Howard Co. Voter Guide: What's On The Ballot, Polling Places

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Election Day is here and those Marylanders who didn't vote early or absentee will head to the polls to not only to choose a new president, a U.S. senator to replace retiring Democrat Ben Cardin and members of the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as new members of the Howard County Board of Education and vote on a county measure to create an independent Office of Inspector General.

How To Vote

On Election Day, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Residents must vote at their assigned polling place on Election Day. Voters can check their assigned polling place at this link.

The deadline to request a mail-in ballot in person is Election Day, Nov. 5, by 8 p.m.

Marylanders can update their address or register to vote at any early voting center in their county or at their assigned polling place on Nov. 5. 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. More information about how to vote is posted here.

Howard County Races

The Howard County Board of Education consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. Five members are elected by district and two members are elected at large. Here are the people who filed for candidacy with the State Board of Elections for the Howard County Board of Education.

District 1
Andre Gao, Ellicott City
Meg Ricks, Ellicott City

District 2
Larry Doyle, Columbia
Antonia Watts, Elkridge

District 3
Jolene Mosley, Columbia

District 4
Julie Kaplan, Fulton
Jen Mallo, Columbia

District 5
Andrea Chamblee, Clarksville
Trent Kittleman, West Friendship

Howard County Charter Amendment Measure

Question A
"Amending the County Charter to create an independent Office of Inspector General to provide increased accountability and oversight of county government and county funded organizations. The inspector general would investigate fraud, waste and abuse, and identify ways to promote efficiency, accountability, compliance and integrity. The office would do its work without interference from the county executive and County Council. The office could hire legal, financial and technical advisors as needed. The executive's proposed budget would have to include the funding requested by the inspector general and the executive could not reorganize the office. The County Council would pass a law to specify the details of the office, including the appointment, removal and oversight of the inspector general. The law may also provide for the use of a Council appointed board."

State Constitutional Amendment On Ballot

There is one Constitutional Amendment question that will appear 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."

(Adding Article 48 to the Maryland Declaration of Rights)

U.S. Senate, House

Former Gov. Larry Hogan (R) faces Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) in the Nov. 5 contest to replace Ben Cardin. 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. Click any candidate's name to learn more about them.

Hogan would be Maryland’s first Republican U.S. senator in 37 years. Democrats currently hold a 51 to 49 advantage in the Senate if you count independents who lean liberal. A Hogan victory could give the GOP its 50th Senate seat, granting the next vice president the tie-breaking vote.
Alsobrooks leads Hogan in almost every poll conducted since she defeated the self-funded Total Wine & More co-owner and U.S. Rep. David Trone (MD-District 6) in the Democratic primary.

A Real Clear Politics average of polls done in the Alsobrooks vs. Hogan matchup give her a lead of 48.8 percent to 41.2 percentage points for Hogan.

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.

Supporters cheered Hogan’s pandemic-era leadership and public dissent from fellow Republican and then President Donald Trump, especially after the Jan. 6, 2021 riot. Hogan did not vote for Trump in either 2016 or 2020, and has pledged that on Nov. 5 he will not vote for either Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris.

Representative in Congress District 3 candidates are Sarah Elfreth, Democratic; Robert J. Steinberger, Republican; Miguel Barajas, Libertarian.

Elfreth has served District 30 in the Maryland Senate from 2019 until now. He's Maryland's representative on the Chesapeake Bay Commission since 2019, is a former member of the University System Board of Regents and an adjunct professor at Towson University.

Steinberg is an attorney from Anne Arundel County who earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame, his MBA from the University of Virginia, an MA from George Washington School of Education and Human Development, and his law degree from Pace University.

MD Judges

• Judge of the Circuit Court Circuit 5 candidate is Lara Weathersbee
• Justice, Supreme Court of Maryland, Circuit 3 candidate is Matthew J. Fader
• Judge, Appellate Court of Maryland, At Large candidate is Anne K. Albright
• Judge, Appellate Court of Maryland, At Large candidate is Kevin F. Arthur
• Judge, Appellate Court of Maryland, At Large candidate is Andrea M. Leahy

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)
• Claudia De la Cruz (Party for Socialism and Liberation)
• John R. Gibb Jr. (Reform Party)
• Shiva Ayyadurai (Independent)
• President R. Boddie (Unaffiliated)
• Theo Brown Sr. (Unaffiliated)
• Susan Maude Buchser (Unaffiliated)
• John Cheng (Unaffiliated)
• Cherunda Fox (Unaffiliated)
• Shondra Irving (Unaffiliated)
• Douglas Jenkins (Unaffiliated)
• Brian Larry Kienitz (Unaffiliated)
• Richard Mayers (Unaffiliated)
• Andrè Ramon McNeil Sr. (Unaffiliated)
• Benjamin L. Schwalb (Unaffiliated)
• Peter Sonski (American Solidarity Party)
• Lester H. Waller Jr. (Unaffiliated)
• Carol Asher (Other)
• Jokie Beckett Jr. (Other)