While the majority of Maryland’s local election boards began counting mail-in ballots weeks ago, state election officials said Wednesday that several hundred thousand ballots remain to be canvassed, a process that involves validating the ballot and recording its vote.
The results are not likely to affect the vast majority of races or ballot measures across Maryland, but there are a handful of local education board races that were too close to call on Election Day.
A winner has also not been called in the 6th Congressional District race, but the number of outstanding mail-in ballots would favor Democratic challenger April McClain Delaney, according to a Republican strategist.
“By far and away it will just widen the gap,” said Paul Ellington, a former executive director of the Maryland Republican Party and chief of staff to former Lt. Gov. Michael Steele (R), of the uncounted mail-in ballots in the 6th District race. “It’s unfortunate that they don’t count them faster. That’s the way it works in Maryland. A Lot of states count them as they receive them.”
State election officials report that approximately 358,613 mail-in ballots have already been counted of the 878,906 requested by voters.
“Since the 2022 election, a state law was passed requiring canvass of mail-in ballots to begin in advance of the start of early voting, unless a local board requests not to canvass for [a] valid reason,” state election board deputy administrator Katherine Berry said.
She said 21 of Maryland’s 24 local election boards began canvassing mail-in ballots a few weeks ago. Cecil, Dorchester, and Somerset counties delayed counting mail-in ballots prior to early voting, Berry said.
On Thursday, local election officials will begin to count the remaining 309,982 that already have been received, Berry said.
Approximately 210,000 mail-in ballots remain outstanding, but based on historical data from the 2022 gubernatorial and 2020 presidential elections in Maryland, the majority of them should be returned.
Any mail-in ballot post-marked on or before Nov. 5 will be counted, along with ballots dropped in ballot boxes prior to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Berry said.