PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — Up to 10,000 registered voters in Prince George's County may have received incorrectly printed sample ballots in the mail, elections officials said in an alert.
The ballots are not the actual documents used for this year's primary election - which is July 19. Mail-in ballots are not affected and officials said the issue will not affect in-person ballots received during early voting or any in-person votes cast during Election Day.
The board determined that about 10,000 registered voters out of over 500,000 voters that are eligible to vote in the 2022 primary election could be affected.
New sample ballots are being printed and will be mailed to affected households. The corrected sample ballots will say “Corrected” on the outside.
"Ensuring that voters receive the most updated and correct information is our top priority and again, we are working very hard to resolve the issue," the board said on its website. "Please note that the mail-in ballots, early voting or Election Day ballots are accurate."
Constituents with questions can contact the board of election at 301-341-7300.
One lawmaker in Maryland urged Gov. Larry Hogan to declare a state of emergency ahead of this year's primary. In early June, State Sen. Cheryl Kagan (D-Montgomery) sent a letter to the governor after he vetoed emergency legislation Kagan spearheaded that aimed to streamline the election procedures for ballot canvassing.
Current election law in Maryland calls for local election boards to meet after an election to start canvassing absentee ballots. When a ballot is canvassed, it means officials sort through ballots looking to confirm a person's name to an address and make sure it's properly filled out with a signature.
The primary Gubernatorial Primary Election in Maryland is scheduled for July 19 and the Gubernatorial General Election Day happens on Nov. 8.
"Data released after polls close on July 19 and November 8, 2022, will include only the ballots cast in person, either during Early Voting or on Election Day itself," Kagan wrote.
Kagan argued that voting-by-mail has become more popular but canvassing the absentee ballots wouldn't be allowed to start until at least July 21 and Nov. 10. Considering the rising popularity of voting-by-mail, Kagan finds it unrealistic for the state’s 24 local election boards to meet the deadlines to certify the Primary and General Elections on July 29 and Nov. 18 respectively.
Kagan said Maryland is facing an "impending electoral crisis." Therefore, she asked him to declare a state of emergency that would allow "the canvassing of ballots to begin eight days before the start of Early Voting, as permitted in the vetoed bills."
2022 GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION DATES
Primary Election Day - Tuesday, July 19, 2022 - 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.
- Early Voting for the Primary Election - Thursday, July 7 through Thursday, July 14 from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.
- Drop Boxes will open on Monday, June 13.
- Ballots will be mailed beginning on or around Thursday, June 9.
General Election Day - Tuesday, November 8, 2022 - 7 am until 8 pm
- Early Voting for the General Election - Thursday, October 27 through Thursday, November 3 from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.