Jon Cardin earned a Juris Doctor with Honors from the University of Maryland School of Law in 2001; received a master’s degree in Policy Sciences from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County along with a second master’s degree with Honors in Judaic Studies from Baltimore Hebrew University (now Towson University), both in 1996. He has a 1992 bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Tufts University, and he is an alumnus of The Park School. Prior to studying law, Cardin was recruited as executive director of The Project Judaica Foundation in Washington, DC from 1996 to 1998. He began his career teaching Spanish and coaching lacrosse and basketball as faculty at Mercersburg Academy from 1992 to 1994.
From 2019 to 2022, Cardin served of counsel to Lyons, Doughty & Veldhuis, PA, and since 2002, the Law Offices of Jon S. Cardin, P.A. in Baltimore has been representing clients before civil and criminal courts around the state as well as in federal tribunals. From 2016 to 2018, Cardin partnered with Councilman Johnny Olszweski, Sr. in creating CWO Strategies, managing issues in public affairs, regulatory compliance, media relations, crisis management, and community/government relations. He represented the 11th District for three terms from 2003 to 2014. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, he focused my legislative agenda on protections for children and families, election law, education reform, environmental policy, and simplification of the tax code. He served as chair of the Election Law subcommittee from 2007 to 2014. As chair of NCSL’s Election Law Committee, he became a national advocate and one of the state’s leading voices for open government, campaign finance reform, and fair elections. He is an advocate for women and children’s rights demonstrated by multiple bill sponsorships including authoring the nation’s first prohibition against cyber bullying and sponsoring Maryland’s first criminalization of revenge porn.
Cardin returned to the House of Delegates in 2019 with a goal of protection for women, children, minorities, vulnerable communities, and the environment. He was appointed to the Judiciary Committee, the Criminal Law and Procedure subcommittee and chairs the Civil Law and Procedure subcommittee. One of the numerous accomplishments in his return was to pass Grace’s Law 2.0, nationally recognized landmark legislation to update and modernize his 2013 law that protects children from the very real consequences of cyber threats and online harassment. He also spent political capital reforming the “no-knock” warrant policy in the police reform package and focuses on victim protection and on the civil rights of our youth.
Cardin participates in a wide range of community activities, including serving on the board of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore, BHU, the National Association of Jewish Legislators and the MD Attorney Grievance Commission Peer Review Panel. His chairmanship of the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Election Law Taskforce took him around the country speaking on election security and reform, and board leadership at the American Council of Young Political Leaders availed him of several international diplomatic missions.