primary - The Chestertown Spy

Gansler Launches Gubernatorial Campaign With Call to Legalize Marijuana

May 25, 2021 by Maryland Matters

Former state Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler (D) launched a second bid for governor on Tuesday with an embrace of “progressive” policies aimed at addressing long-simmering inequalities.

He also said the time has come for Maryland to legalize and tax marijuana.

A former two-term A.G. who served eight years as Montgomery County State’s Attorney, Gansler lost the 2014 gubernatorial primary to then-Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown (D).

He has been out of politics for seven years, serving as an attorney in private practice in Washington, D.C. One of his current clients, an international consortium of road-building companies, is suing the Maryland Department of Transportation.

Gansler said his loss in the 2014 primary was “really tough. I had never lost an election before. It was like getting a bucket of ice water poured over my head. It was a very humbling experience.”

The prep school and Yale-educated former prosecutor rubbed some people the wrong way early in his career. Many considered him too brash.

But Gansler said his defeat “made me a better person. … It’s made me a better listener.”

If elected, he will seek the legalization and taxation of recreational marijuana. He also said it’s important that the state expunge the records of people who’ve been convicted only of recreational use.

“Look, it’s time,” Gansler said. “It will allow us to regulate the product for safety [and] educate people on how to consume it responsibly.”

He enters an increasingly crowded Democratic primary field that includes Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot, former Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, entrepreneur Mike Rosenbaum, former U.S. Secretary of Education John King, philanthropist Jon Baron, and Ashwani Jain, who served in the Obama White House.

Gansler said that as attorney general, his staff worked with every agency in the state, giving him a working knowledge of government that the political newcomers in the field lack.

“People are thirsting for experience, somebody who has a progressive record of getting things done,” he said. “And I would argue that that’s unique to my candidacy in this race.”

Gansler entered the 2014 race having won back-to-back statewide races with 61% and 98% of the vote. But his campaign for governor was tripped up by multiple controversies, including one involving a photograph of him at a party that one of his underage sons attended in Dewey Beach, Del.

Political science professor Mileah Kromer said Gansler will have twin challenges — re-establishing his political persona and dealing with issues from his last race, like the “red Solo cup” flap.

“It’s not starting from scratch, in terms of name recognition,” the Goucher College of Maryland pollster said. “He’s not coming out of nowhere. But he’s going to have the same sort of uphill battle as everybody else to reintroduce himself to voters.”

Gansler raised $224,300 in the filing period that ended on Jan. 13. He reported $428,241 cash on hand.

During the same period, Franchot (D) raised $770,631. His war chest stood at a formidable $2,216,592.

Commerce Secretary Kelly Schulz is running in the Republican primary, as is Robin Ficker.

By Bruce DePuyt

Maryland Readies for Mail-in Primary on June 2

April 30, 2020 by Spy Desk

Maryland’s primary election, postponed to June 2 due to the coronavirus pandemic, will primarily be a “vote by mail” election.

The State Board of Elections will automatically mail a ballot to all eligible voters. Ballots should be received by early to mid May. Voters do not need to ask for a ballot to receive one.

The elections board will mail ballots to the address on file. If you want your ballot mailed to another address or download it from our website, please visit the Absentee Voting page. All mailed ballots include a return envelope and prepaid postage.

To reduce the risk of spreading the novel coronavirus, the elections board recommends that voters who can vote by mail do so. Voted ballots must be postmarked on or before Tuesday, June 2, 2020.

Voters who prefer to drop off their ballots may do so at designated ballot drop off locations from Thursday, May 21, 2020, through Tuesday, June 2, 2020.

If you are unable to vote by mail, you may vote in-person between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on election day, June 2, 2020, at a vote center in the jurisdiction where you live.

If you aren’t sure if you are registered, or at what address, check your voter registration status by visiting www.elections.maryland.gov and clicking “Look up your Voter Info.” If you do not have internet access, call 1-800-222-8683 and ask a State Board of Elections representative to check your registration.

If you are a registered voter and have voted before, no identification is required to receive or submit a ballot by mail. A very small number of newly registered voters may need to provide ID with their voted ballots. If you have to provide ID, there will be instructions with your ballot.

To register to vote online, visit www.elections.maryland.gov and click “Register to Vote” to learn more. The deadline to register to vote is Wednesday, May 27, 2020.

Identification is not required to register to vote, but you must provide some information so election officials can verify your identity.

If you use the State Board’s online system to register, you must enter your Maryland driver’s license number or Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) issued state ID number, the date MVA issued your license or ID card, and the last 4 digits of your Social Security number.

