Thursday, October 18, 2012
How will you vote on the Congressional redistricting plan on Nov. 6?
In addition to more notable referendum questions such as same-sex marriage, DREAM Act and expanded gambling, Maryland voters will also be asked to decide the fate of the state's recently redrawn congressional districts. Earlier this week, Comptroller Peter Franchot announced he intends to vote against the maps and asked voters to do the same. The comptroller said the recent maps drawn by Gov. Martin O'Malley and approved by the General Assembly are unfair and make Maryland "the poster child for gerrymandering." A spokeswoman for the governor noted that the maps have survived a number of challenges in the courts and that the process used to create them is legally sound. Voters on Nov. 6 will be asked to vote for the referred law or against …
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Comptroller says Maryland "is the poster child for gerrymandering" and urges voters to vote no on Question 5.
Democratic Comptroller Peter Franchot said Monday he supports his party's candidates but that recent redistricting of Maryland's congressional is too heavy-handed. "This map is way over the edge in terms of bare-knuckle politics," said Franchot. "I'm a proud Democrat. I support Democrats. I just want it to be fair and not fixed," Franchot said, comparing the redistricting process to "Boss Tweed-style Chicago politics." Franchot Tuesday called for an independent, non-partisan commission that would redraw the congressional and state legislative districts. The change would help restore faith in the political system, he said. The comptroller said the districts should be more compact in order to provide voters with better representation. He …
Friday, June 15, 2012
Patch covers the candidates, incumbents and issues that will be affecting Annapolis and Anne Arundel County.
As we look ahead to November’s elections, Annapolis Patch is devoted to bring you the information you need about every race in town. Here's our start on the candidates and issues we'll be covering as November draws near. Bookmark this page for updates. The Dream Act: This legislation would allow illegal immigrant students to pay in-state tuition at institutions in the University System of Maryland if their parents filed to pay state taxes, if they attended a Maryland high school for at least three years and if they graduated. Passed by the General Assembly in 2011, opponents launched a petition effort that blocked the legislation from taking effect and landed it on the 2012 ballot as a voter referendum. Legislators from District 21 in …
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
More than 150 people attended the "Rally for Good Government" in Lawyer's Mall Tuesday.
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Wednesday, October 19, 2011
By EMAUN KASHFIPOUR Capital News Service Tea Party and conservative groups held a rally in Annapolis Tuesday to protest a proposed redistricting plan and possible tax hikes. More than 150 people attended the "Rally for Good Government" in Lawyer's Mall in front of the State House. Protesters complained that Gov. Martin O'Malley's proposed redistricting map was drawn in order to oust Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Frederick, from his congressional seat. In the process of targeting Bartlett, they said O'Malley shortchanged the state's minority residents. "[O'Malley] has told our friends, no you don't deserve fair representation in Congress by one of your peers. No you have to wait another decade for the majority-minority district you deserve. I'm …
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Republicans offer only one amendment in a debate some expected would last until late Monday night.
A bill redrawing eight congressional districts in Maryland moved one step closer to final passage in the Senate with a 33-13 vote Monday night. The vote, taken nearly an hour after a specially appointed 15-member Senate committee voted late Monday afternoon to approve Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan, was anticlimactic. Republicans offered just one amendment to the bill in a debate that lasted minutes rather than hours. Sen. E.J. Pipkin's amendment would have stripped out O'Malley's plan in favor of Pipkin's, which added a third majority minority district and kept intact the two Republican districts. In the end, the Senate voted 13-33 to kill the amendment. Sen. Jim Brochin, of Towson, was the lone Democrat joining Republicans on both votes. …
Monday, October 17, 2011
African-American voting rights groups, Republicans join to oppose O'Malley plan.
A coalition of African-American voting rights groups and Republicans announced they will oppose Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan to redraw the state's eight congressional districts and warned that they intend to take the issue to court. Carletta Fellows, a spokeswoman for the Fannie Lou Hamer PAC, called O'Malley's plan "institutional racism" and said it violates the federal Voting Rights Act by not creating a third majority minority district. O'Malley's plan, which will have a hearing Monday afternoon, apparently attempts to protect six incumbent Democratic U.S. House members. There would also be changes for a Republican-held district, made up mostly of western Maryland, that would make elections there more competitive by adding part of …
Friday, October 14, 2011
Some said the proposed changes seek to strengthen Democratic power by squeezing out Republican Rep. Roscoe Bartlett and diluting minority voting power.
By Ashley M. Latta Capital News Service As the Maryland General Assembly prepares to approve a Congressional redistricting plan, a number of leaders from both political parties said the current proposal aims to bolster Democratic power by squeezing out Republican Rep. Roscoe Bartlett and diluting minority voting power. Some Montgomery County Democrats, several state delegates, the NAACP of Maryland and a number of Republicans are openly opposing the plan put forth by the Governor's Redistricting Advisory Committee. "The first time I saw this map, I thought it was one of the rejected maps," said Montgomery County Councilmember Marc Elrich. "It begins to look like we had a second objective—a political objective of individuals." Elrich and …
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Just in case you missed something this week, Patch brings you the week that was in Greater Annapolis.
Patch articles always stay on the site, even when they're not posted as a top story, so we encourage you to explore and read some of the older articles if you're new to Greater Annapolis Patch. If you'd like to know more about how to use the Patch site, click here. And to ensure you don't miss anything, we'll do reviews each week to point out stories of interest you may have missed. Remember that you can sign up to receive daily or weekly updates from Patch. We're also active on Facebook and Twitter, too. This week Patch tracked a series of unrelated robberies in Crownsville that extended through the holiday weekend. There were two incidents over the weekend and another on Monday. County police have made three arrests in the incidents and …
Dana Schwartz
2:33 am on Wednesday, November 7, 2012
How can there be so many jerks in this state? This was not about Dems vs Reps, it was about disenfranchisement and too much power in the hands of people we didn't vote for! Very disappointed. It's an embarrassment being "the most gerrymandered state in the US". It's time for an amendment instituting term limits for MD legislators! more ›