State Roundup: Governor’s race has more than two candidates; Cox raises funds at Mar-a-Lago; advocates seek voting access for those awaiting trial

THERE ARE MORE THAN TWO CANDIDATES FOR GOVERNOR: If you been following mainstream media coverage of the race for governor, you may be under the impression that there are just two candidates for governor. There are actually five candidates on the ballot, despite all the hurdles that the bipartisan duopoly puts in their way. We and our partners offered the five a 90-minute Zoom platform. Democrat Wes Moore declined to participate but the discussion was more civil and informative than that held between Republican Dan Cox on Moore for television. Len Lazarick/MarylandReporter.com.

MOORE PRIORITIZES CHILD POVERTY: If Democrat Wes Moore is elected Maryland’s governor, tackling childhood poverty is a “day one” priority for which he’s pitched an arsenal of expensive policy tools, including what could be the country’s largest “baby bonds” program to date. Erin Cox/The Washington Post.

COX RAISES FUNDS AT TRUMP MAR-A-LAGO EVENT: Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Cox spent Monday at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, raising money alongside the ex-president. The Cox campaign has not responded to questions about the event, including how many attended or how much money was raised. An event invitation said tickets were $1,776 and those who achieved a “$25,000 raise” could get a picture with Cox and Trump. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.

Chy Brew and Troya Bagby, friends who met during their incarceration, had little knowledge about voting during their incarceration and are now working to educate other Black voters who were behind bars. (Shannon Clark/Capital News Service)

ADVOCATES FOCUS ON VOTING FOR THOSE AWAITING TRIAL: Thousands of Maryland residents will not cast a ballot in this year’s election because they are behind bars.  They have not had their voting rights taken from them.  In fact, they have not been convicted of a crime. But because they are in jail prior to adjudication, they won’t get voting information. They won’t get a ballot. They won’t vote. Advocates are trying to focus attention on those currently and previously behind bars and their inability to exercise their right to vote. Shannon Clark of CNS/MarylandReporter.com.

OPINION: VOTING ON THE STATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS: There here are five state constitutional amendments on the ballot to consider in this election cycle, everything from renaming courts to legalizing recreational marijuana. How should you vote this year on these issues? Editorial Board/The Baltimore Sun.

K-9 NARCOTICS OFFICERS MAY SEE CHANGE IN JOB DESCRIPTIONS: With legalization of marijuana on the ballot in November, some in Frederick County law enforcement might see changes in their job descriptions — narcotics K-9s. K-9s can be trained in different skills, such as tracking people, identifying guns and physical apprehension. Narcotics K-9s are trained in identifying various substances such as heroin, fentanyl and marijuana. Clara Niel/The Frederick News Post.

FROSH DEFENDS HANDGUN LICENSING: Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh on Monday defended the constitutionality of the state’s challenged licensing requirements for would-be handgun buyers as in keeping with the nation’s early history of training militias to use guns, an argument prompted by a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting restrictions on the right to keep and bear arms. Steve Lash/The Daily Record.

HAIRE, PITTMAN SPAR OVER CRIME, DEVELOPMENT: Steuart Pittman and Jessica Haire sparred over crime, development and how best to spend taxpayer money Tuesday night in the lone Anne Arundel County executive debate of the race. Dana Munro/The Capital Gazette.

• As the night wore on, the two candidates often — and sometimes to their own surprise — found themselves in agreement, and the crowd lost some of its energy and enthusiasm. Still Haire described Pittman’s four-year tenure as a failure, resulting in higher crime, inferior schools, unwarranted tax increases, and government waste. And Pittman cast Haire as a partisan brawler, beholden to developers and aligned with racists, and determined to strip county government of vital services. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.

You can watch the debate here:

KITTLEMAN, BALL BATTLE IT OUT AGAIN FOR TOP JOB IN HOWARD: It’s that feeling of déjà vu all over again, as Democrat Calvin Ball and Republican Allan Kittleman battle it out for the top job in Howard County, just as they did four years ago. The only difference — Ball is fighting to keep his seat as county executive, which he took away from Kittleman in 2018, while Kittleman is hoping to regain his seat in the Nov. 8 general election. Sherry Greenfield/The Carroll County Times.

McGRATH SEEKS DELAY IN TRIAL: Roy McGrath, Gov. Larry Hogan’s former chief of staff, is asking a federal judge to postpone his criminal trial, which is scheduled to begin Monday. Lee O. Sanderlin/The Baltimore Sun.

• Joseph Murtha, in a letter to U.S. District Court Judge Deborah Boardman, asked for the delay a week after a motions hearing. Murtha said three pieces of evidence turned over since that hearing have hampered preparations for the trial. Bryan Sears/The Daily Record.

THE RACE FOR SEN. EDWARDS’ SEAT: WHERE THE CANDIDATES STAND: Democrat Michael Dreisbach of Frostburg and Del. Mike McKay, R-Washington/Allegany, of Cumberland are seeking the District 1 seat currently held by retiring state Sen. George Edwards. They were each sent a list of questions about policy issues. Here are their answers. Tamela Baker/The Hagerstown Herald Mail.

CLEAN WATER ADVOCATES BLAST STATE OVER BAY PROBLEMS: Clean water advocates and several Maryland elected officials met Tuesday morning via Zoom to denounce what they consider the state’s lagging enforcement and inspection measures against polluters, and to call for more accountability from Maryland’s next governor to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. Cadence Quaranta/The Baltimore Banner.

• Observing the signing of the very first Chesapeake Bay cleanup agreement in 1983, Maryland state Sen. Gerald Winegrad would never have imagined the string of failures ahead, he said. Bay agreements prescribing pollution cuts for 2000 and 2010 would both fall short. And now, it seems targets for 2025 won’t be met either. “It’s a collapsing house of cards,” Winegrad said. “The restoration has reached a nadir. It is at its lowest ebb.” Christine Condon/The Baltimore Sun.

OPINION: FDA OVERREACH ON OTC HEARING AIDS: While the FDA’s decision to allow over the counter sales of some hearing aids is a good thing, they went too far. This is especially infuriating because the FDA was explicitly warned. In comment submitted on the proposed rule, the Academy of Doctors of Audiology and others expressly questioned the rationale for changing non-OTC hearing aids from restricted status to prescription status and called for express protections to be implemented to prevent state law from getting us into the very situation we are in now. Kevin Waterman/The Duckpin.