Law professor Wilson Parker remembers Bob Ehrlich, '82, as "a really hardworking kid." His impression must have been right.

The hard work paid off for Ehrlich Nov. 5 as the School of Law graduate beat out Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend to become the first Republican governor of Maryland since Spiro Agnew vacated the office 36 years ago.

Ehrlich won 51 percent of the vote in a victory that stunned many political observers.

"He was very genuine and personable, and I think that really opened doors for him," Parker said.

Ehrlich told a crowd of supporters "Welcome to history" on election night, according to a Nov. 6 Washington Post article. "This is an incredible night," he said.

Ehrlich also expressed admiration for his predecessor, Democrat Parris Glendening and outlined financial changes he hopes will fix the state's .7 billion projected budget shortfall.

Ehrlich, an Arbutus, Md., native, started his political career early. He served in the Maryland House of Delegates in 1987 at the age of 28 and was elected into the United States House of Representatives in 1995.

Law school roommate Eddie Booher, '82, was there for the early days of Ehrlich's political career.

He said Ehrlich's interest in politics began at an early age.

"Politics has been his ambition since he was a kid," Booher said. "He's always been interested in politics and that was always a goal of his."

While living in Washington, D.C., following law school, Booher helped Ehrlich in his campaigns for Maryland's House of Delegates and the U.S. House of Representatives.

Booher moved to Charlotte six years ago, but has maintained close contact with Maryland's governor-elect.

He said Ehrlich kept him updated during the campaign and sent him newspaper clippings about the race. He tried to call Ehrlich to congratulate him after the election, but was unable to reach him.

Booher said that while the two were in law school in the early '80s, President Ronald Reagan was Ehrlich's political hero. "We had opposite political philosophies, so we always got into discussions about it," Booher said. He added, however, that despite party differences, he would have voted for Ehrlich if he could have.

Ehrlich, a college football player, worked his way through law school as a graduate assistant with the football team.

The roommates took advantage of Erhlich's football dining table privileges.

"We were pretty poor in law school, after he got that job, we started eating a lot better," Booher recalled.

"(Ehrlich) would go through the line in the cafeteria with the football team, then he'd bring the food out and we'd stash it in our pockets and go home," he said.

Booher added that he had quite a few interesting stories about Ehrlich's law school days.

"I always joke that I could really damage him if he was ever up for a position where he had to be confirmed," he said.

News Editor Elizabeth Bland contributed to this article.