MD Primary Election 2018 Results: Ben Jealous To Face Gov. Hogan

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Former NAACP president Ben Jealous, who won union endorsements but not universal backing from Democratic party leaders, has won the nomination to face Gov. Larry Hogan in November, according to the Associated Press. Several incumbents so far have secured nominations to run for another term as results come in for Maryland's primary election.

"Voters in Maryland now have a clear choice," Jealous said Tuesday night. His victory party was attended by politicians including Congressman Elijah Cummings and Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh.

"Today we come together from all corners of Maryland," Jealous said, against Hogan, whom he accused of not taking a firm stand against the policies of President Donald Trump.

"I'm not running to the left or to the right; I'm running toward the people of our state," said Jealous.

He accused the governor of having "aided and abetted Donald Trump" for allowing U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to visit schools in the state. Jealous said that the test of leadership is "not a poll or a popularity contest" and more than "tolls and puppies," slamming the governor, who reportedly had a 71 percent approval rating and has made headlines for lowering toll costs for commuters and adopting rescue dogs in Baltimore.

Of Hogan, Jealous said: "He is not ready to run against someone who knows how to build a people-powered grassroots campaign."

.@RepCummings: "we are sending a message to the world that we will do everything in our power to save our democracy"...speaking at primary night party for Dem Nominee for Gov @BenJealous
— Jayne Miller (@jemillerwbal) June 27, 2018

At 11:50 p.m., unofficial vote totals from the Maryland Board of Elections website showed Jealous had received 39.8 percent of the Democratic vote, while Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker III had garnered 29.4 percent of the vote.

Hogan's campaign released a statement Tuesday night from former Maryland Democratic Party Chairman Nate Landow that urged moderates to support the governor rather than Jealous.

“It is imperative that Democratic voters who value moderation, fiscal responsibility and functional government support Governor Larry Hogan in the general election," Landow said. "His record of sensible, bipartisan reform and his genuine decency is the antidote for what ails our politics today. He stands in stark contrast to the irresponsible and extreme ideas of Ben Jealous.”

In a high-profile city of Baltimore race, State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby will remain in office for another four years after reportedly beating two challengers in Tuesday's primary election. The Associated Press reported she beat out Ivan Bates and Thiru Vignarajah. There were no Republican challengers.

Amid the last-minute campaigning and buzz over computer glitches during voter registration, the weirdest development may have been the closure of a Baltimore voting site because of a mice and flea infestation. Plus, three Baltimore polling sites stayed open until 9 p.m. after they opened late Tuesday morning. Voters picked from Democratic candidates eager to take on Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who has 71 percent approval from all voters in the mostly blue state.

Democrat U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin handily won his party's nomination for a third term over seven challengers. Ten Republicans are vying for their party's nomination to face the Democrat in the November general election. A winner has not yet been declared in the GOP contest, but at 10:30 p.m. Tony Campbell led the field with 29.1 percent of the votes. Campbell teaches politics at Towson University and is focused on national security and smaller government. He said his top focus is "securing America's infrastructure against foreign actors."

And GOP Rep. Andy Harris won the nomination to seek another term for the 1st congressional district, according to the Associated Press.

Ballots are now being counted to see who Marylanders chose from the crowded Democratic field to take on the businessman turned governor, who has won over Democrats and independents with his criticism of President Donald Trump on numerous issues including separating immigrant children from their parents at the border, and won praise for tax cuts, efforts to improve Baltimore housing and jobs after unrest, and more.

Voters in one polling place were directed elsewhere Tuesday due to reported pests. Citizens looking to cast their ballots at Patapsco Elementary School were told to vote instead at Carter G. Woodson Elementary/Middle School, Fox 45 reported. The two schools are about 0.3 mile apart in Cherry Hill.

The three precincts remained open until 9 p.m. at the Baltimore IT Academy in the 900 block of Woodbourne Avenue. Workers at the polls did not open until around 9 a.m. for the primary because they could not get into a secure room that housed the voting equipment and supplies, election officials said. Polls should have opened at 7 a.m.

The Democratic gubernatorial field included Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker III, former NAACP president Ben Jealous, state Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr., attorney James Shea, tech entrepreneur Alec Ross and former Michelle Obama aide Krishanti Vignarajah. Valerie Ervin will be listed on the ballot as the running mate for Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, who died in May. Ervin withdrew last week and threw her support behind Baker. Baker and Jealous are seeking to become the state's first African-American governor.

