Early Voting Begins In Anne Arundel County Election: Meet The Candidates

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — Crowded school board races and Congressional newcomers headline the 2024 Anne Arundel County general election slated for Nov. 5. Marylanders can also hit the polls for early voting starting this week or vote by mail or via ballot dropboxes.

Maryland's race for U.S. Senate pits a prominent Democrat against a former Republican governor competing to replace a retiring congressman. Another congressman is retiring in the House of Representatives, and a Maryland state senator hopes to make the jump to Capitol Hill.

The presidential race tops the ballot nationwide, and circuit court judges are up for election in Anne Arundel County.

There are also ballot questions on abortion and term limits.

All the candidates are listed below. Click any candidate's name to learn more about them.

How To Vote

Early voting runs from Thursday, Oct. 24 through Thursday, Oct. 31. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day that week. Marylanders can vote at any early voting center in the county they live in. All the early voting center locations are posted here.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Residents must vote at their assigned polling place on Election Day.

Residents can request a mail-in ballot from the State Board of Elections or their local board.

• If you want to receive your ballot by mail or fax, your request must be received (not just mailed) by Tuesday, Oct. 29.
• If you want to receive your ballot via the internet, your request must be received by 5 p.m., Friday, Nov. 1 for a request sent in the mail, or by 11:59 p.m., Friday, Nov. 1 for a request sent by fax or submitted online.
• If you hand deliver your request and the ballots are ready, you can pick up your mail-in ballot. You may take your mail-in ballot with you and return it by mail or you can vote it at the local board office and give it to an election official.
• The deadline to request a mail-in ballot in person is Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5 by 8 p.m. Please visit your local board of elections' website for hours of operation.

Mail-in ballots must be mailed and postmarked, placed in one of these dropboxes or taken to a polling place, early voting center or local board of elections by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Marylanders can update their address or register to vote at any early voting center in their county or at their newly assigned polling place on Election Day. Residents must bring their MVA-issued license, permit, ID card or change of address card. The ID can also be a paycheck, bank statement or utility bill. A government document with the voter's name and new address will also suffice.

Residents can use this tool to check their:

• Voter registration record
• Polling places
• Early voting centers
• Ballot dropboxes
• Voting districts
• Local board of elections information
• Status of their mail-in or provisional ballot
• Sample ballot

More details on how to vote are posted here.

Anne Arundel County Board Of Education

All seven adult seats are up for election on the Anne Arundel County Board of Education. Four incumbents are seeking re-election.

Members of the school board serve four-year terms, and they can't serve more than two consecutive terms.

School board districts are the same as County Council districts. Voters can check what district they live in at this link.

School board races are nonpartisan. The candidates are not running with political parties.

If a district had one or two candidates, they automatically advanced to the General Election. If the race had three or more candidates, the top two vote-getters from the primary advanced.

District 1

• Gloria D. Dent (Incumbent)
• Sarah F. Lacey suspended her campaign before the primary but never officially removed her name from the ballot. Lacey won enough votes to advance to the General Election, but she declined the nomination and dropped out. She is not eligible to win the General Election, so Dent is the only candidate with an active campaign.

District 2

• Robert A. Silkworth (Incumbent)
• John Grasso (Write-in candidate. Voters must write his name in the write-in space.)

District 3

• Erica McFarland
• Chuck Yocum

District 4

• Sarah J. McDermott
• Stephanie Mutchler

District 5

• LaToya Nkongolo
• Dana Schallheim (Incumbent)

District 6

• Edilene Barros
• Joanna Bache Tobin (Incumbent)

District 7

• Dawn Pulliam
• Jeremy York
• Maisie T. Howard (Write-in candidate. Voters must write her name in the write-in space.)

Related: Anne Arundel County Election: Meet The School Board Candidates

U.S. Senate

Maryland will elect a successor to retiring Sen. Ben Cardin (D).

Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) defeated U.S. Rep. David Trone (D-MD District 6) in the primary.

Alsobrooks will face former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who entered the Republican primary late in the game. If Hogan wins, he would be Maryland's first Republican U.S. senator in 37 years, and could have the GOP control of the U.S. Senate.

Hogan was one of the nation’s most popular governors during his two terms from 2015 to 2023. He was Maryland's first Republican governor to win re-election since the 1950s. He left office with a 77% approval rating.

Hogan did not vote for Donald Trump in either 2016 or 2020, and has pledged that on Nov. 5 he will not vote for either Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris.

Alsobrooks was elected as Prince George’s county executive in 2018 after serving as the jurisdiction’s state’s attorney for seven years. Seen as a rising Democratic star, Alsobrooks has campaigned on curbing gun violence and reducing the cost of groceries.

Alsobrooks has also repeatedly voiced her pro-choice abortion stance. Abortion is timely this election year, as a referendum will ask Marylanders if the right to an abortion should be enshrined in the state Constitution.

Democrats allege that Hogan can’t be trusted with abortion, though Hogan says he supports pro-choice legislation and opposes a national abortion ban.

Nearly all polls have shown Alsobrooks with a 5 to 17 percentage point lead over Hogan. A single AARP poll had them tied in August.

The winner will serve a six-year term in Congress. Senators don't have term limits.

Libertarian Mike Scott is also running. Write-in candidates include Patrick J. Burke of the American Solidarity Party, unaffiliated Billy Bridges and unaffiliated Christy Renee Helmondollar.

