FOR MANY, PRIMARY DAY IS THE GENERAL ELECTION; PLUS SOME TOUGH RACES: Primary voters go to the polls Tuesday to narrow the field of hundreds down to the party nominees who will face off for House and Senate seats in November. That’s the premise, anyway.But in a blue state like Maryland, primaries often serve as the general election. While Democrats made a big deal of putting up at least one candidate in every seat in the General Assembly, even in the districts where Democrats face exceedingly long odds, Republicans have failed to field candidates in 20 of the 47 Senate races or 52 of the 141 delegate seats. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
- There are some high stakes in key contests around the Old Line State. Whether it’s Gov. Wes Moore riding a $7 million steamroller to reelection, Senate President Bill Ferguson’s dogfight with a social media influencer, or a slew of congressional primaries, here’s what to look out for tomorrow. Lee O. Sanderlin/The Baltimore Banner.
BLACK MARYLANDERS FIGHT AGAINST VOTER SUPPRESSION: Marylanders might breathe a sigh of relief knowing lawmakers and Gov. Wes Moore approved state voting protections. But, motivated by what they’re seeing and hearing elsewhere, some Black Marylanders aren’t taking chances and are preparing to ensure their ballots count. John-John Williams/The Baltimore Banner.
AN INSIDE LOOK IN HOW AN ENERGY MOGUL GOT HIS DATA CENTER: Last fall, months before the public heard about his plans, Paul Prager and his company TeraWulf held a series of meetings with top Moore administration officials to discuss an idea to buy an old coal plant on the Potomac River and reboot it to power what could be Maryland’s largest data center. It’s a plan he promised would bring environmental remediation, jobs and much-needed reinforcement for the regional power grid. Government negotiations with developers often happen behind closed doors, but exchanges obtained through a records request offer a rare window into how deals get done. Adam Willis/The Baltimore Banner.
DELEGATES ASKED TO CONSIDER TWO SPECIAL SESSIONS: Members of the House of Delegates are being asked to consider two windows for a special session that could consider two possible amendments to the Maryland Constitution.House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk, in a June 16 letter, asked House members to consider a week in mid-July and a week in early August to consider a bill related to midcycle congressional redistricting. She noted two bills: one amending the Constitution to clarify how congressional districts may be drawn and one that would establish a special election process for filling some vacancies in the Maryland House and Senate. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.
A BEHIND-THE-SCENES PUSH TO SECURE RIGHTS TO PREAKNESS NAMES: Months before Gov. Wes Moore announced the state’s $85 million purchase of intellectual property rights tied to the Preakness Stakes and Black-Eyed Susan, Maryland business leaders worked behind the scenes to persuade his administration that the state should own one of its most recognizable brands. Lorraine Mirabella and Tinashe Chingarande/The Baltimore Sun.
BOBBY LaPIN’s FAST PITCH AGAINST FERGUSON:Bobby LaPin’s pitch is simple. “I’m a Bernie Sanders. He’s a Chuck Schumer,” LaPin says to a pair of voters sipping drinks in Baltimore’s Cross Street Market on a balmy Wednesday afternoon. “Sold,” one says quickly, chuckling. LaPin, a sailboat charter captain and social media personality, is speaking of Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City). This year’s primary race against LaPin represents the most difficult challenge Ferguson has faced since he was the baby-faced 27-year-old challenger who unseated an entrenched incumbent in 2011. Bryan Sears and Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.
COMMENTARY: THE CAS TAYLOR CAUTIONARY TALE: Maryland political history offers a cautionary tale that’s worth revisiting — not to support or oppose any candidate, but to understand the stakes of institutional power. At the end of the 20th century, Western Maryland held something it had never held before and has never held since: the Speaker of the House. It was held by Cas Taylor, effective, influential, and able to deliver for a region that otherwise had little leverage in Annapolis. And then his district voted him out. Barry O’Connell/The Maryland Wire.
HOYER’s REPLACEMENT COULD HINT AT DEMOCRATS FUTURE: Maryland’s most competitive congressional primary is a microcosm of the Democratic Party itself. A long-serving party elder is retiring, handing the reins to a younger generation. Nearly two dozen Democrats are seeking the seat, including fired federal workers, a former Capitol Police officer, state and local lawmakers, and business founders. UMBC political scientist Jé St Sume argues the replacement for U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer after four decades in office is vital to the future of the party because of those shifting demographics. John-John Williams/The Baltimore Banner.
MO CO DELEGATE, UNION CHIEF TRADE ACCUSATIONS, A FEW BLOWS: The head of a Montgomery County government employees union and a two-term delegate from the county traded blows during a scuffle Thursday evening outside an early voting center, and now they are trading accusations over the incident. Steve Crane/Maryland Matters.
CARROLL COMMISSIONERS HEAD TO PRIMARY DEFENDING SOLAR RECORD: Carroll County’s five incumbent commissioners ran in 2022 on a promise to keep solar development off farmland. By 2025, the state had taken much of that authority away from them — and now they’re asking voters to send them back for another term. The tension between local control and state authority has complicated much of the Board of Carroll County Commissioners’ approach to solar policy for the last four years. The result is a gap between what commissioners said they would do in 2022 — restrict solar development on farmland — and what they have been able to enforce under changing state law. Marissa Yelenik/The Carroll County Times.
JUDGE STRIKES PETITION FOR DATA CENTER BALLOT QUESTION IN FREDERICK: Judge James A. Bonifant ruled on Thursday against a petition that sought to create a ballot question in Frederick County that would have allowed residents to vote on a data center development zone. Nathanael Miller/WYPR-FM.
WHO DONATED WHAT IN THE HIGHLY COMPETITIVE RACE FOR BA CO EXEC? Developers, lawyers, restaurateurs, labor unions, car dealers, venture capitalists and a strip club owner are among the donors who wrote the largest checks in the fiercely competitive — and wildly expensive — race for Baltimore County executive. The five Democrats running in Tuesday’s primary hauled in $3.4 million through June 7, the latest campaign finance records show. Sapna Bansil/The Baltimore Banner.
HARFORD MOVES TO SCRUTINIZE DEVELOPMENT NEAR APG: Harford County will now require developers to disclose any involvement with federal foreign investment regulators as part of the development application process — one of the first local measures aimed at protecting Aberdeen Proving Ground from the kind of foreign influence that has alarmed national security officials across the country. Brendan Nordstrom and Bryna Zumer/The Aegis.
ANOTHER MEASLES CASE ENTERS MARYLAND: The state’s health department alerted Marylanders to a confirmed case of measles Saturday afternoon after a resident returned from an international trip. The Maryland Department of Health said anyone who was at Dulles International Airport last Wednesday from 6 to 11 a.m. in Concourse C’s international arrivals, on the transportation from the concourse or in baggage claim could have been exposed. Sara Ruberg/The Baltimore Banner.
PEELING PAINT AT REFLECTING, AND A MARYLAND OLYMPIAN’s ARREST: The paint is peeling from Washington’s Reflecting Pool after the renovation ordered by President Donald Trump, who is now claiming without evidence that someone damaged it intentionally. And David Hearn, a 67-year-old Bethesda resident and former Olympic canoer who stopped by the pool while on a 64-mile bike ride, said authorities arrested him and held him for five hours on Friday after he reached down into the pool. Staff/The Associated Press.
