Politics

State officials said they are working to restore faith in how workplace bullying complaints are tracked and investigated in state agencies, acknowledging that “pinch points” in the current system are causing delays. “One reason it’s really problematic is that it causes the complainants to sort of lose faith in the process that’s happening, because they’re not getting feedback quickly,” said Catherine Hackman, acting executive director of the Office of Personnel Services and Benefits, in remarks Tuesday to the Joint Committee on Fair Practices and State Personnel Oversight.

Bmore Licks is a quaint, family-owned Canton ice cream shop with a storefront painted in pastel colors and features murals of delectable cones. So the regulars can be forgiven for their astonishment at the incongruous scene unfolding Tuesday afternoon as they arrived for the store’s homemade ice cream, soft serve or “flurries.” Secret Service agents were swarming around the corner shop, a motorcade blocked all traffic out front, and media members with boom microphones were elbowing for positions. Inside, the president of the United States was being asked questions about the presidential election, Ukraine and North Korean troops training in Russia.

With about a week until Election Day, voters continued to show up early in Maryland — but not as frequently as on day one. Early in-person voting dropped over the weekend as the combined number of voters for Saturday and Sunday slightly topped those who voted on Thursday, the first day of early in-person voting. More than 1,800 registered to vote and 154,233 people cast their ballots at the state’s 97 early voting centers between Saturday and Sunday — the third and fourth days of early voting, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections.

Democrats always knew they faced a difficult political map to retain their narrow majority in the U.S. Senate this election year. Maryland’s U.S. Senate seat opened up with the retirement of longtime Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin, but it was initially not considered in play, since voters hadn’t elected a Republican senator in more than four decades.

Baltimore-area Puerto Rican leaders and residents said Monday they are insulted and offended by comments made by a speaker at a rally for former President Donald Trump Sunday night in New York. During the rally, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, speaking at Madison Square Garden, referred to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.”

As he campaigns for the U.S. Senate, former Gov. Larry Hogan touts leaving behind a $5.5 billion surplus, tax breaks, toll cuts and a balanced budget. But state reports show the savings came at another cost — high vacancy rates in state agencies. The Republican governor’s decision to downsize government kept agencies from delivering services when people needed them most, said policy analysts, union officials and nonprofit leaders watching and working for state government during Hogan’s time in office.