The Law and Your Voting Rights in Maryland

Primary Day - Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Election Day - Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Polling places will be open in Maryland from 7AM to 8PM

Voting in local, state, and national elections is one of the most important things you can do as an American. You can help decide what happens here in Maryland and across the United States by choosing who you want to represent you in public office. When you vote, your voice is heard.

• Who can vote?
• How do I check to see if I registered? Problems?
• What if I have been convicted of a crime?
• What if I am homeless?
• What if I move or change my name?
• Do I need ID to register?
• Do I need ID to vote?
• I want to learn more about the candidate. What information is there?
• How do I find out if my provisional vote was accepted?
• What are my rights if they try to keep me from voting?
• What is the current problem with the voting machines? What if I suspect my vote was not counted?

Who can vote?
In order to vote in Maryland, you must be a:

• U.S. citizen;
• Resident of Maryland
• 18 years of age on or before the day of the next General Election;
• Completed voter registration form (pdf) by the deadline. See the Board of Elections website for deadlines for each election.

Even if you meet these requirements, you cannot vote if:

• You are under guardianship for a mental disability; or
• You have been convicted of certain crimes.

How do I check to see if I am registered? Problems?
About three weeks after you register, you should receive a voter registration card in the mail. This verifies that you are registered.

You can also call your local Board of Elections.

You can also look on-line at a website created by the secretaries of state to allow voters who move to see information from other states as well as their own state www.canivote.org

What if I did not receive a voter registration card after I registered?
If you do not receive the card in the mail, there may have been a problem and you may not be registered even if you completed the voter registration form (pdf).  You should contact your local Board of Elections immediately.

What if I moved or changed my name?
You do not need to re-register if you move to another place within Maryland,  but you will need to contact your local Board of Elections to update your address. Md. Ann. Code art. EL, § 3-304.

• When you complete a change of address form at the Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA) this information will be sent to your local Board of Elections.
• You can choose not to change your voter registration information, for example if you are military personnel being deployed overseas or are a student who is attending college out of state who chooses to remain a Maryland resident.
• If you move from Maryland to another state, you will need to register to vote in that state.
• You also need to update your information with the local boards of election if you legally change your name.

If you moved or changed your name and did not update your information with your local Board of Elections, you must use a provisional ballot. Your new address determines which candidates you are able to vote for.  You have two options:

• You may  fill out a provisional ballot at your old precinct. 

• If you choose to vote at your old precinct, only your votes for candidates whose name also appears on the ballot at your new voting location will be counted.

• You may fill out a provisional ballot at you new precinct. 

  •  If you chose to vote at your new precinct, your ballot will have the names of all the candidates for whom you are eligible to vote.  Therefore, all your votes will count.

You may not vote at your old precinct without informing the election judge of your change of address and asking for a provisional ballot.  Voting in an election district where you do not currently reside is illegal.  MD Const. art. I, § 5.

Do I need ID to register?
You will need to provide a Maryland driver’s license number or Motor Vehicle Administration identification card number, or your Social Security number to complete the voter registration.

Do I need ID to vote?
Election judges prefer that you take a picture ID to the polling place. You must have identification if:

• It is your first time voting in Maryland,
• You sent your voter registration in by mail on or after January 1, 2003, and
• You have not already met the identification requirements of the federal Help America Vote Act (Pub. L. 107-252, 42 U.S.C. 15301 et seq.)

Acceptable picture IDs are:

• Maryland driver's license
• Student, employee, or military ID card
• U.S. passport

If you do not have a picture ID, you may also use:

• utility bill,
• bank statement,
• government check,
• paycheck (Pub. L. 107-252, 42 U.S.C. 15301 et seq.)

If you are already registered and you are denied the right to vote because you do not have a picture ID, you may cast a provisional ballot. When the board of elections confirms that you are in fact a registered voter, your provisional ballot will be counted.

I want to learn more about the candidates. What information is there?
You can find a great deal of information on the candidates for local, state, and national elections on the internet:

•  Project Vote Smart - nonpartisan organization protecting democracy through education, provides extensive information on Maryland candidates. Project Vote Smart provides citizens with many candidates' answers to the "National Political Awareness Test," (NPAT) a series questions exploring his/her stance on several important issues such as "National Defense" and Welfare and Poverty Issues".   Some candidates chose not to answer the NPAT and therefore Project Vote Smart was not able to provide much information about him/her.  The website also provides the  voting record of incumbent candidates on such topics as "Budget, Spending and Taxes" and "Education."  
• Vote-USA.org - a nonpartisan group providing citizens with information directly from the candidates. Simply by entering your address Vote-USA.org will generate your sample ballot and provide you with comparisons of each candidate.  The candidates wrote their own entries.
• League of Women Voters of Maryland - a nonpartisan group dedicated political education and participation, provides a voter's guide with information on candidate's positions.

What are my rights if they try to keep me from voting?
Polling officials must allow you to vote on a provisional ballot if:

• you do not have picture ID
• if an error at the polls leaves you off of the registered voter list OR
• if the election judge says you are not eligible to vote Md. Ann. Code art. EL, § 9-404.   

Information about the requirement and procedures of provisional voting on the Maryland Board of Elections website.

If you are registered and they refuse to allow you to vote on a provisional ballot, you need to contact one of the election watchdog groups and tell them you were denied the right to vote.

• True Vote MD, nonpartisan, grassroots, organization of Maryland citizens, at their Election Day hotline 301-270-6150. True Vote MD will also have volunteers manning several polls and are willing to investigate any reported irregularities.
• Save Our Votes, nonpartisan, grassroots nonprofit organization, at 410-381-1811 or by email info@saveourvotes.org.  Save Our Votes will be working closely with True Vote Maryland to make sure elections are "Secure, Accessible, Verifiable" in Maryland.

How do I find out if my provisional vote was accepted?
The federal Help America Vote Act (Pub. L. 107-252, 42 U.S.C. 15301 et seq.) requires states to create a system where individuals can find out if their provision ballot was accepted or why it was rejected. In Maryland, there are two ways to obtain this information:

• By calling 1-800-222-8683 or
• By entering your information in the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) database.

What is the current problem with the voting machines? What if I suspect my vote was not counted?

Some precincts in Maryland had problems with the electronic voting machines in the 2004 elections. These problems were criticized by many private groups that operate as election watchdogs. If you suspect your vote was not counted, contact these groups:

• Save Our Votes, nonpartisan, grassroots nonprofit organization, at 410-381-1811 or by email info@saveourvotes.org.  Save Our Votes will be working closely with True Vote Maryland to make sure elections are "Secure, Accessible, Verifiable" in Maryland.
• True Vote MD, nonpartisan, grassroots, organization of Maryland citizens, at their Election Day hotline 301-270-6150. True Vote MD will also have volunteers manning several polls and are willing to investigate any reported irregularities.

Report to the Maryland Department of Legislative Services found that (prior to the March 2004 primary in Maryland), the Diebold electronic voting system had moderate to serious security flaws that could be fixed. The report found that paper receipts would be needed “at least in a limited fashion”.

The Washington Post printed an article on October 27, 2006 that mentions these same Diebold electronic voting machines Diebold had to repair 4700 machines in Maryland.