Martin O'Malley is in Chicago this weekend for private meetings and to march in the St. Patrick's Day parade on Saturday. But Friday night he is expected to be cheering on the University of Maryland in the Big 10 mens' basketball tournament, said an O'Malley fan, Dr. Tariq Butt.
Dr. Butt, a Chicago civic leader, said he is eagerly anticipating seeing the former Democratic governor return to the Windy City. In October, Dr. Butt helped host a reception for O'Malley at the city's Mid-America Club and donated $4,800 to his O'Say Can You See PAC.
Dr. Butt said he does not understand why the governor's presidential ambitions are recently being discounted by many political prognosticators even as Hillary Clinton stumbles over questions about her email. He said most of the friends he invited to meet O'Malley in October were all "very deeply impressed."
"I find him to be a very strong leader," said Dr. Butt, who first met O'Malley when he was Baltimore mayor and Dr. Butt was a member of Chicago's board of education. "He really would be someone who would be a very serious candidate."
Dr. Butt, a founding member of Access Community Health Network, has not determined who he will support for president but said O'Malley has been "very deliberate and intelligent" about building support. Even though polls say otherwise, Dr. Butt says in Chicago "O'Malley's not an unknown person anymore."