Responsive Gov’s Grade TL;DR

For yet another session, the Maryland State Legislature failed to pass legislation to update its automatic voter registration system to a more secure, efficient, and improved system. However, the Legislature did pass legislation to establish new protections for election workers. Therefore, Maryland received a C+ on this year’s progress report.

Looking Back

Where Maryland Started at the Beginning of 2024

• Automatic Voter Registration: Partial AVR
• Online Voter Registration: DMV ID
• Same-Day Registration: Yes
• Restoration of Rights: Prison Disenfranchisement
• Vote by Mail: No-Excuse
• Electronic Registration Information Center Member: Yes
• Early Voting Opportunities: Regular Ballot Early Voting
• ID Requirements: No Document Required

Relying on the Cost of Voting Index for Maryland as of 2024, we considered the state a top tier state for pre-existing voting policy and compared its 2024 activity against other top tier states.

How Our Tier Compares

• COVI (2024): 16th
• EPI Score (2022): 18th
• CLC State Scorecard (2022): 7/10
• MAP Democracy Rating (2024): MEDIUM

2024: This Past Year

Legislative Action

The Legislature passed important legislation to protect election workers from threats and harassment while on the job.

• SB 480 / HB 585 makes it a crime to knowingly threaten election officials, election workers, or their immediate family members because of the work in administering elections.
• HB 471 changes canvass procedures for both local boards and the state board, requires local boards to track “statements of dissents” from local canvass board members to be reviewed by the state board, and moves the deadlines for the statewide canvass.
• SB 271 directs the State Board of Elections to set an appeals process for designating public buildings as voter centers. It also makes minor changes to how court clerks report felonies to the state.
• SB 417 requires the State Board of Elections to conduct a performance evaluation for the state election administrator annually and requires the state election administrator to review local election board directors annually. The bill also directs the election director to manage the storage, security, and maintenance of vote system equipment and promptly notify the local board and state of any issues that arise.