FEDS PROBE STATE POLICE FOR RACIAL DISCRIMINATION: Federal authorities are investigating whether Maryland State Police’s hiring and promotional practices have been racially discriminatory against Black troopers, the Justice Department and U.S. attorney’s office in Maryland announced Friday. Katie Mettler, Ovetta Wiggins and David Nakamura/The Washington Post.
- A Prince George’s County state senator said she welcomes a federal investigation into potential discriminatory practices within the Maryland State Police. The investigation announced Friday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland will review allegations of discrimination in hiring, promotion and disciplinary practices. Bryan Sears/The Daily Record.
- Gov. Larry Hogan and Maryland State Police Superintendent Col. Woodrow W. Jones III have been informed and pledged cooperation with the investigation, a news release said. Staff/PBS News Hour.
GUN DEMAND SURGES IN MARYLAND: Firearms enthusiasts had already been flocking to Maryland gun shops and shooting ranges since the June 23 Supreme Court decision making it easier to obtain and carry a concealed weapon. But demand surged last week after Gov. Larry Hogan (R) issued an order bringing the state in line with the ruling. Frederick Kunkle/The Washington Post.
WILL WE SEE NEW FACES IN STATE GOVERNMENT? A new era of Maryland politics will come into focus Tuesday as voters make their final choices in several wide-open primary races that will set the stage for November’s general election. Voters have a rare opportunity to select all new faces for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and comptroller as the incumbents are term-limited, retiring or running for higher office. Sam Janesch and Hannah Gaskill/The Baltimore Sun.
PARTIES WRESTLE WITH CHOICES FOR GOV: Tuesday’s primary elections for Maryland governor come at a moment when Democrats are jittery, unsure of the future and perhaps willing to bet on a flashy, unproven commodity. The race, like Maryland’s Republican primary for governor, will test voters’ appetites for competence and experience at a time when the bases of both parties are angry at their political establishments. Reid Epstein/The New York Times.
- One of the five questions voters are asking is if Marylanders are ready to embrace Gov. Hogan’s hand-picked successor or choose a Democrat for governor. Sam Janesch and Hannah Gaskill/The Baltimore Sun.
PRIMARY SEASON FINALLY WRAPPING UP; COUNT WILL TAKE TIME: Maryland’s primary season — from the candidates’ announcements more than a year ago to the delayed voting dates because of redistricting — has already dragged on far longer than usual. And don’t expect it to wrap up quickly when polls close Tuesday. Hundreds of thousands of Maryland voters are expected to cast ballots either in-person or by mail by the end of the day Tuesday — but a significant portion of those ballots won’t even begin to be counted until two days later. Sam Janesch/The Baltimore Sun.
- Nearly half a million mail-in ballots have gone out to Marylanders ahead of primary day. But this year, state elections officials don’t have the advantage of processing mail-in ballots early. Maryland is the only state in the country that bars election officials from processing ballots before polls close. Adam Willis/The Baltimore Banner.
- After months of candidates knocking on doors, traipsing through farmers markets, answering questions at endless forums, marching in parades and dialing for dollars, it all comes down to this: The final voters will cast their ballots for governor on Tuesday. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
- About 10% of eligible Carroll County voters have already cast their ballots in the 2022 Primary Election, either via early voting centers, which were open daily through Thursday, or mail-in voting, which is ongoing through Election Day. Tuesday is the last chance to cast ballots in the 2022 primary election. Sherry Greenfield/The Carroll County Times.
OPINION: AN UNNECESSARY DELAY IN RETURNS: An outdated law, an evolution in voting habits, technology and old-fashioned partisan politics are to blame for the fact that Maryland voters, who traditionally expect election results on election night, could be waiting until mid- to late August for the outcome and certification of the primary elections. State Sen. Cheryl Kagan/The Washington Post.
TRUMP IN SPOTLIGHT IN GOP GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY: Analysts predict former President Donald Trump will have a sizable influence on GOP races in Tuesday’s Maryland primary. While there are always single-issue voters, this election includes voters who might be called single-candidate voters. That single candidate is Trump, who was impeached twice in the Democratic-controlled U.S. House and lost the 2020 presidential election, but whose brand remains popular enough that many GOP voters still swear by him. Jeff Barker/The Baltimore Sun.
