Question 1

When and where can I vote?

Accepted Answer

Mail-in ballots must be postmarked on or before May 14 or dropped into a ballot drop box. Registered primary voters also have the option to cast a ballot in person on May 14 at their local polling place. Polls will open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. If you are in line to vote when the polls close, you will be allowed to cast a ballot. You can look up your assigned polling place here, and find a list of ballot drop box locations here.

Question 2

What races are on the ballot?

Accepted Answer

Registered Democrats and Republicans will get to vote for their party’s pick to go on to the general ballot for president, one Senate seat and eight House seats. Some counties also have local races on the primary ballot, including several nonpartisan school board positions where all primary voters will winnow the field of candidates to the top two for each seat.

Question 3

What is at stake in the open U.S. Senate race?

Accepted Answer

Hogan’s last-minute entry into the contest at the behest of GOP leaders to replace retiring Sen. Ben Cardin (D) upended what had been seen as a contest between Trone and Alsobrooks. Faced with the challenge of an unexpectedly competitive general election, Maryland Democrats must decide which candidate has the best chance to beat Hogan, the presumptive Republican nominee, in the fall. Trone, the billionaire owner of Total Wine & More, brings statewide name recognition earned during his time in the U.S. House and deep pockets of personal wealth to help fund a general election campaign. Already, he has spent more than $61.77 million of his own money to finance his primary run. Alsobrooks represents a chance for Maryland Democrats to make history: She would be the fourth Black woman to serve in the Senate, and the first Black senator from Maryland, a state with one of the highest concentrations of Black people outside of the Deep South. While she is well-known in Prince George’s County and the surrounding areas near the inner D.C. suburbs, Alsobrooks has faced a bigger hurdle to introduce herself to voters in other parts of the state. Whichever Democrat walks away with the nomination will have to defend a seat that has been blue since 1977, and could help tip the scales of which party controls the Senate.

Question 4

Who is running for the U.S. House?

Accepted Answer

In five of the state’s eight congressional districts, incumbents are poised to retain their seats. They are the delegation’s lone Republican, Andy Harris, and Democrats Glenn Ivey, Steny H. Hoyer, Kweisi Mfume and Jamie Raskin. Congressmen in the 2nd, 3rd and 6th congressional districts are retiring, opening up contests that include a seat observers say could be politically competitive. In the 2nd, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 1.8 to 1, Baltimore County Executive John “Johnny O” Olszewski, Jr. faces five other Democrats: state Del. Harry Bhandari, high school art teacher Sia Kyriakakos, Baltimore County native Sharron Reed-Burns, medical assistant Jessica Sjoberg and insurance agent Clint Spellman, Jr. On the Republican ballot, Kim Klacik, a self-described college dropout whose previous campaigns for public office have drawn large fundraising sums, faces just two opponents — John Thormann, a veteran and business owner, and business executive Dave Wallace. In the deep-blue 3rd, registered Democrats will choose among 22 candidates to replace Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.). In that crowded field, two candidates have risen to the fore in fundraising. Former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn has pulled in more than $4.5 million since January to fund a campaign centering his role in defending the Capitol during the January 6 insurrection. State Sen. Sarah Elfreth, who was the youngest woman to serve in that chamber, has raised more than $1.4 million and has also benefited from more than $4.1 million in late-in-the-game super PAC spending on the race in support of her campaign. Republicans voters in the 3rd will choose between Arthur Radford Baker, Jr., Ray Bly, Berney Flowers, Thomas E. “Pinkston” Harris, Jordan Mayo, Naveed Mian, Joshua M. Morales, John Rea, and Robert J. Steinberger. Although the 6th District has a Democratic majority, it is the most politically diverse in the state and could be more competitive than any other congressional district under the right conditions. Democratic primary voters in the 6th choose among about a dozen candidates, with former Biden administration official April McClain Delaney and state Del. Joe Vogel running the most competitive campaigns in the district. The race has drawn attacks on both campaigns, with the ideologically aligned opponents seeking to sway voters with their records and identities. The Republican primary in the 6th is a contest between two former state delegates, Dan Cox, the election-denying firebrand who is closely aligned with the Trump-supporting wing of the party, and Neil Parrott, who adheres to a more moderate platform. For Republican voters, the choice will determine how competitive the general election could be in a state where more moderate Republicans have had greater success overcoming Democratic challengers.

Question 5

What school board seats will be on the ballot?

Accepted Answer

School board races are nonpartisan in Maryland, but a primary is held to narrow down the list of candidates. The top two vote-getters in each race will advance to November’s general election. In Montgomery County, where voters can pick candidates in each district in the primary, there are three seats up for election in the primary — in districts 2 and 4 and for one at-large seat. In total, 14 candidates are running, including three incumbents. The Montgomery school board has been under scrutiny for its role in promoting a middle school principal while he was under investigation for sexual harassment in the school district. Board members have said they were not privy to any of the complaints made by teachers at Farquhar Middle School, though some reports about his behavior had been sent to the board via email and through a third-party reporting service. In Prince George’s County, there are 15 people running for five seats — districts 1, 4, 5, 7 and 8. All but one of the races are contested. In District 4, the only candidate to file is incumbent Shayla Adams-Stafford. Only voters with a race in their district will see it on the ballot. This election marks the first in Prince George’s since state lawmakers agreed to shrink the school board from 14 members to 10, removing four appointees from the board. One seat is held by a student. Five of the nine elected seats are on the primary ballot.

Maryland’s 2024 primary elections: A guide on voting and key races to watch