SUN ENDORSES SCOTT, AFRO PICKS DIXON: The Sun editorial board says: “If there’s one thing Catherine Pugh’s mayoral tenure and subsequent criminal conviction should have taught us, it’s that there’s no such thing as a ‘safe choice in this city. So let’s aim high. It’s time Baltimore had a visionary leader who lives and breathes the city, and knows it like the back of his hand; someone who will work tirelessly to improve it and who isn’t afraid to upset the apple cart if it’s for the greater good. That’s why we endorse Brandon Scott to be the next mayor of Baltimore.”
- The AFRO is endorsing Sheila Dixon for mayor, calling her “one of the most effective public servants the city has seen in decades,” the staff of the AFRO reports.
- A poll sponsored by WYPR, the Sun and the University of Baltimore found that the city’s elections are very close for mayor, council and even the comptroller, Emily Sullivan reports for WYPR.
- Council member Danielle McCray has kept a low profile in her race against challenger Tamira Dunn, Ian Round and Mark Reutter report for Baltimore Brew.
CONTACT TRACING FULLY OPERATIONAL NEXT WEEK: Maryland’s contact tracing operation for coronavirus cases will be fully operational in the entire state starting next week, with more than 1,400 contact tracers, Bryan Renbaum reports for MarylandReporter.com.
- Free online training for those interested in contact tracing jobs is available through Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Heather Legg writes in the Maryland Association of Counties blog, Conduit Street.
MARYLAND NURSING HOME INFECTION RATE HIGH NATIONALLY: The infection rate reported in Maryland nursing homes is one of the highest known in the nation, a reporting partnership between The New York Times and the Sun has found. Those with large black and Latino populations have been twice as likely to get hit by the coronavirus as those where white residents predominate, Scott Dance of the Sun reports.
BMORE MAYOR TO TRUMP: DON’T COME: President Donald Trump is planning to spend Memorial Day in Baltimore’s Fort McHenry, but its mayor has said the visit will set a bad example while a stay-at-home order is still in effect, Tyler Waldman reports for WBAL-AM.
- Larry Hogan said he is “honored” by the visit, but the governor will be spending the day with his family since it is his birthday, reports Ryan Dickstein for WMAR.
- The president does not intend to change his plans in response to Young’s concerns, Pamela Wood of the Sun reports.
UNEMPLOYMENT SYSTEM COMPLAINTS: Secretary of Labor Tiffany Robinson addresses complaints about the state’s unemployment system with C4 on WBAL-AM.
- Senate President Bill Ferguson is suggesting that the state give default approvals to unemployment claims after complaints that residents haven’t been able to get their claims processed, reports Barry Simms for WBAL-TV.
DAY CARE ACCESS WILL EXPAND PAST ESSENTIAL WORKERS: Maryland education officials are expanding access to child care to include families returning to work as the state reopens, the staff of WMAR reports. Those families will need to pay tuition directly to providers.
LIFE UNDER LOCKDOWN: Families and attorneys say life in Maryland’s prisons has become unbearable with nearly constant lockdowns and telephone time cut short, Phillip Jackson reports for the Sun. Yet Maryland prisons have seen fewer COVID-related deaths than many other states.
ELLICOTT CITY RALLY CALLS FOR REOPENING: Reopen Howard County, a 700-person Facebook group, is set to host its first rally Tuesday to push the county to allow small businesses and religious institutions to reopen, Ana Faguy reports for Baltimore Sun Media.
BUSINESSES STILL STRUGGLE TO RETAIN WORKERS: A survey of businesses has found that a federal loan program, the Paycheck Protection Program, has not made it much easier to avoid letting employees go, Adam Bednar for The Daily Record reports.
PREPARING FOR MAIL IN BALLOTS: In Maryland’s first statewide election by mail, there are glitches like two ballots sent to one voter or ballots that have not arrived yet, John Rydell reports for WBFF.
- About 90% of ballots have been delivered to Montgomery County residents for the June 2 primary, Dan Schere of Bethesda Beat reports.
FREDERICK CO GRANT PROGRAM WILL START: Frederick County farmers, small businesses and microbusinesses will be able to apply for COVID-relief grants through a county program distributing CARES Act money, Erika Riley reports for the Frederick News-Post.
BLUE FLAME STARTS TO DELIVER VENTILATORS: A politically connected company in a contract dispute with the state had started to deliver ventilators to the state of Maryland, reports Luke Broadwater for the Sun.
JUDICIARY CASE SEARCH EXPANDED: The Maryland Judiciary has expanded its public access database, Maryland Judiciary Case Search, to include remote access to case information from the Court of Appeals and the Court of Special Appeals, the staff of the Garrett County Republican reports.
OPINION: HARRIS WRONG TO ATTEND RALLIES: Reader Daniel Kim tells the Salisbury Daily Times that U.S. Rep. Andy Harris should not have attended Re-open Maryland rallies, and removing protections at this point will lead to the deaths of hardworking Americans.
