Carol Bowis, 68, of Bethesda has worked on more Republican campaigns than she can count. Ever since her college days at the University of Maryland, College Park, she's jumped at the opportunity to volunteer for both federal and local officials that have vied to represent Maryland.

She worked in the White House press office during Ronald Reagan's and George H.W. Bush's presidential terms. She worked under former U.S. Rep. Constance "Connie" Morella. And she most recently worked with County Council member Howard Denis where she said she helped secure funding for one of the county's biggest projects: the construction of the Strathmore Center for the Arts.

Now she is working to win election for one of three Maryland House of Delegates District 16 seats. The district includes Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Potomac. There are three Republicans running in the September primary, who will face three of the 16 Democrats in the primary.

Bowis is familiar with the problems of small businesses. She opened a craft store in Bethesda in 1972. The store operated for 25 years; she sold her shares to her partners in 1976 before the birth of her first child.

She wants to find ways to help small businesses, such as decreasing regulations, while also providing for large corporations. She aims to reduce mandates on small businesses, while also providing breaks for community members, such as continuing tax-free days in August for back-to-school shopping.

"My prime focus is on the economy and it is a critical issue in this election in Maryland and across the nation," Bowis said.

Bowis plans to make Maryland more business-friendly by working with other elected officials to attract more businesses. Maryland ranks 45 out of 50 states on the Tax Foundation's State Business Tax Climate Index.

The non-partisan tax research group produces an annual report that evaluates each state's climate through five components: corporate, individual income, sales, unemployment and property taxes. Then, each state is scored based on its climate on a scale of 1 (worst) to 10 (best).

Maryland's business tax climate scored 4.26, compared to Virginia which scored 5.53 (rank: 15) and Delaware which scored 5.98 (rank: 8).

"We are always in competition with Virginia and we need to get really geared up on this issue," Bowis said.

She noted Northrop Grumman picked Virginia over Maryland for its corporate headquarters.

"We lost several large corporations in the past few years because we're not a business-friendly state," Bowis said. "I want to get on committees ... that have to do with economic development to bring corporations here."

Bowis, who was endorsed by the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce, plans to use her connections to the Bethesda business community to help small businesses prosper.

-Residence: Bethesda

-Age: 68

-Party: Republican

-Education: Master of education from the University of Maryland, College Park

-Work experience: Former fifth-grade teacher at Chevy Chase Elementary School; former owner of One Step Up, a former craft store in Bethesda.

-Family: Married to Michael McCordick. Two adult children.

-Top three issues: Small businesses, jobs and taxes

-Campaign funds: $8,000

-Previous political experience: Staff member to U.S. Rep. Connie Morella (Dist. 8); Staff member to Montgomery County Council member Howard Denis (Dist. 1)

-Other affiliations: Leadership Montgomery (1994), Capital Speakers Club of Washington, D.C., Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church, Director of Christian Education at St. Francis Episcopal Church.

-Website: In the works