If you watched the House of Delegates first floor session of the week, youmight have been delighted to hear that a Maryland resident by the name of Bart Harley Jarvis had just been named national Baby of the Year.

But there is no Bart Harley Jarvis. There is not even a Baby of the Year.

The announcement on the House floor — which came from Del. Gary Simmons (D- Anne Arundel) — was a prank, set in motion by Del. Vaughn Stewart (D- Montgomery), according to a video he shared on TikTok.

Stewart, the House’s self-appointed merry prankster, was inspired by a sketch from “I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson,” the popular Netflix comedy show, which featured a fierce competition between three finalist babies — judged for their rolls, their folds, and most importantly, which ones can dance.

It’s just the latest hijinks from Stewart, who told Maryland Matters that he’s planted a number of prank messages that were ultimately read by another member on the floor — advertising a fake musical act, or stating that fictional characters had come to visit the House of Delegates.

In Stewart’s TikTok video, he interviews various delegates about the Baby of the Year. It’s not clear which delegates, if any, were in on the joke.

“It made my week,” said Del. Dana Stein (D-Baltimore County), who said he was thrilled to learn that the parents of the Baby of the Year hail from his district.

“If this was your first one, you obviously succeeded well. Have a few more,” Stein said.

Bart Harley Jarvis … He really is a little monster.

‘This issue’s not dead’

Before the House voted 93-33 on Friday to approve an amended version of Senate Bill 5, several delegates stood to explain their votes, a process that took almost 15 minutes. The bill, as drafted, set up a process for elections to fill legislative vacancies. The House Government Labor and Elections Committee, in a fit of late-session shenanigans, added amendments tied to midcycle congressional redistricting.

Del. April Miller (R-Frederick) read prepared remarks that said being in the minority party among a supermajority of Democrats “is super frustration” and called the amended version “a slap in the face to every Republican and independent voter in this state.”

House Minority Whip Jesse Pippy (R-Frederick) said the amended version was strictly to take out Republican representation from Maryland in Congress.

“It’s disappointing times two because taking away the citizen’s vote for a vacancy also strikes the will of the people,” he said. “I think people deserve a voice. This bill will likely die in 10 seconds and will never make it out of this General Assembly. Hopefully, next year, we can do better for our citizens.”

Their Democratic colleague, Del. Kris Fair (D-Frederick), said the bill opens up the voting process to the people when an appointment occurs. Currently, a central committee from a particular party chooses a person to fill a vacancy in the General Assembly. “I’m proud to vote green on this,” Fair said as he cast a vote in favor of the bill.

House Majority Leader David Moon (D-Montgomery) didn’t shy away his thoughts on why he believes the bill is necessary.

“Let’s just cut to the chase: We are facing a rising dictatorship in this country,” Moon said to a few groans and moans from the House floor. “At this point this message is for the Senate. We did everything to incorporate perspective into this discussion. I conceded there will not be a map this year. I respect that.

“I want to leave here in this chamber and say we did everything we could, here, in the year 2026… This issue’s not dead,” Moon said.

That brought a shot from Del. Matt Morgan (R-St. Mary’s), who noted Moon received an award Thursday for “bipartisanship. President’s a dictator on Friday.”

House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk (D-Prince George’s and Anne Arundel) said Moon “was very deserving” of the bipartisanship award. “We can agree to disagree, OK?”

But wait, there’s more …

House floor statements were not the last word on SB 5. Common Cause is calling for a legislative mulligan on the bill that the House effectively killed with its unrelated redistricting amendment.

That bill heads back to the Senate where it is expected to die, with Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) on Friday calling it “yesterday’s news. I don’t foresee us moving forward.”

But there another option. A companion House bill to the doomed Senate bill — the original, not the amended version — is still sitting, untouched, in the House.

Common Cause Maryland Executive Director Joanne Antoine called on the House to pass House Bill 50, the “clean, amendment-free version” of the Senate bill.

“For too long, legislative vacancies have been filled behind closed doors, leaving voters on the sidelines,” Antoine said. “We have led a nearly 20-year effort to improve this process because Maryland residents have sent a clear message: They want the right to choose their representatives through special elections. The House of Delegates should remedy their mistake by immediately passing a clean special elections bill.”