If you live outside of the United States or are a member of the military or spouse or dependent of a member of the military, you must enter the last 4 digits of your US social security number.

If you provide a license or State ID number, your signature on file with the MVA will become your official voter registration signature. If you provide a social security number, it will be used as your official voter registration signature.

If you use the paper application to register, you must also provide your Maryland driver’s license number or MVA-issued state ID number if you have one. If you don’t have one, you must provide the last 4 digits of your Social Security number.

If you don’t have either number, check box 6c. If you check box 6c, you might be required to show ID before voting for the first time.

You can check that your ballot was counted by visiting www.elections.maryland.gov and clicking “Look up your Voter Info.” If you do not have internet access, call 1-800-222-8683 and ask a State Board of Elections representative to check the status of your voted ballot. The information will be posted about 10 days after the election.

To update your address, give the local board of elections where you currently live your new address information. You can use the voter registration application to make the change, or you can submit in writing your new address. Voters must update their address with their local board of elections.

For instructions on updating your address, please visit the State Board of Elections website at www.elections.maryland.gov/voting/address.html. The deadline to update your information is Wednesday, May 27.

Board Nixes Polling Places for Special Election, Recommends Same for Primary

March 26, 2020 by Maryland Matters

Citing public health concerns and an inability to protect the safety of poll workers and voters, Maryland’s State Board of Elections voted Wednesday to avoid any in-person voting for the special election in the 7th congressional district next month.

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. earlier this month directed the state elections office to move forward with mail-in ballots for the election to fill the vacancy of the late Rep. Elijah E. Cummings. Officials were contemplating one voting center each in the jurisdictions that make up the district ― Baltimore City and Howard and Baltimore counties. But state board members said public health concerns overwhelmed other reasons for opening voting centers, including providing access for individuals with disabilities or limited access to postal services.

The board also directed state election officials to move forward with a mail-only plan for the postponed presidential primary election now scheduled for June 2. Elections officials must present Hogan with a plan for conducting that election by next Friday, according to a proclamation the governor issued March 17.

Despite lengthy deliberation during a teleconference, the board was ultimately unanimous in its decision to avoid all in-person voting “in light of the state of emergency and catastrophic health emergency.”

A major consideration was to avoid voting centers becoming hubs for transmission of COVID-19. There were 580 confirmed diagnoses of the novel coronavirus in Maryland as of Wednesday morning, but that figure is expected to climb as more patients are being tested and as the disease spreads.

Webster Ye, from the Maryland Department of Health, took part in the elections board meeting to advise officials about best practices to avoid community spread of the virus that has claimed more than 20,000 lives worldwide.

Ye told board members that current modeling indicates COVID-19 cases will peak in Maryland around July 4. The number of confirmed coronavirus diagnoses in the state could hit 1,800 by April 1, he said.

Board members expressed concern that opening polling places ― particularly with many of the state’s volunteer election judges being retirees ― could put workers and voters in an unhealthy situation.

“We don’t know what it’s going to be like on April 28. We can’t protect the public, the volunteers or the staff,” Board Chairman Michael R. Cogan said Wednesday.

Ye said the state, which is facing a shortage of personal protective equipment like masks, googles and gloves for healthcare workers, wouldn’t be able to provide complete protection for election workers if polling places are opened.

Maryland’s Deputy Election Administrator Nikki Charlson said local officials were already reporting a 20% vacancy rate for Election Day judges and that vacant positions were expected to climb with the infection rate.

Establishing voting centers was also complicated by the fact that many sites generally used for polling places ― schools, libraries or senior centers ― have been closed.

The board also voted Wednesday to repeal a state regulation requiring a mailing about same-day voter registration for the April and June elections, in light of changes to the voting process and because Maryland Correctional Enterprises, which had been contracted to send the postcard, had curtailed its workforce and is unable to meet the deadline.

However, the voter registration deadline for the April 28 election has been extended to April 21.

Voters can check their current registration information here. Changes can be made here.

For the April 28 election, the state will send pre-paid absentee ballots to all voters in the 7th District.

Other election processes for April and June still have to be worked out, including how election judges will be able to safely count mailed-in ballots without overcrowding local elections offices or closing off access to public observers.

The canvassing process to count mail-in ballots is a very labor-intensive process, Charlson said, and standard practices now “violate all of the social distancing guidelines.”

The board will consider allowing local elections offices to extend the typical 10-day deadline for finishing the canvass, and local elections offices are working together to develop safety guidelines.

The state board is expected to meet again next Thursday before formally presenting a proposal for conducting the June 2 elections to the governor on Friday.

By Danielle E. Gaines

Sections

More