MOORE STILL HAS HUNDREDS OF APPOINTMENTS TO MAKE: Considering the enormousness of the task, Gov.-elect Wes Moore’s selection of a handful of leadership team members Monday is a mere drop in the bucket. Moore will need to make hundreds of appointments to boards and commissions before he assumes office in January. These selections are crucial to the running of state government and allow Moore a chance to change the way the state operates under his administration and beyond. Timothy Dashiell of Capital News Service/MarylandReporter.com.
FEARING LAWSUIT, HEALTH DEPT. DIDN’T CRACK DOWN ON CONTRACTOR: State health department officials Tuesday told a legislative oversight panel that they declined to pursue severe damages against a nonperforming contractor because they feared litigation and that the contractor would walk away, leaving the state holding the bag. Bryan Sears/The Daily Record.
- State health officials were so remiss in overseeing a vendor crucial to ensuring Marylanders were able to obtain mental health and addiction treatment that state auditors say it may cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars. Meredith Cohn/The Baltimore Banner.
- One after another, members of the General Assembly’s Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee expressed astonishment that the agency decided — as a matter of policy — not to seek liquidated damages from Optum, a health claims-processing company whose shortcomings were the subject of a harsh audit last month. Bruce DePuyt/Maryland Matters.
GLENN IVEY WINS BROWN’s CONGRESSIONAL SEAT: Glenn Ivey enters his first term as a congressman, representing Maryland’s 4th District, a predominantly Black constituency, which contains parts of Prince George’s County and a sliver of Montgomery County, after a landslide victory against Republican challenger Jeff Warner. He takes the seat held by Attorney General-elect Anthony Brown. This was not his first time that Ivey, a Democrat, ran for the House. Courtney Cohn of CNS/Maryland Matters.
STATE SEN. ELFRETH WINS RE-ELECTION: State Sen. Sarah Elfreth (D-Anne Arundel) rode a huge surge of favorable mail-in votes to topple her Republican challenger, free-spending businesswoman Stacie MacDonald, after trailing on election night — before any mail-in ballots had been counted. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
PITTMAN WINS 2nd TERM AS ARUNDEL EXEC: Steuart Pittman secured a second term as Anne Arundel County executive, as mail-in ballots tallied on Tuesday pulled him into a narrow lead over Republican Jessica Haire in the contested race. As ballot canvassing stretched into its fifth day on Tuesday, Pittman squeaked ahead of Haire by just 192 votes with more mail votes remaining to be counted. Pittman has been winning mail ballots by a more than 2-to-1 margin so far. Sophie Kasakove/The Baltimore Banner.
- Republican County Council member Haire conceded to incumbent Democrat Pittman late Tuesday in the Anne Arundel County executive race, Pittman said on social media. Brooks DuBose/The Capital Gazette.
7 OF 8 ARUNDEL CHARTER AMENDMENTS ON TRACK TO PASS: The eight amendments to Anne Arundel County’s governing documents are all on track to pass after two days of mail-in ballot canvassing finished Monday night. Many of the amendments were suggested by the county’s Charter Revision Commission, which reviews the County Charter every 10 years, and all but one have received widespread support as ballots are counted. Dana Munro/The Capital Gazette.
RACES TIGHTEN IN HARFORD: After the Harford County Board of Elections’ second day of mail-in ballot canvassing Monday, some races are tightening, with candidates within 2 percentage points of one another. Tight races include County Council and state Senate and House of Delegates. Jason Fontelieu/The Aegis.
40,000 MAIL-IN BALLOTS AWAIT COUNTING IN MO CO: While many state and local candidates have declared victory, the election isn’t over. About 40,000 mail-in ballots still need to be processed in Montgomery County, elections officials say. The Montgomery County Board of Elections resumed canvassing Tuesday morning after a two-day break. Ginny Bixby/Bethesda Beat.
MO CO COUNCIL OKs BANNING FIREARMS NEAR SOME PUBLIC SPACES: The Montgomery County Council voted 8-0 to approve a bill that prohibits the possession of firearms within 100 yards of some public places throughout the county, including those with wear and carry permits issued by Maryland State Police. Steve Bohnel/Bethesda Beat.
TWO FALLSTON MEN CHARGED IN JAN. 6 INSURRECTION: A 49-year-old Fallston man and his 25-year-old stepson were arrested Monday on charges of assaulting law enforcement officers at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Douglas Wyatt and his stepson Jacob Michael Therres face felony charges in the District of Columbia of assaulting, resisting or impeding officers and interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder, along with related misdemeanor charges. Cassidy Jensen/The Baltimore Sun.
