Politics

Despite multibillion-dollar deficits projected for future state budgets, several Maryland lawmakers are championing planned increases in education spending, including publicly funded pre-K. “We know that we have a structural deficit. There’s no hiding that,” said Del. Jared Solomon, a Montgomery County Democrat, speaking on Thursday to a group of private child care providers at a symposium hosted by the Maryland State Child Care Association.

The two candidates for Maryland’s open U.S. Senate seat met for their first and only debate Thursday afternoon. Now, there is a new controversy in the race. WTOP has been reporting for weeks that Democrat Angela Alsobrooks was in a dispute over $47,000 in back property taxes for homes she owned in Maryland and D.C. But the spotlight is now on the finances of Republican Larry Hogan.

Maryland’s U.S. Senate candidates Angela Alsobrooks and Larry Hogan didn’t tread much new ground in their debate Thursday, but we did learn a few things. Here’s a rundown of the candidates’ answers on topics that, so far, have not been aired much during the campaign season.

A solid majority of Hispanic women have a positive opinion of Vice President Kamala Harris and a negative view of former President Donald Trump, but Hispanic men are more divided on both candidates, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Hispanic men are also more likely than Hispanic women to say Trump is the candidate who represents their views on key issues, underscoring the potential importance of this group, which both candidates have courted aggressively.

Mayor Brandon Scott rushed back to City Hall Wednesday after spending the day participating in jury duty to swear-in Khalil Zaied. As the head of the Department of Public Works, Zaied will lead an agency that has been marred by several scandals. In August, Ronald Silver, a trash collector died on-the-job after suffering heat stroke.

The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) will host open house meetings for the Baltimore Red Line this fall to share potential route alignment options, key project considerations, technical updates and to gather community input. The sessions will be held at locations along the Red Line corridor Oct. 22-26. The public comment period will be open through Nov. 25.

Republican Larry Hogan and Democrat Angela Alsobrooks accused each other Thursday of grossly distorting the other’s record during their race for Maryland’s open Senate seat, turning the contest’s lone debate into a volley of charges that each side was trying to mislead voters. On the stage at the Maryland Public Television studio, the candidates fought over whether Hogan could serve as an independent voice in a Senate controlled by Republicans, who would best protect abortion rights, and other far-ranging topic such as foreign policy, legalizing marijuana nationwide and how many days federal workers should be required to return to the office.