EARLY VOTING STARTS; WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE ELECTION: Strictly speaking, voting has been going on for weeks now for those Marylanders who requested and returned their mail-in ballots. But the physical act of voting — going to a place and standing in front of a machine to cast a ballot — begins today. That’s when the week of early voting for the 2024 presidential election begins in Maryland. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
- Early voting starts Thursday in Maryland, with former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) competing for the state’s open Senate seat and all eight congressional district seats on the ballot, including three where the incumbents are not seeking reelection. In an election year where women’s reproductive rights have factored heavily into several races, Maryland voters will also decide whether the state should enshrine reproductive choice in the Maryland Constitution. Here’s what to know about the Nov. 5 election as voters start casting ballots. Dana Munro/The Washington Post.
IN TAKOMA PARK, FEW NONCITIZENS WHO CAN VOTE DO: Takoma Park, a city of about 17,000 bordering Washington, D.C., has allowed noncitizens — including lawful U.S. residents and immigrants in the country illegally — to vote in local elections since 1993. Residents who championed the idea of noncitizen voting hoped that giving them voting rights would increase their participation in civic issues that affect quality of life. That hasn’t happened. Noncitizen voter turnout has been low. Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu/Politifact.
PAST CLASHES HELPED SHAPE ALSOBROOKS’ RUN FOR SENATE: In her years as state’s attorney and county executive, Angela Alsobrooks has picked up opponents and critics of her work, many within her own Democratic Party that dominates Prince George’s politics. They’ve faulted her lack of engagement with Latino residents, for being tight with developers, and for a mixed record on crime. But as Alsobrooks runs for the U.S. Senate, many of those critics have become supporters. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
POLLS: ALSOBROOKS MAINTAINS LEAD OVER LARRY HOGAN: According to the latest Emerson College Poll, Angela Alsobrooks has widened her lead over Larry Hogan in the race for the U.S. Senate seat from Maryland, 54% to 40%. Brenda Wintrode and Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
- Democrat Angela D. Alsobrooks maintains a clear lead in Maryland’s closely watched U.S. Senate race, fueled by voters’ lopsided preference for Democrats to control the chamber and doubts that Republican Larry Hogan would buck the will of party leaders, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll. Scott Clement, Emily Guskin and Erin Cox/The Washington Post.
THE COMPETITIVE 6th DISTRICT HOUSE SEAT: With less than two minutes left at an otherwise cordial Frederick League of Women Voters forum on Oct. 6, two candidates for Congress suddenly erupted. They pointed fingers, accused each other of lying and continued whisper-arguing as the forum’s ending announcements wrapped up. The verbal combatants were Democrat April McClain Delaney and Republican Neil Parrott, who are running for the 6th Congressional District, which stretches from rural Western Maryland to the Montgomery County suburbs. Katherine Wilson of Capital News Service/Maryland Reporter.
ARE THERE DENTS IN OLSZEWSKI’s ARMOR? John Olszewski has ascended from a public school teacher two decades ago to the upper echelons of state and local politics. The Baltimore County’s executive who is running for the U.S. House, comes to voters with dents in his armor. A series of news stories have unspooled convoluted backroom deals that have put his management of taxpayer dollars into question. Danny Nguyen/The Baltimore Banner.
COMMENTARY: HOGAN’s ENDURING INFLUENCE IN ANNAPOLIS: Almost two years after he left office, former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) is looming over the legislative conversation in Annapolis. It may not be too much of a stretch to say he’s having more influence now than he did during his eight years as governor, when the Democrats who ran the General Assembly basically did everything they wanted — even though they never fully came to terms with the idea that the guy was elected twice. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.
RASKIN SAYS TRUMP HASN’T SIGNED ‘ORDERLY TRANSITION’ DOCUMENTS: U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland said Wednesday that former President Donald Trump, who’s running again as a Republican, hasn’t signed key documents that other presidential nominees have adhered to in the past to assure an “orderly transition of power” if they are elected. Jeff Barker/The Baltimore Sun.
HARFORD COUNCILMAN’s TERM IN OFFICE COULD BE CUT SHORT: The current term of a Harford County Council member could be cut short as the result of a plea deal to resolve a felony theft charge. Dion Guthrie (D) is expected to enter a plea as soon as next week. He is accused of stealing more than $23,000 from the union he ran for more than five decades, according to new information released by the Baltimore County state’s attorney’s office. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.
GUN SHOP OWNER CHARGED WITH FREDERICK SHERIFF ACQUITTED OF CONSPIRACY: A Frederick gun shop owner accused of conspiring with the county sheriff to illegally acquire seven machine guns was acquitted on all counts by a federal district court jury Tuesday. Robert Krop’s trial, which began last week, was originally scheduled to last through this Thursday, but the case was handed Monday afternoon to the jury, which returned its verdict Tuesday after about five hours of deliberation over two days. Ceoli Jacoby/The Frederick News Post.
SUN GUILD FILES COMPLAINT OVER REPORTER’s FIRING: The Baltimore Sun Guild filed a federal labor complaint on Friday alleging that former employee Madeleine O’Neill was fired from the newspaper because she was participating in activity protected by the National Labor Relations Act — and said the firing aimed to discourage other employees from doing the same. Cody Boteler/The Baltimore Banner.
FORMER FEDERAL JUDGE JOYCE GREEN DIES AT 95: Judge Joyce H. Green, a trailblazing attorney and prominent longtime federal judge, died Oct. 10 from acute myeloid leukemia at Brightview Senior Living in Towson. The former Tuscany-Canterbury resident was 95. “Joyce had an ideal judicial temperament,” said Judge Royce Lamberth, who succeeded her on the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. “She was even-keeled, let the lawyers have their say, never lost control of her court and was at all times very respectful. Frederick Rasmussen/The Baltimore Sun.
