BALLOT DROP BOXES ARE INSTALLED, HERE ARE THE DEADLINES: The Maryland State Board of Elections completed the installation Wednesday of 286 ballot drop boxes across the state for the general election. Marylanders can use any drop box to cast their mail-in ballots, which may arrive in homes as early as next week. Caley Fox Shannon/Capital News Service.
VOTING SEASON BEGINS WITH MAIL IN BALLOTS SENT ON FRIDAY: The general election voting season starts soon in Maryland, with mail-in ballots being sent out as early as Friday, according to Maryland Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis. All mail-in ballots requested thus far are due to be sent to voters by Monday. Mail-in ballots can be requested online or by mail by Oct. 29 through the State Board of Elections website. Voters can request them in person at a local board of elections office. Hannah Gaskill/The Baltimore Sun.
MO CO BOARD OF ELECTIONS SENDS OUT BALLOTS WITH INCORRECT VOTER NAMES: Some voters in Montgomery County’s 8th Congressional District got a surprise when their sample ballots arrived in the mail recently. Above their address was someone else’s name. Mike Murillo/WTOP-FM.
ALSOBROOKS GROWS LEAD OVER HOGAN IN NEW SURVEY: Maryland’s Senate race is one of a handful of federal races poised to decide which political party wins control over Congress. That means there’s plenty of polling, as the candidates and other interested parties search for indications of which way voters will go. Brenda Wintrode and Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
- Senate Republican sources say polling shows former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) are tied in the Maryland Senate race, a surprise result given Maryland’s reputation as a liberal bastion. Al Weaver and Alexander Bolton/The Hill
HOGAN, ALSOBROOKS BATTLE FOR JEWISH VOTERS: Republican Larry Hogan is looking to peel off Democratic-leaning Jewish voters in his race for the U.S. Senate seat in Maryland, as the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict nears its first anniversary on Oct. 7. “The governor has said that he’s looking to win the Jewish vote in this election,” Michael Ricci, a spokesperson for former Gov. Hogan, told Capital News Service. “It’s a big point of emphasis for him every day, and not just because it’s about winning votes.” Jack Bowman, CNS/Maryland Reporter
ABORTION RIGHTS ON MARYLAND BALLOT: On the ballot this fall, Marylanders are asked whether reproductive rights should appear in the state constitution. Advocates for and against the referendum are working to sway voters. The referendum will appear as Question 1 asking voters to decide whether a right to reproductive freedom should be constitutionally guaranteed. Melissa Yelenik, CNS/Maryland Reporter
BEACHES MAY REOPEN WHILE SOURCE OF MEDICAL WASTE REMAINS A MYSTERY: State and federal officials hope to be able to reopen beaches up and down the Delmarva peninsula to swimming by this weekend, but are still puzzled over the source of medical waste that led to the closures beginning Sunday. Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters.
DATA REVEALS ELLICOTT CITY LESS DIVERSE, COLUMBIA LESS POPULATED: The populations of Howard County’s biggest places are trending in opposite directions. Ellicott City grew in 2023; Columbia shrank, new population counts released last week show. Ellicott City added about 1,300 people, a growth rate of nearly 2%, but its Hispanic population shrank, bucking a trend seen in many places across Maryland where gains in the Hispanic population offset losses in white and Black populations. Jess Nocera and Ramsey Archibald/The Baltimore Banner.
COUNTY POLICE, SPONSORS, CLASH OVER FREEDOM TO LEAVE ACT: The path forward for a controversial proposed County Council bill that aims to limit some police searches in an effort to curb racial disparities is murky following disagreement this week over the possible ramifications of the legislation. Ginny Bixby/MoCo 360.
AMERICA’S GOVERNORS TEAM UP TO SECURE 2024 ELECTION RESULTS: Former Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening joins Midday today. He is part of a group of former state chief executives urging current governors to recommit to electoral integrity laws. The Keep Our Republic Initiative wants the state leaders to assure their residents that votes cast in the electoral college are reported in accordance with bipartisan Electoral Count Reform Act. Tom Hall, Teria Rogers, Sam Bermas-Dawes/Midday – WYPR.
INSPECTOR WHO LEAPT TO SAFETY DURING KEY BRIDGE COLLAPSE FILES CLAIM: A road work inspector who leaped to safety just before the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed last March is planning to file a claim against the cargo ship’s owner and manager, according to Baltimore civil rights attorney Billy Murphy. Jessica Albert and Adam Thompson/WJZ News.
MONTGOMERY COLLEGE NAMES SCIENCE AND MATH BUILDINGS FOR CATHERINE, ISIAH LEGGETT: Isiah “Ike” Leggett had a policy for the many ribbon cuttings he was called on to attend when he served as Montgomery County executive: Do the ceremony, but don’t go into the building until after it was dedicated. He stuck to that policy Thursday. But this time, the building that was being dedicated had his and his wife, Catherine’s, names on it. William J. Ford/Maryland Matters.
TRANSMISSION LINE PROPOSAL SPARKS CONTROVERSY: 70-mile transmission line proposed to cut through three counties in Maryland starting at the Pennsylvania border seems to have emerged out of left field, catching hundreds of homeowners, farmers, and even politicians off guard. The project has sparked outrage and more questions than answers about why the transmission line is being proposed, what can be done for homeowners, and what – if anything – the state can do. WBFF Staff/Fox 45 News.
***Would you like to get beyond the political rhetoric and stereotypes that Americans have about China? Take the China Today seminar by Maryland Reporter’s Len Lazarick at Montgomery College in Rockville on four Monday afternoons in October. For more information and to register see page 11 of the Lifelong Learning Institute’s fall brochure.***
COMMENTARY; CALLING THE JUDGE’S HARBORPLACE DECISION “VOTER SUPPRESSION” SHOW IGNORANCE OF THE LAW: Baltimore City Councilman Eric Costello has lashed out at Anne Arundel County Circuit Court Judge Cathleen Vitale for invalidating the ballot measure that would have amended the City Charter to allow the plan by MCB Real Estate to redevelop Harborplace to proceed. David A. Plymer/Baltimore Brew.
DELEGATION HEADS TO SWEDEN FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH, ELECTRIC FERRIES, CYCLING: A draft agenda for state, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County elected officials’ trip to Sweden at the end of September includes meetings with Swedish leaders, cycling tours and reviews of electric ferries. The 17-person delegation, composed of representatives from the state departments of commerce and natural resources, Anne Arundel County, the City of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County Economic Development Corporation, Visit Annapolis & Anne Arundel County, and the Resilience Authority will leave Sept. 28. Natalie Jones/The Baltimore Sun.
CDC: MD AMONG 11 STATES SEES GAINS IN LIFE EXPECTANCY: New federal data shows that life expectancy in Maryland increased slightly in 2021, a feat that only a handful of states reached in a year when the COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing and most states saw decreased life expectancy. Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters.
DEPUTY DIRECTOR LEAVING B’MORE’S PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT: The deputy director of Baltimore’s Department of Public Works is leaving his job next month. Richard Luna joined DPW in 2022 and served for a time as interim director. Bryan Doherty, a spokesperson for Mayor Brandon Scott, confirmed Luna was leaving his position effective Oct. 3. Cody Boteler/The Baltimore Banner.