‘A lot of time between now and 2031’

Ferguson’s objection to the House amendments to Sen. Cheryl Kagan’s (D-Montgomery) SB 5 are twofold.

First, the Senate would have to vote to agree to the amendments or ask the House to withdraw them. Either way, bringing it to the floor is potentially problematic for Ferguson, who has shielded his caucus from having to vote on midcycle congressional redistricting. A vote on the bill as amended could be seen as a surrogate for that battle.

Second, putting the bill on the floor would give redistricting supporters a chance to tack on an amendment with actual redistricting maps.

But Ferguson’s underlying concern about the legal ramifications from a “novel” ruling by Judge Lynne Battaglia on the 2022 congressional map challenge remains. That ruling set a new standard of compact and contiguous congressional districts.

It is not a legal precedent but Ferguson is concerned. And those concerns will remain in the election cycles leading up to the next regular redistricting cycle, following the 2030 Census.

“I mean, I think there’s a lot of years between now and 2031,” Ferguson said Friday. When asked if the issue would have to be dealt with in the near future, Ferguson said, “We’ll have to see. I think it’s too hard to say.”

“The next two weeks, we have to focus on the issues that we know are nearing the finish line. This one, I think, has been literally litigated, and so we’re going to have to navigate it in the future,” he said.

That was fast

One day after announcing the imminent departure of a senior staffer to Gov. Wes Moore (D), a replacement has been named.

In an email to staff Friday afternoon, David Turner, communications director for Moore, announced Elizabeth Gray will take over as his deputy on April 15.“Elizabeth has an exceptionally sharp eye for detail, a clear ability to translate complex priorities into compelling and effective messaging, and a strong strategic instinct,” Turner wrote in the announcement to staff. “Equally important, Elizabeth is a trusted collaborator across our team and the Second floor.”

Gray joined the new administration early. She briefly left in 2024 to serve as deputy research director for President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign and then Vice President Kamala Harris’ failed 2024 effort. She returned to the Moore camp following that campaign.

On Thursday, the office confirmed that Maureen Regan, the current deputy, will leave April 14. She is taking over as communications director at the National Governors Association.

Parrott is back, briefly

Neil Parrott is back — albeit briefly.

The Senate Executive Nominations Committee next week will consider Parrott’s nomination to fill out the remainder of a term as a Washington County Commissioner.

Parrott, a three-term state delegate who has twice run unsuccessfully for Congress in the 6th District, was tapped by the county’s Republican Central Committee earlier this month. He will fill the remainder of the term of Derek Harvey, who resigned earlier this month.

Moore sent Parrott’s appointment to the Senate Friday.

If confirmed — which is likely — Parrott will serve until the term ends in December. Parrott is not a candidate for the panel in this year’s election.

A forum near you

Montgomery County voters who can’t decide on a choice for the next county executive have plenty of opportunities to hear from one of the seven candidates before the June 23 primary election.

There have already been several forums this month hosted by community and nonpartisan organizations that included one held Monday by the Fair Access Committee and Poolesville Area Chamber of Commerce that focused on the western part of the county. All five Democratic candidates appeared: at-large councilmembers Evan Glass and Will Jawando, District 1 councilmember Andrew Friedson, and Mithun Banerjee and Peter James. The groups will host a forum for the two Republican candidates – Esther Wells and Shelly Sholnick – on May 7.

There are at least three more county executive forums scheduled for this month:

• April 19 – National Pan Hellenic Council of Montgomery County at 3:30 p.m. at Colesville United Methodist Church;
• April 20 – Organized by Friends of White Oak called Reimagining White Oak at 6:30 p.m. at White Oak Community Recreation Center; and
• April 29 – Hosted by Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce at 6 p.m. at KID Museum in Bethesda. Candidates scheduled to discuss topics such as business climate, taxes and economic development.

The candidates are running to replace County Executive Marc Elrich (D), who was term-limited out of office and is seeking an at-large seat on the 11-member council.