WASHINGTON – Maryland voters will decide in November whether to approve new rules for how future congressional districts are drawn, with the possibility of impacting how voters are represented.
Maryland Democrats have pushed for this change to counter Republican redistricting efforts elsewhere across the country. But the state’s Republicans say the Maryland effort would enable unchecked power and silence conservative voters.
The state’s top court approved a ballot question earlier this month that, if approved by voters, would give Democrats more flexibility in re-drawing congressional districts. The ballot question, known as Question 3, would establish that the Maryland constitution only dictates how to draw state legislative maps – not congressional ones.
Question 3 will “allow Annapolis to choose our representatives and gerrymander out any Representative they don’t like, Democrat, Republican, or Independent,” Nicole Beus Harris, Maryland GOP Chairwoman, told Capital News Service in an email exchange.
Some existing redistricting requirements in the Maryland State Constitution say that legislative districts must be “compact in form,” “have substantially equal population” and “have due regard for natural and political boundaries.”
The ballot question addresses Republican efforts around the country to redraw districts in the GOP’s favor. Republican-led legislatures in states like Missouri and Tennessee have enacted new congressional maps that are very favorable to Republican candidates.
So what’s at stake for Maryland voters if Question 3 is approved?
How the question could impact congressional districts
Question 3 would not affect the congressional map for the 2026 midterm elections. But if approved it could empower Maryland’s Democratic majorities to target U.S. Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., the only Republican in the state’s congressional delegation.
For example, the question’s passage could allow the General Assembly to draw congressional districts that cross the Chesapeake Bay, adding more Democratic voters to Harris’ district.
Harris has previously raised concerns about congressional redistricting. His wife, Maryland GOP Chairwoman Harris, told Capital News Service that if the question passes, the “Annapolis establishment will use it to enact the most extreme gerrymandered map in the nation.”
“Political opposition and rural representation will be eliminated, and 1 Million+ Marylanders who vote Republican for Congress will be disenfranchised,” Chairwoman Harris said.
How would redistricting impact Maryland?
Matthew Crenson, a professor emeritus of political science at Johns Hopkins University, said that President Donald Trump ignited the issue when he called on Texas’ State Legislature to reapportion the Congressional districts in the state.
Crenson expressed apprehension about the state redrawing congressional districts to counter Trump’s allies.
“I would not like to see the political practices of Donald Trump become durable political norms in the United States or in Maryland … I think that his opponents, chiefly Democrats, need to be very careful now and after he’s gone … not to replicate his practices,” Crenson said to CNS.
If Question 3 passes and Congressional districts are redrawn, Crenson said that Rep. Harris’ constituents could feel disenfranchised and disempowered. He said that Maryland Democrats should also be wary of redistributing U.S. Rep. Harris’ majority-Republican district because it could dilute their democratic strength across the state.
Crenson said redrawing districts across the Chesapeake Bay could split communities statewide.
“People sort of live politically within their communities and define issues in their communities, and they should be able to vote in their communities as a group,” Crenson said. “I don’t think it’s healthy to start dividing up the state arbitrarily.”