District 7A Delegate Ryan Nawrocki released the following statement following the Supreme Court of Maryland’s decision in Howell v. Maryland State Board of Elections to allow Question 3 to appear on the ballot with rewritten language:
Today’s decision by the Supreme Court of Maryland is deeply disappointing. Rather than removing a ballot question the General Assembly passed during an emergency special session while violating Maryland voters’ due process rights, the Court chose to rewrite it. Courts exist to enforce the law — not to rescue politicians from the consequences of breaking it or to legislate from the bench.
The General Assembly manufactured this crisis from the beginning. Legislative leaders rushed this amendment through an emergency special session, exempted themselves from bipartisan public-notice requirements specifically designed to protect Marylanders, and concealed the amendment’s true purpose: eliminating more than a century of constitutional protections so Annapolis politicians can pursue the most extreme partisan gerrymander in Maryland history.
And make no mistake about who set this in motion. Governor Moore called this emergency session while traveling the country and building a national political profile, using Maryland and its voters to advance his ambitions.
This is what happens when politicians care more about consolidating power than serving the people who elected them. If this amendment passes,
Republicans and independent voters—nearly half of Maryland’s electorate—could be denied a meaningful voice in choosing their representation in Congress.
That is not representative democracy, and Marylanders should not accept it.
The Supreme Court should have removed this measure from the ballot. It did not.
Now we will take our case directly to the people of Maryland. We are reviewing every legal option available, and this fight is far from over. Marylanders will have the final word on November 3, and we intend to make certain they understand exactly what Annapolis politicians are asking them to surrender.