More than 400,000 mail-in ballots have been sent to eligible Maryland voters as of Monday, as the state hits the high gear for primary election season, when voters decide who will represent their parties during the general election.
There are several ways voters can request mail-in ballots to vote in next month’s primary election — online, email, fax and mail. Early voting starts July 7; the primary election is on July 19.
Maryland voters can request a mail-in ballot from the state, or their local board of elections “and we encourage them to do so,” Montgomery County Council President Gabe Albornoz said during a news briefing Monday.
There are 288 ballot drop boxes now in place for people to submit their early votes. Locations for early in-person voting are in every county.
“We want to encourage our residents to submit mail-in ballots, given the timing of this particular election cycle — which we need to continue to remind our residents is — July 19 is the primary vote here in Montgomery County and across the state of Maryland,” Albornoz said.
Albornoz said there was concern with the primary election date being pushed back from June and not all Montgomery County residents are “as focused on this as they otherwise would be and frankly need to be.”
Primary voting related dates in Maryland:
- June 28: Deadline to register to vote in the 2022 primary election.
- July 7-14: Early in-person voting.
- July 12: Deadline to request a mail-in ballot for the primary election.
- July 19: Mail-in ballots must be postmarked no later than that date of the primary election.
- July 19: Primary election day.
“We were deeply disappointed in the governor’s veto of the bill that would have allowed local boards of elections to begin the count of mail-in ballots prior to Election Day,” Albornoz said.
When it comes time for counting, be patient waiting for results.
“Although it may take longer than we would like thanks to the governor’s veto, all of those votes will be counted and we will make sure that we announce the winners of these respective primaries when we can,” Albornoz said. “But I have supreme confidence in our Board of Elections to continue to manage this process safely and effectively here in Montgomery County.”
Voters who plan to go the polls on primary election day can confirm the correct location at the state’s board of elections website.
