbents, he said, "Hopefully the people in the community trust us for our judgment and our values."