Politics

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott has announced the distribution of $3.6 million in pandemic relief funds to more than two dozen arts groups in the city, with a special emphasis on those that serve racial minorities and that historically have been under-represented. “Public dollars have too often gone to just the big names and big players in town,” Scott said in an April 16 news release about the Diversity in Arts grants funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

Roughly three weeks ahead of the 2024 primary election, more than 5,000 voters in Frederick County have already completed and returned mail-in ballots to the local board of elections with their choices for local and federal offices. The Frederick County Board of Elections began the mail-in ballot canvass for the primary election on Monday — eight business days before the start of early voting on May 2, per state law.

Seven members of the Baltimore City Council have endorsed Mayor Brandon Scott in his reelection bid, including council Vice President Sharon Green Middleton, a signal that some City Hall members will work their networks for the incumbent in the last few weeks of a competitive mayoral primary. Danielle McCray, Kristerfer Burnett, John Bullock, Ryan Dorsey, James Torrence, and Phylicia Porter also announced Tuesday their support for the mayor, who faces a tight primary vote on May 14.

With Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) scheduled to sign more than 200 bills into law Thursday, the state’s leader continues to receive letters and verbal pleas to veto certain legislation the General Assembly approved this year. The House Republican Caucus has asked Moore to veto House Bill 947 – Gun Industry Accountability Act – which would give the Office of the Attorney General and the 24 local state’s attorneys authority to sue firearms manufacturers and gun dealers.

When Maryland lawmakers approved a $63 billion fiscal year budget earlier this month, it was no surprise that the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future education reform plan represented a major part of the spending plan. To help pay for the Blueprint plan through fiscal year 2027, the legislature also approved the Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act, known as the BRFA, which provides a portion of revenue through an increase in the tobacco sales tax.

The AFRO announced their full slate of endorsements for the 2024 campaign, including Angela Alsobrooks for U.S. Senate, Brandon M. Scott for Baltimore City mayor, Nick Mosby for president of the Baltimore City Council and more.

Attorneys representing the Maryland State Board of Elections are asking a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit that alleges voter roll irregularities and other election law violations in the state. Two groups — Maryland Election Integrity LLC and Missouri-based United Sovereign Americans — filed suit in March against the state board for maintaining inaccurate voter registration lists and violating federal election law.