Scott adviser who juggled his City Hall job with political campaign work is leaving
Marvin James, whose side work for political candidates has drawn scrutiny for years, is joining prominent Democratic Party fundraiser Colleen Martin-Lauer
Above: Feted at City Hall last year at a farewell party that wasn’t – Marvin James remained on the payroll as the mayor’s senior advisor. (Instagram)
Marvin James, Mayor Brandon Scott’s former campaign manager who went on to consult with other campaigns while employed full-time by Scott’s office, is leaving city government and making his political consulting work official.
A chief of staff and a top advisor to Scott over the last three years, James is joining Martin-Lauer Associates LLC, one of the Maryland Democratic Party’s top fundraising shops, as an equity partner.
“Marvin has been the heart, soul and political mind behind countless campaigns across Baltimore and across Maryland for years,” the firm, which raises money for Mayor Scott and many other local politicians, said in a news release today.
In fact, James did political work while employed by the city without disclosing thousands of dollars of outside income to the Board of Ethics, The Brew reported in 2023 (here and here).
When James was the mayor’s deputy director of neighborhoods, for instance, he worked on three House of Delegates campaigns and one Prince George’s County delegate’s run for the 4th Congressional District.
James did not list the payments on his ethics disclosure form or additional payments he got from working those campaigns or on Ivan Bates’ campaign for state’s attorney and for Scott’s political committee.
All told, The Brew documented $37,000 that James failed to report on his annual ethics filings, as required by the city ethics code. James “cured” the violations by amending his ethics statements to include the payments.
The Brew documented income from six political campaigns that Mayor Brandon Scott’s then chief-of-staff Marvin James failed to disclose on ethics filings.
Very Rapid Rise
Widely credited for steering Scott’s successful 2020 mayoral run, James has saw his star – and annual income – rise steadily since that time.
Starting in city government as an $80,000-a-year operations chief in the mayor’s office, James quickly ascended to $91,000-a-year deputy director post with the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhoods, then jumped to $112,000-a-year senior mayoral adviser position.
In May 2023, he was elevated to the $170,000 position of chief of staff. In March 2025, James told The Baltimore Banner he was leaving this position – whose annual salary had grown to over $230,000 – in order to care for his aging parents.
But as The Brew first reported, he didn’t actually leave city government. Instead, he quietly took a $198,000 unannounced position. And in the ensuing months, even under the eventual designation of “senior adviser,” James was back in the news.
Marvin James with Mayor Scott at the Black Girls Vote Ball at Martin’s West in 2022. BELOW: Feted as a visionary leader in March 2025 at a farewell party as chief of staff, though he remained on the city payroll until today. (Facebook, Instagram)
Balloon Arch and Oversized Image
Earlier this year, Baltimore Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming issued a report on the mayor’s office expenditures, including $3,636 for a March 2025 “farewell party” for the (not actually departing) James.
The party featured a $324 balloon arch, a $217 cake and five foam boards featuring the James’ image costing $394, according to the report. Plus more than $2,600 spent for crab balls, grilled salmon, meatballs and other catered food.
Marvin James “has worked around the clock as a trusted advisor to Mayor Scott and the entire administration” – Mayor’s Office.
And a week ago, Fox 45 published reporting that James “arrived at City Hall just twice over the course of three weeks and never appeared to spend a full eight-hour workday there.”
Fox said it documented James using a city-issued vehicle to visit a salon, multiple restaurants and a Washington, D.C. mayoral campaign office during city work hours.
Asked about that reporting, the mayor’s office today said that James “has worked around the clock as a trusted advisor to Mayor Scott and the entire administration.”
Back in April, James told the mayor mayor intended to resign, or months before “it was revealed that he was being inappropriately stalked by individuals employed by Sinclair Broadcasting Inc.”
Full Statement from Mayor’s Office
Attributed to Mayor Scott:
I am deeply proud of Marvin and excited for this next chapter in his work on behalf of our city, our state, and our country. Throughout his time in city government, he has been a tireless advocate for our city and the vision we laid out when I first told him I wanted to run for Mayor. He has been at the forefront of every historic success, every emergency response, and every challenging moment of this administration, offering his insightful perspective and relentless energy. While we will deeply miss him in city government, his impact will be felt for years to come in City Hall, and I know that I will continue to be able to count on him to fight for Baltimore no matter where this new role takes him.
Attributed to Press Office:
Marvin’s departure from city government has been months in the making, and entirely self-directed as he pursues this new opportunity. Until the moment he voluntarily departs city service at close of business on Wednesday, July 1, he has worked around the clock as a trusted advisor to Mayor Scott and the entire administration. In this role, he offered expert guidance, advice and insight on nearly every major decision and action taken by the mayor’s office. He first provided the mayor with his intent to resign his position this year in April, months before it was revealed that he was being inappropriately stalked by individuals employed by Sinclair Broadcasting Inc.