A Maryland judge on Wednesday struck down a November ballot question for a state constitutional redistricting amendment that would pave the way for Democrats to net one seat in 2028, delivering a major blow to Gov. Wes Moore‘s (D-MD) agenda.
Moore signed a measure this month passed by the Democrat-led Maryland General Assembly to place the constitutional amendment on the ballot and eventually redraw the congressional districts to oust the state’s only Republican congressman, Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD).
The push has been a key part of Moore’s platform to counter President Donald Trump’s redistricting efforts in GOP-led states across the country. The first-term governor faces a safe reelection this fall but is a potential 2028 presidential contender. Other potential Democratic presidential contenders, such as Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), were successful in their counter-redistricting pursuits.
However, Anne Arundel County Circuit Court Judge Robert Thompson, appointed by Moore’s predecessor, Republican Larry Hogan, determined the question to be “legally deficient.” The General Assembly “did not follow the very laws it enacted” by missing its own July 1 deadline for ballot questions, according to Thompson. The judge also accused lawmakers of being “intentionally misleading” with the language by saying it “clarifies” the constitution’s redistricting rules and criticized them for using a “hastily called special session.”
The legal case, brought by the conservative Oversight Project and Republican state lawmakers, now heads to the Maryland Supreme Court after an appeal from the Moore administration. The state’s high court consists of five Republican-appointed justices — all of them by Hogan — and two Democratic-appointed justices, including one from Moore.
“At a moment when states across the country are manipulating congressional maps to silence voters and undermine fair representation, Maryland cannot afford to sit on our hands,” Moore’s office said. “We believe Maryland voters deserve the opportunity to make their voices heard, and we will continue fighting to ensure they can.”
Harris, who chairs the conservative House Freedom Caucus, lauded the ruling and condemned Moore and Democrats for trying to “pave the way for an extreme partisan gerrymander targeting” his district.
“Marylanders deserve fair representation, not politicians changing the rules to eliminate a congressional seat they cannot win at the ballot box,” Harris said.
MARYLAND MAY FINALLY SEE REDISTRICTING ACTION — JUST NOT THE WAY WES MOORE WANTED
Maryland Democrats’ desired congressional map for 2028 would shift Harris’s seat blue so that Democrats control all eight House seats.
Joe Francaviglia, the political director for Fight Back MD, an advocacy campaign lobbying Maryland voters to support the constitutional amendment, said Thompson’s ruling was evidence he’s “auditioning for a federal appointment from Trump.”