Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Poll worker shortage has Maryland officials seeking to cut voting sites

Maryland election worker

Maryland election officials are struggling to recruit enough poll workers for the general election.

Robb Hill/Getty Images

Coronavirus concerns and a shortage of poll workers has the Maryland Board of Elections seeking a drastic reduction in the number of places to vote in November.

Gov. Larry Hogan has not yet said whether he will grant the board's request, delivered Friday, for permission to open just 282 voting centers this fall — or one-seventh the usual 1,600, in the reliably blue state. Last month, the Republican governor had directed officials to keep every in-person polling location open on Election Day, while also mailing absentee ballot applications to every voter.

What Hogan termed his plan for a "normal" election immediately raised concerns from Democrats, local election officials and good-government groups who said the arrangements would be too expensive and difficult to execute.


The 282 voting centers would allow Marylanders to cast their ballot early or on Election Day at any location in their county, rather than at a specific precinct based on their residential address. These voting centers would be located at every public high school in the state, along with other locations.

After an array of problems with the state's June primary, which was conducted mostly by mail, Hogan decided to go with a more traditional election in the fall. But local election administrators are struggling to recruit enough people to work the polls during the eight-day early voting period and on Election Day.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

Local officials say they are more than 14,000 workers short of what's required under Hogan's plan. Two dozen facilities that usually serve as voting sites have also cited the public health crisis in refusing to host voting this fall.

While Hogan has not yet weighed in on this latest proposal, the state board of elections hopes he will see it as a good compromise that will provide enough in-person polling locations for voters while not overwhelming local election administrators.

In a letter to the elections board last week, Hogan reprimanded local officials who had suggested consolidating polling locations due to staff shortages, saying these closures would amount to statewide voter suppression. He also cited the Voting Rights Act and quoted from former President Barack Obama's eulogy for Rep. John Lewis.

The governor ordered the state board of elections to list the number of polling locations in each county that are able to be operational and outline how it plans to conduct the November election.

Read More

Business professional watching stocks go down.
Getty Images, Bartolome Ozonas

The White House Is Booming, the Boardroom Is Panicking

The Confidence Collapse

Consumer confidence is plummeting—and that was before the latest Wall Street selloffs.

Keep ReadingShow less
Drain—More Than Fight—Authoritarianism and Censorship
Getty Images, Mykyta Ivanov

Drain—More Than Fight—Authoritarianism and Censorship

The current approaches to proactively counteracting authoritarianism and censorship fall into two main categories, which we call “fighting” and “Constitution-defending.” While Constitution-defending in particular has some value, this article advocates for a third major method: draining interest in authoritarianism and censorship.

“Draining” refers to sapping interest in these extreme possibilities of authoritarianism and censorship. In practical terms, it comes from reducing an overblown sense of threat of fellow Americans across the political spectrum. When there is less to fear about each other, there is less desire for authoritarianism or censorship.

Keep ReadingShow less
"Vote" pin.
Getty Images, William Whitehurst

Most Americans’ Votes Don’t Matter in Deciding Elections

New research from the Unite America Institute confirms a stark reality: Most ballots cast in American elections don’t matter in deciding the outcome. In 2024, just 14% of eligible voters cast a meaningful vote that actually influenced the outcome of a U.S. House race. For state house races, on average across all 50 states, just 13% cast meaningful votes.

“Too many Americans have no real say in their democracy,” said Unite America Executive Director Nick Troiano. “Every voter deserves a ballot that not only counts, but that truly matters. We should demand better than ‘elections in name only.’”

Keep ReadingShow less
Hands outside of bars.
Getty Images, stevanovicigor

Double Standard: Investing in Animal Redemption While Ignoring Human Rehabilitation

America and countries abroad have mastered the art of taming wild animals—training the most vicious killers, honing killer instincts, and even domesticating animals born for the hunt. Wild animals in this country receive extensive resources to facilitate their reintegration into society.

Americans spent more than $150 billion on their pets in 2024, with an estimated spending projection of $200 million by 2030. Millions of dollars are poured into shelters, rehabilitation programs, and veterinary care, as shown by industry statistics on animal welfare spending. Television ads and commercials plead for their adoption. Stray animal hotlines operate 24/7, ensuring immediate rescue services. Pet parks, relief stations in airports, and pageant shows showcase animals as celebrities.

Keep ReadingShow less