Maryland lawmakers to meet in August for special session on redistricting

Skip to content

State lawmakers in Maryland will meet for a special session next month to discuss a ballot initiative on redistricting, with Gov. Wes Moore (D) backing the move.

In a joint release, Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson (D) and state House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk (D) said Tuesday the Maryland General Assembly will convene Aug. 3-5 to consider legislation on a constitutional amendment that would clarify how lawmakers can draw congressional districts.

If three-fifths of the state Senate and House approve the amendment, voters in Maryland will decide on the measure on Nov. 3. While Ferguson and Peña-Melnyk did not provide language of the amendment, their release noted it would “clarify” the state constitution in light of a Maryland judge striking down a previous congressional map state lawmakers proposed in 2022.

That map would give Democrats an opportunity to flip the seat of Rep. Andy Harris, the lone Republican in Maryland’s eight-member House delegation, in 2028.

Harris, the chair of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, has since 2011 represented the state’s 1st Congressional District — which encompasses the entire Eastern Shore.

Ferguson, whom Moore criticized for his prior opposition to redistricting, said Tuesday the Supreme Court’s April decision that effectively weakened a central provision of the Voting Rights Act requires Maryland to have a “clear legal path forward” on redistricting.

“This special session will allow the General Assembly to do its part while ensuring that Maryland voters make the final decision,” Ferguson added.

Peña-Melnyk, who took the gavel in December, added the state “needs a durable, transparent constitutional framework for congressional redistricting that reflects the evolving legal landscape.”

It Maryland redraws its congressional maps, it would add to the group of 10 states that have done so since last summer.

Efforts began in Texas, when Republicans in the state Legislature — at the urging of President Trump — redrew the state’s maps to give the GOP a chance of picking up five seats in the November midterms.

Moore, who formed an advisory commission to explore redistricting last November, said Tuesday his administration “will work closely” with the Maryland General Assembly as it considers the legislation next month.

“For months, I have said that inaction is not an option and we cannot sit on the sidelines while voting rights, fair representation, and the foundations of our democracy come under attack across the country,” the Maryland Democrat added. “I appreciate the General Assembly’s continued conversations and the agreement to come back to finish the work.”

Moore also noted, “Until we have national redistricting reform, Maryland will not be caught flat-footed.”

State Senate Minority Leader Stephen Hershey Jr. (R), meanwhile, said Tuesday the special session is an attempt to “silence the last dissenting voice” in Maryland’s delegation.

“Marylanders are watching their bills go up and their options go down, and [Moore’s] response is to spend political capital on a Washington power play,” Hershey said in a statement, according to Maryland Matters. “That is not leadership. That is an abdication of it.”

Tags

Andy Harris

Donald Trump

Joseline Pena-MeInyk

Wes Moore

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.