About Jolene
Jolene Ivey was elected to her second four-year term on the Prince George’s County Council in November 2022 representing Council District 5. For the legislative year 2023, she chairs the Planning, Housing & Economic Development Committee, and is on the committee for both the Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee (GOFP) and the Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee (TIEE).
In her past term, she served on the Planning, Housing & Economic Development Committee, the General Assembly Committee, and the Mental Health Advisory Board. During her first year on the Council, she also served as Vice-Chair of the Health, Human Services and Public Safety Committee.
Her priorities on the County Council continue to be the welfare of children and their families, the fight for environmental justice, and making sure the residents of Prince George’s County and District 5 receive speedy, effective, and courteous services from the County Government.
Jolene Ivey is a former broadcast journalist, a graduate of Towson University, and holds a master’s degree in Journalism from the University of Maryland. She is a co-founder of Mocha Moms, a support group for at-home mothers of color, and helped the organization to grow to have a national presence. For seven years she was a regular contributor on NPR’s “Tell Me More,” hosted by Michel Martin, discussing parenting issues, and is now an occasional guest on “All Things Considered” as a political commentator. She has also appeared on WJLA-TV, News Channel 8, and WTTG Fox 5 as a Democratic strategist. As president of Jolene Ivey Communications, she represented Whiting-Turner Contracting on the MGM Casino project, and Lerner Enterprises in their effort to attract the FBI to the former Landover Mall site.
In 2006 she was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 47. She served on the Ways and Means Committee and on the subcommittees on education, taxes, gaming and election law. She was the House Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Youth and Families, and served as Chair of the Prince George’s County House delegation.
Some of her legislative accomplishments in Annapolis included leading the correction of an education funding formula that has brought back tens of millions of extra dollars to Prince George’s County Public Schools; amending the state’s Constitution to remove elected officials from office when found guilty of certain crimes; allowing undocumented immigrants to receive drivers licenses; and having Maryland formally recognize Emancipation Day.
In addition to her current County Council responsibilities, she is honored to be a part of the Leadership Greater Washington Class of 2020. She currently serves on the Greater Washington Community Foundation, Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Task Force, is a member of Cheverly American Legion Auxiliary Unit 108, and serves on the boards of Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, Pyramid Atlantic, and Children’s Hospital.
Jolene has received numerous awards, including being named one of the Daily Record’s Top 100 Women of Maryland for 2016, and the Maryland State NAACP’s Kweisi Mfume Award. Jolene is married to Glenn Ivey, Congressman for Maryland District 4 who also served as the former Prince George’s County States Attorney. They are the parents of five sons, and she is also stepmother to Glenn’s daughter.