Maryland lawmakers will lay groundwork for redistricting in August special session

Maryland’s lawmakers will return to Annapolis in August to pave a legal pathway for future efforts to redraw the state’s congressional districts, Democratic leaders announced Tuesday.

State delegates and senators will be summoned to the State House from Aug. 3-5, according to a joint announcement from House of Delegates Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk and Senate President Bill Ferguson. The special session signals Maryland plans to join other states nationwide in drawing more partisan congressional districts.

Lawmakers will be asked to revamp a portion of the state constitution that stymied past efforts to create Democratic-favoring districts. Democrats’ ultimate goal is to remove legal barriers to allow themselves a freer hand when drawing district maps — and making it difficult for Maryland’s lone Republican in Congress, U.S. Rep. Andy Harris, to win future elections.

“Maryland needs a clear legal path forward,” Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, said in a statement. “This special session will allow the General Assembly to do its part while ensuring that Maryland voters make the final decision.”

“Maryland needs a durable, transparent constitutional framework for congressional redistricting that reflects the evolving legal landscape,” Peña-Melnyk, a Prince George’s County Democrat, said in the statement.

One item not on the special session agenda: new maps themselves. Democratic leaders are not planning to introduce a set of new districts, putting that off until after the state constitution is changed, potentially in 2027 or 2028.

Maryland has been under pressure as the back-and-forth between Democratic-led and Republican-led states over gerrymandering has escalated. Republican President Donald Trump has pushed Republican-led states to help maintain the GOP majority. Democrats hope to use maps to their advantage to retake the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and serve as a check on Trump.

Central to Democrats’ efforts in Maryland is a portion of the state constitution that requires districts to be compact and take into consideration natural boundaries and those of cities and counties. Historically, that provision was interpreted to apply only to General Assembly districts, but a judge blocked congressional maps in 2022, citing that provision.

That court case gave Ferguson pause over redrawing maps, and the Baltimore Democrat argued they could be in legal limbo again if they drew a congressional map favoring their party. The courts could have ended up drawing their own map that could have advantaged Republicans, Ferguson had said.

That led to a monthslong standoff with Ferguson on one side, expressing caution, and Peña-Melnyk and Gov. Wes Moore on the other side, championing the need to redistrict. The standoff lasted long enough that lawmakers ran out of time to redraw congressional districts before this year’s election.

The impasse tested the relationship between Ferguson and Moore, and the governor pulled back from an endorsement agreement with the Senate president ahead of the primary election.

Ferguson thawed his position in May, saying he was open to revising the state constitution this year. Continued talks among Democratic leaders led to Tuesday’s announcement.

Moore was confident enough that he insisted on June 24 that a special legislative session would be forthcoming.

“Inaction is not an option,” Moore said at that time.

A special legislative session can only be called by the governor, either of his own accord or when presented with a petition signed by a majority of both chambers. Typically, however, the governor and legislative leaders reach agreements on holding special sessions.

Moore said in a statement that he will “work closely” with lawmakers.

Republican lawmakers, meanwhile, were not enthused about the special session. Senate Republican leaders issued a statement saying the focus should be on addressing problems like affordability and energy supply, not eliminating “guardrails” governing how districts are drawn.

“When you don’t like the rules, you change them. That’s the Maryland Democratic playbook,” said Sen. Justin Ready, the Senate minority whip from Carroll County.

Del. Jason Buckel, the House minority leader from Allegany County, blasted Democrats for playing “another round of national political games.”

“It is abundantly clear where their priorities lie, and, unfortunately, it is not with the citizens of Maryland,” he said in a statement.

Regardless of Republican opposition, Democrats have large enough majorities that they can hold the session and pass the constitutional amendment if they stick together.

If lawmakers agree on revising the state constitution, the changes would go to voters for approval in the November general election.

Lawmakers will be cutting close to deadline for getting the constitutional amendment on the November ballot; by law, it’s required to be published for public review on Aug. 5.

The cost of a special session is estimated to be $2,500 to $5,000 per day, depending on the length of the session and whether lawmakers will need reimbursements for hotels and meals, according to the nonpartisan Department of Legislative Services.