FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2024

Senator Cheryl C. Kagan

Vice Chair, Education, Energy, & Environment (& Elections!) Committee

(301) 858-3134

Cheryl.Kagan@senate.state.md.us

(ANNAPOLIS, MD) In the 2024 legislative session, Sen. Cheryl Kagan is focused on making the General Assembly more representative; expanding “ballot access;” closing campaign finance loopholes; and much more.

“Maryland is known as a national leader in election administration, but we cannot stop moving forward. My pre-filed bills will make our elections more fair, transparent, and inclusive,” says Sen. Kagan.

• SB16: Closing Campaign Finance Loopholes – Exploratory & Draft Campaign Committees would be regulated by adding disclosure requirements and specifying which materials, services, and staff qualify as permitted expenditures. This bill passed the Senate unanimously last session.

• SB29: Special Elections for Legislative Vacancies – Given that roughly 20% of legislators have been appointed rather than elected, this Constitutional Amendment would return the selection of lawmakers to our voters rather than political parties.

• SB99: “Ballot Access” For Unaffiliated Voters – Unaffiliated voters would be allowed to re-register with the political party of their choice during Primary Early Voting, permitting them to cast a full ballot.

• SB115: Recount Law Revisions – Kagan has reintroduced a bill to update the election recount process, increasing accuracy and efficiency. This also passed the Senate unanimously during the 2023 legislative session.

• SB129: Clarifying Election Expense Cost-Sharing – Among other provisions, this would reduce the fiscal burden on our counties by enumerating which election costs would be covered by the State, the counties, or shared.

The first four of the bills described above will be heard in the Senate Education, Energy, & Environment (and Elections!) Committee on January 30 at 1:00 PM. As Vice Chair of EEE, Sen. Kagan worked throughout the interim with advocates and national experts to craft these proposals.

• SB458: Scam PACs – (with Del. Palakovich Carr) Certain PACs would be prohibited from raising money by falsely claiming to represent a candidate, Party, or organization.

• SB460: Election Judge Recruitment – (with Del. Palakovich Carr) Unemployed individuals would be permitted to serve as Election Judges without negatively affecting their benefits.

• SB493: Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) – This voting method would be implemented solely for the 2028 Presidential Primary Elections so as to better reflect voter intent. It requires an analysis and report to determine whether it should be used again in future elections.

• SB494: Electoral College Reform – (with Del. Fair) Post-election certification procedures would be updated to provide safeguards against inaccurate results.

• SB495: Simplified Ballot Language – Ballot questions would be required to be written at a sixth-grade reading level so as not to present voters with “legalese.”

“We have a responsibility to our constituents to keep improving Maryland’s election laws. My proposals will make Maryland’s election processes even more trustworthy, representative, and equitable,” Sen. Kagan summarized.

All of these bills will be heard over the next few weeks. You can track them here.

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About Senator Cheryl C. Kagan: Senator Kagan (D-District 17) is in her third term representing Gaithersburg and Rockville. She serves as the Vice Chair of the Education, Energy, & Environment (& Elections!) Committee.

Sen. Kagan was appointed to the Board of Advisors for the U.S. Election Assistance Commission and

continues her service as Vice Chair of the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Elections & Redistricting Committee. She is active on social media and can be found on Facebook at Sen. Cheryl Kagan,

on Twitter at @CherylKagan, on Instagram at @CherylCKagan, and YouTube at Sen. Cheryl Kagan.