- Maryland’s Republican primary race has become widely viewed as a hostile proxy campaign between Donald Trump’s and Larry Hogan’s competing visions for the direction of the party. It echoes the schism in GOP contests nationwide as the party seeks nominees who can regain control of Congress in November’s midterm elections. Erin Cox/The Washington Post.
- Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford warned on Thursday that a Dan Cox victory in Tuesday’s gubernatorial primary against Kelly Schulz would imperil down-ballot Republicans in November. Cox, a first-term state delegate from Frederick County, is running with the full-throated endorsement of former President Trump. At a “tele-rally” on Wednesday, the two men heaped praise on one another, and they repeated unfounded claims about the 2020 election. Bruce DePuyt/Maryland Matters.
CRIME A TOP ISSUE IN GOV’s RACE: Crime in Baltimore and beyond has become a top issue in the governor’s race in Maryland, a stark departure in a wealthy, highly-educated state where the economy and education usually draw the most voter attention. Ovetta Wiggins/The Washington Post.
DELEGATE CANDIDATE WEBSITE USED SOMEONE ELSE’s BIO: One section of the website for Maryland House of Delegates candidate Aisha Khan, a Democrat running to represent Baltimore County, describes her as a felony narcotics prosecutor devoted to getting opioids off the streets. The problem is — she isn’t one. That biographical information and descriptions of her priorities appear to be lifted word-for-word from the campaign website of state Del. Dalya Attar of Baltimore City. Jessica Calefati/The Baltimore Banner.
ANTI-GUN GROUP PULLS ENDORSEMENT OF DELEGATE CANDIDATE: Moms Demand Action, an organization that advocates for an end to gun violence, has rescinded its “Gun Sense Candidate” distinction from District 15 delegate candidate Saqib Ali following allegations of abuse from his estranged wife. Dan Schere/Bethesda Beat.
SENATE CANDIDATE CHARGED WITH MAKING FALSE REPORT: A Baltimore man running for U.S. Senate has been criminally charged in Harford County after authorities there allege he made a false report about child sex trafficking at an adult store. Ryan Dark White, 54, who is known as Jon McGreevey, faces charges including making false statements to a law enforcement officer. Harford Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler’s office announced the charges Friday. Alison Knezevich/The Baltimore Sun.
BACK SEAT POLITICKING: For the first time in more than a decade, two long-time elected officials in Prince George’s County aren’t on the ballot — but that doesn’t mean they aren’t busy boosting candidates and trying to influence elections in their legislative district and drawing criticism for it. Danielle Gaines/Maryland Matters.
RASKIN BACKS ELRICH FOR MO CO EXEC: Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Takoma Park) – whose increasing national prominence has made him a coveted endorsement for many Montgomery County candidates in this year’s primary – offered Saturday an 11th hour endorsement for the re-election of County Executive Marc Elrich to a second term, amid a highly competitive Democratic primary. Louis Peck/Bethesda Beat.
POLITICAL BRIEFS: ELRICH-BLAIR PHOTO FINISH? MIZEUR AD: A poll released on Friday shows that — with the all-important Democratic primary just days away — Marc Elrich and David Blair could be headed for another photo finish in their race for county executive. Heather Mizeur, a Democrat running for U.S. House in the 1st District, has released a new ad following news that incumbent Rep. Andy Harris (R) was part of a White House planning meeting ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Bruce DePuyt and Danielle Gaines/Maryland Matters.
ST. MARY’S STATE’S ATTY TRIES TO ELIMINATE OPPOSITION: Embattled St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney Richard Fritz’s office has been trying to eliminate his Republican opponent and former deputy, Jaymi Sterling, from the agency’s public record. Brian Griffiths/The Duckpin.
OPINION: RASKIN REMINDS US TO FORTIFY AGAINST NEXT COUP ATTEMPT: As impressive as the Jan. 6th Committee’s excavation of the past has been, its work will be for naught unless it persuades Americans to fortify the guardrails of democracy against the next coup plot. On that, committee member Jamie B. Raskin (D-Md.) has provided a great service by reminding the public that Republicans are still propagating the “big lie” and nominated a raft of election deniers for the midterm elections. Jennifer Rubin/The Washington Post.
30 CASES OF MONKEYPOX IN MARYLAND: There are now more than 1,400 confirmed monkeypox cases in the United States, including 30 in Maryland, and officials at the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention say they expect cases to continue to rise through August. Meredith Cohn/The Baltimore Sun.
