Follow WTOP’s team coverage of June 23 Maryland primary and Election 2026 online, on air at 103.5 FM or on the WTOP News app.
Maryland voters cast ballots in a wide range of primaries Tuesday, including state legislative offices, governor and some of the costliest congressional contests in the country.
All the General Assembly seats are up for election this year, though Republicans are not offering GOP candidates in all their primaries.
Early voting succeeds
Maryland State Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis told WTOP that even with the rain, in-person voting was slow but steady across the state.
“We’re expecting more turnout as it gets closer to 8 o’clock tonight,” he said.
DeMarinis said early voting numbers have surpassed 2024 and 2022’s election early voting totals, with over 185,000 voting early in person. Mail-in voting in particular has been “extremely popular,” DeMarinis said, with over 200,000 mail-in ballots received. These votes will be the first ones counted and released after the polls close, he said.
He also stressed that ID isn’t required for voting, and those without ID will be asked for their name, date of birth and address.
Voters at the polls in Colorado.
Making their voices heard
Voters at Sherwood High School in Montgomery County told WTOP that issues such as cost of living, education, taxes and more were top of mind as they cast ballots Tuesday.
One voter, Andrew Dodge, was concerned with data centers and rising electricity costs.
“As a homeowner and resident, I don’t want to be paying for their grid cost increases to supply data centers,” he told WTOP’s Luke Lukert.
Voters described the race for Montgomery County executive as a “tough” choice, Lukert said, with several candidates running to succeed term-limited Marc Elrich.
Kristin Prophet told WTOP she wants a new county executive who is community-focused, who will assist underserved communities and is dignified, sharing that she wasn’t a fan of the conflicts between candidates in the race.
“There were some negative ads on television that turned me off,” Prophet said.
The Maryland governor’s race
Gov. Wes Moore sought a second term and was challenged in the Democratic primary by Eric Felber, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress two years ago against Rep. Jamie Raskin, who represents Maryland’s 8th District.
Moore and Felber are joined on their respective tickets by Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller and Felber’s running mate, LaTrece Hawkins Lytes.
Moore, who has been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2028, is hoping for a strong showing but has downplayed White House aspirations.
In the Republican primary for governor, nine candidates are competing to face Moore in November.
The GOP candidates who led the field in campaign contributions and expenditures are Ed Hale, a Baltimore banker who switched parties last year, and Dan Cox, a former member of the Maryland House of Delegates.