Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett is endorsing Sen. Nancy J. King in her hotly contested re-election campaign in District 39.

Citing King's "tireless advocacy," Leggett (D) this week gave the incumbent senator, former delegate and former county school board member the nod over her Democratic primary challenger, Del. Saqib Ali (D-Dist. 39) of Gaithersburg.

Leggett noted King's work on behalf of county schools. This year, King sponsored a bill that restored $23.4 million to the school system's budget by waiving a penalty for not following a state requirement that schools spend at least the same amount per pupil from year to year.

"Nancy King has been a strong supporter of Montgomery County's public school students and teachers," Leggett said in a news release Monday. "She played the lead role in protecting Montgomery County schools from a devastating $23.4 million budget cut this year.

"Nancy is the only member of the Senate who served as a school board president. Her firsthand experience with our school system is exactly what our community needs in the Senate."

King of Montgomery Village served as president of the Montgomery County school board for the 1997-98 and 2000-01 school years after a stint from 1993 to 1994 as president of the county council of PTAs. Elected to the House of Delegates in 2003, she was appointed to the Senate in 2007 to succeed Sen. Patrick J. Hogan.

Leggett's endorsement follows the influential county teachers union's endorsement of King earlier this month.

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