Related: Hogan, Alsobrooks Spar Over Abortion, Ethics Before MD's Senate Race

U.S. House of Representatives

Congressional District 3 will have a new representative, as John Sarbanes (D) isn't seeking a 10th term.

State Sen. Sarah Elfreth (District 30) advanced out of a crowded Democratic field with competitors like Del. Mark Chang (District 32) and Del. Mike Rogers (District 32). She also beat Harry Dunn (D), a former U.S. Capitol Police officer who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Elfreth will face Republican Robert J. Steinberger and Libertarian Miguel Barajas. Patch couldn't find a campaign website for Barajas.

U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D) is running for another term in Congressional District 5, where he's served since 1981. Though Hoyer stepped down as House majority leader last year, he hopes to continue his run in Congress. He'll face Republican Michelle Talkington.

U.S. representatives serve two-year terms. There are no term limits.

Voters can check their Congressional district at this link.

Related: MD House Elections: Olszewski's Payments, Parrott's Push To Flip Seat

Ballot Questions

There is one Constitutional Amendment question that will appear statewide on the Nov. 5 general election ballot:

Question 1- Constitutional Amendment (Ch. 245 of the 2023 Legislative Session)
Declaration of Rights - Right To Reproductive Freedom

"The proposed amendment confirms an individual's fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including but not limited to the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue or end the individual's pregnancy, and provides the state may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means."

There are also four ballot questions pertaining to Anne Arundel County specifically.

Question A
Charter Amendment
Executive Branch – Small Procurements

To amend the Anne Arundel County Charter to permit the County Council to increase the minimum value of purchases and contracts subject to a simplified competitive procurement process from greater than $5,000 to greater than $10,000; and increase the minimum value of purchases that are required to be published on the County website from $5,000 or greater to greater than $10,000.

Question B
Charter Amendment
Legislative Branch – Maryland Open Meetings Act

To amend the Anne Arundel County Charter to require that all meetings and legislative sessions of the County Council comply with the Maryland Open Meetings Act.

Question C
Charter Amendment
Executive Branch – Board of Appeals - Term of Office

To amend the Anne Arundel County Charter to provide that a member of the County Board of Appeals may serve up to three full consecutive four-year terms.

Note: Board of Appeals members are currently limited to two four-year terms.

Question D
Charter Amendment
Legislative Branch – Auditor

To amend the Anne Arundel County Charter to clarify the duties of the County Auditor.

Related: MD Voters To Decide Amendment Guaranteeing Reproductive Freedom

Judges

Maryland Circuit Court judges hear major civil cases and serious criminal cases like those requiring a jury trial. Circuit Courts can decide appeals from the District Court.

A nominating commission recommends several names to fill vacancies, and the governor decides which person gets the position.

Newly appointed judges must run for election in the first election that's at least one year after the vacancy occurred. Attorneys who are members of the Maryland Bar can run against a newly-appointed or sitting judge.

Circuit Court judges serve 15-year terms before they must seek re-election. There is no term limit. Circuit court judges must retire at 70 years old.

Candidates ran on both parties' primary ballots.

These are the General Election candidates for Judicial Circuit 5 in Anne Arundel County. Residents can vote for up to two of them.

• Claudia Barber
• Thomas F. Casey
• Christine Marie Celeste
• Ginina A. Jackson-Stevenson

Voters will also decide if at-large Appellate Court Judges Anne K. Albright, Kevin F. Arthur and Andrea M. Leahy continue serving. They are all running unopposed.

The Appellate Court of Maryland now consists of 15 active judges, at least one of whom comes from each of the state’s seven geographic appellate circuits. All of the judges are appointed by the governor, confirmed by the Maryland Senate and then must stand for a retention election by the voters every 10 years. Judges may serve until age 70. Senior Judges who have been authorized by the Supreme Court of Maryland to continue to serve may also hear and decide cases alongside the active judges.

President

President Joe Biden won the Democratic primary election, but he declined the nomination and dropped out in July. Biden passed his campaign over to Vice President Kamala Harris (D), and she tapped Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) to be her running mate.

Harris will face former President Donald Trump (R), who's seeking his second and final four-year term. Trump's running mate is Sen. JD Vance (R- Ohio).

Unaffiliated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., flanked by vice presidential nominee Nicole Shanahan, in August suspended his campaign and endorsed Trump. Kennedy secured enough signatures and will still appear on Maryland's ballot, however.

Jill Stein and Rudolph Ware are running for the Green Party.

Chase Oliver and Mike ter Maat are on the Libertarian presidential ticket.

Write-in candidates, whose names must be written in the blank space, include:

• Ralph Jaffe (D)
• Paij Boring (R) and Jaimey Rutschman (R)
• President R. Boddie (Unaffiliated)
• Susan Maude Buchser (Unaffiliated)
• Shondra Irving (Unaffiliated)
• Douglas Jenkins (Unaffiliated)
• Brian Larry Kienitz (Unaffiliated)
• Andrè Ramon McNeil Sr. (Unaffiliated)
• Benjamin L. Schwalb (Unaffiliated)
• Lester H. Waller Jr. (Unaffiliated)
• Carol Asher (Other)
• Jokie Beckett Jr. (Other)