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Maryland’s general election kicks into high gear on Thursday as in-person voting begins for races ranging from governor and attorney general to local offices. Here’s key information about the different ways you can cast your ballot.
Early voting
Early voting runs from Thursday, Oct. 27 through Thursday, Nov. 3. Early voting centers are open daily from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.
Voters can go to any location in their jurisdiction, and most counties and Baltimore City have multiple options.
Baltimore City has seven early voting centers: the Public Safety Training Center on Northern Parkway, Southeast Anchor Library on Eastern Avenue, Mount Pleasant Church and Ministries on Radecke Avenue, the League for People with Disabilities on Cold Spring Lane, Westside Skill Center on Edmondson Avenue, the University of Maryland at Baltimore Community Engagement Center on Poppleton Street and Patapsco Elementary School on Roundview Road.
Baltimore County has 11 early voting centers: the Arbutus Recreation Center, the Baltimore County Board of Elections in Hunt Valley, the County Campus at Metro Centre in Owings Mills, the Honeygo Run Community Center in Perry Hall, the Jacksonville Recreation Center in Phoenix, the Randallstown Community Center, the Reisterstown Senior Center, the Sollers Point Multi-Purpose Center in Dundalk, Towson University’s South Campus Pavilion, the Victory Villa Community Center in Middle River and the Woodlawn Community Center.
Here’s a full list of early voting centers.
If you’re not registered to vote, you can register and vote at the same time at any early voting center in your jurisdiction. Bring proof of your residence, such as a Maryland driver’s license or state identification card, paycheck, bank statement, utility bill or government mail showing your name and address.
Voting by mail
It’s not too late to vote by mail for this election. Registered voters have until Nov. 1 to request a ballot to be mailed to them. Voters have until Nov. 4 to ask for a ballot to be sent to them by email; those voters have to print out the ballot and then return it.
Here’s the link to request a mail ballot, but note that it works better on a computer than on a phone. You also can request a ballot from your local elections office.
Mail ballots can be returned multiple ways: through the mail, at an official ballot drop box in the voter’s jurisdiction or at a voting center in the voter’s jurisdiction.
Here’s a list of ballot drop boxes.
No matter how you return the mail ballot, the deadline to do so is 8 p.m. on Nov. 8.
Election Day voting
Traditional Election Day voting will take place on Nov. 8 from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Voters must go to their assigned polling location. You can look up your polling place online.
Same-day voter registration is offered on Election Day. Bring proof of your residence, such as a Maryland driver’s license or state identification card, paycheck, bank statement, utility bill or government mail showing your name and address.
Checking your registration
Not sure if you’re registered to vote, or if your information is current? Wondering where your Election Day polling location is?
The Maryland State Board of Elections offers an online tool to look up your voter registration information.
Finding out who wins
No election results will be reported until after Election Day polls close at 8 p.m.
But many jurisdictions already are confidentially tallying mail ballots as they come in, including Baltimore City and Baltimore County.
The early voting votes also will be counted confidentially after the early voting period.
After 8 p.m. on election night, elections officials will post the results from early voting and the mail ballots counted so far. As the night goes on, Election Day voting results will be posted.
There could be enough information on election night for candidates to declare victory in some races, although all ballots will be counted regardless.
The remaining mail ballots will be tabulated in the days following Election Day.
pamela.wood@thebaltimorebanner.com
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Pamela Wood covers Maryland politics and government. She previously reported for The Baltimore Sun, The Capital and other Maryland newspapers. A graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, she lives in northern Anne Arundel County.
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