»Patch will update this story with developments and election results throughout the evening. See a vote table with GOP and Democratic results once polls close at the bottom of the story.

A new wrinkle in the primary came to light late Monday afternoon when the Maryland Board of Elections said 61,000 voters were affected by a computer glitch when they tried to change their address, on top of 18,700 such voters the state learned last week were affected by the computer programming error. These additional voters have been notified and asked to vote at the voting location for their address and to cast a provisional ballot. Election officials in every county have confirmed that they have enough provisional ballots for the primary; no eligible voter will be denied the right to vote, the state election board says.

Those voters who tried to change their address via the Motor Vehicle Administration website or kiosks between April 22, 2017, and June 5, 2018, have been told to make sure they go to their new polling place. (Look up your polling place here.)

A provisional ballot is the same as a ballot you would scan into the machine, but it is not scanned on Election Day, WTOP reports. The process is similar to how absentee ballots are tabulated in the days after the election when the election results are certified.

Election officials may ask for ID from a voter using the provisional ballot. A driver’s license, a state-issued ID or a utility bill can be used for identification if it’s requested.

The League of Women Voters said Tuesday it is a grave concern that the Motor Vehicle Administration failed to forward to the Board of Elections information on nearly 80,000 voters. "A citizen’s right to vote is too important to be put at risk by administrative error. We call on the governor and Maryland General Assembly to thoroughly investigate this matter, determine the causes, and take the necessary steps to prevent it from happening again," the league said in a statement.

Voters should use Maryland’s system of provisional voting, which is a safeguard against potential errors in voter registration data, the LWV said.

Polls across the state will be open on Election Day, June 26, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Any voters with questions about their registration and what to expect on election day should call the State Board of Elections at 1-800-222-8683 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

A poll released June 10 performed by The Baltimore Sun and the University of Baltimore shows Baker and Jealous lead the Democratic race, both with 16 percent of the vote. About 25 percent of the Democratic voters polled said they plan to cast their ballot for Hogan in November.

Baker spent Tuesday visiting coffee shops and gatherings to urge supporters to get to the polls, he was joined at some stops by former Gov. Martin O'Malley.

Jealous also spent the day energizing supporters.

Kathleen Matthews, chairwoman of the Maryland Democratic Party, said in an email to supporters urging them to vote that a blue wave has been building across the country this year, and it comes to Maryland Tuesday.

"This year, we are fighting to take back the governor’s mansion, defeat Republican Congressman Andy Harris, secure our majorities in the state legislature, win key down-ballot races, and more. Under the Trump administration, electing Democrats at the state and local level is more crucial than ever," Matthews wrote. "It’s how we protect the Affordable Care Act, defend public schools, and keep environmental protections in place."

A Gonzales Research poll released at the same time gave Baker a slim edge with 25 percent support among Democratic primary voters, followed by 23 percent for Jealous. The rest of the field polled in this order: Madaleno at 9 percent, Kamenetz and Ervin at 7 percent, Shea with 6 percent, Vignarajah with 5 percent, Ross at 2 percent; and Ralph Jaffe and James Jones each at less than 1 percent.

The primary will also winnow the U.S. Senate race, where Democrat Ben Cardin hopes to fend off several challengers in his re-election bid, including Chelsea Manning, a transgender woman who is the former Army private convicted of leaking troves of government documents to WikiLeaks. While Manning has name recognition and her candidacy drew national media coverage, political observers say she has not campaigned widely for the seat.

The field is crowded with seven Democrats challenging Cardin, who is running for a third term in office. And 10 Republicans are vying for their party's nomination to face the Democrat in the November general election.
Cardin, who served 20 years combined in the Maryland House of Delegates and the U.S. House of Representatives before winning the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Paul Sarbanes in 2007, had an approval rating of 50 percent in October, The Baltimore Sun reports.

SEE ALSO: Maryland Senate, House Primary Elections: Meet Your Candidates

"Hogan is still very much the man to beat in this race. … There's a tall order for whoever the nominee is," Roger Hartley, dean of the University of Baltimore's College of Public Affairs, told the Baltimore Sun.

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Voters will also select Congressional candidates, decide state attorney general race, and cast ballots in local races from county council to school board.

The general election is set for Nov. 6.

You can find the full ballot for every Maryland county on the State Board of Elections website.

SEE ELECTION RESULTS BELOW

Photo: Former NAACP President, Ben Jealous delivers a speech on the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 25, 2016 in Philadelphia. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)