BETHESDA, Md. — Montgomery County Council President Roger Berliner has become the third council member to join the 2018 race for county executive.

“I declare my candidacy to be our next county executive,” Berliner told cheering supporters at Owen’s Ordinary at Pike and Rose in North Bethesda.

His fellow Democrats on the county council, George Leventhal and Marc Elrich, have also announced their intentions to run for the top job.

Berliner promised to work on boosting economic activity in the county.

“I want our businesses to thrive, I want our workers to thrive, I want our immigrant community to thrive,” Berliner said in an interview, “we need to grow our economy, we need everybody to prosper here,” he said.

Because of the county’s new term limits law, all three veteran council members are barred from seeking reelection, so is County Executive Ike Leggett, who is in his third term. 

Political activist Robin Ficker was instrumental in securing the law limiting elected officials to three consecutive terms and Ficker plans to run in the Republican primary for county executive.