What’s happening?
Voters in Tuesday’s Republican primary election in Maryland and Baltimore County nominated their candidates for state and county offices , Rachel Baye and John Lee report for WYPR. Dan Cox will serve as his party’s candidate for the upcoming gubernatorial election, and Pat McDonough will likely face Democrat and incumbent Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski in the race for his seat.
What should residents know about the candidates and their primary elections?
Cox won the primary with 56% of votes, defeating runner-up Kelly Schulz with 40.2% of votes. The state legislator is backed by former President Donald Trump, and while serving his first-term in the Maryland House of Delegates, Cox touted the false claim that Trump won the 2020.
McDonough declared victory on Tuesday night as early voting data indicated a lead over six other candidates in the Republican primary for Baltimore County Executive. McDonough has expressed frustration at high crime rates and violence in schools, and he plans to run an aggressive campaign against Olszewski, who currently has about 80% of votes in the Democratic primary election.
Anything else I should know?
Election officials will begin counting mail-in ballots on July 21 due to a state law. A winner in the nine-way race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination has yet to be determined.
