By SOPHIE GORMAN ORIANI

Following the passage and subsequent overturning of a controversial redistricting plan for Prince George’s County, area residents are paying close attention to candidates in local elections this year.

The state primary is July 19, with early voting from July 7 to July 14. In our area, many races are decided in the Democratic primaries, as the Republican party often does not field candidates for county and local state offices. 

In Maryland, generally, voters must have registered with a particular party to vote in its primaries.  (The deadline for that registration was  June 28.)

Residents can use the “Find My Representatives” tool at on the Maryland website to look up representatives for a specific address, and find the right polling place at elections.maryland.gov/voting/where.html.

Prince George’s County elections

The races listed in this section will be decided in the July 19 primary.

Hyattsville is in county council District 2, where a three-way contest between Democratic candidates will be decided in the primary.  Wanika Fisher, who is currently serving as Maryland state delegate representing District 47B, is running for the office of county councilmember in District 2. Former state senator Victor Ramirez, a Hyattsville lawyer who recently coached Northwestern High School’s soccer team to victory in the state championship, is also running. The third candidate for county councilmember, Raymond Nevo, lives in Hyattsville, in Ward 1, and has a professional background as a housing advocate and a flying trapeze artist.

Most of College Park is in county council District 3, though a small part is in District 1.

Eric Olson, who represented District 3 from 2006-2014, is running again, having prevailed in a challenge of a proposed county redistricting plan that singled out his home for removal from the district. He is running against fellow-Democrats  Sia Finoh, who lost the primary for the District 24 House of Delegate seat in 2018, and Eve Shuman, a former staffer for U.S. Senator Chris Van Holland (D).  (Read our coverage of a forum all three candidates attended this spring.)

In District 1, incumbent Tom Dernoga has filed to run for re-election, unopposed.

For at-large county council seats, representing the entire county, incumbents Mel Franklin and Calvin Hawkins are running for reelection.  Both supported the council’s controversial redistricting plan. They are challenged by Rudy Anthony, Leo Eyombo, Sam Elira, Stanford Fraser, and Jonathan White.

Among the challengers, Stanford Fraser, a public defender, is considered a frontrunner and has gotten endorsements from unions including the Prince George’s County Educators’ Association, as well as Our Revolution Prince George’s and the Sierra Club.

Angela Alsobrooks, the current county executive, is running for re-election. She faces challenges from Leigh Bodden, Billy Bridges, Sherman R. Hardy and Moisette Tonya Sweat.

John D.B. Carr, Dave Grogan, Elliott Gibson, Sylvester Jones, and Loralyn Mayo are candidates for Prince George’s county sheriff. Yakeisha Dawn Hines-Poole registered but withdrew, endorsing Carr, instead.

Maryland State Legislature – Primaries

The majority of local state candidates are Democrats with no Republican challengers, and many of races will be decided in the primary.  See below for details.

Most of Hyattsville is in Maryland District 22 for state senate and state delegate elections.

For state senate in district 22, Rashad Lloyd is running against incumbent Maryland State Senator Paul Pinsky. Pinsky is a progressive active on environmental and education issues, who has held his senate seat since 1994.  Lloyd works at a liquor store in Beltsville.

Six Democratic candidates have filed to run for state delegate in District 22. Incumbents Anne Healey, Nicole Williams, and Alonzo T. Washington face challenges from Ashanti Martinez and Chiquita Jackson, as well as Patrick Paschall, the current American Rescue Plan Program Manager for the city of Hyattsville.

A small number of addresses in two areas of municipal Hyattsville are part of District 47. The first area is west of Ager Rd near the West Hyattsville Metro Station, and is part of Subdistrct 47A for state delegates, in which incumbents Julian Ivey and Diana M. Fennell are running unopposed.

The other area is north of E West Highway, west of Adelphi Rd, and south of Calverton Rd, Subdistrict 47B.

Malcolm Augustine, the Maryland state senator for all of District 47, is running for reelection. He is challenged by fellow-Democrat Rocio Treminio-Lopez, the current mayor of Brentwood.

 In Subdistrict 47B, current county councilmember Deni Taveras has announced her candidacy for the open state delegate spot.  Marlin Jenkins, an aide to Wanika Fisher, is also running. Jenkins served as deputy for the Maryland Vaccine Equity Task Force. The third candidate, Jorge Sactic, a bakery owner originally from Guatemala, is campaigning primarily in Spanish.

In College Park, which is part of Maryland District 21, incumbent Democrat State Senator Jim Rosapepe is running again. He is challenged by Republican Lee Havis.

Incumbent state delegates Ben Barnes, Mary Lehman, and Joseline Peña-Melnyk have all filed to run for re-election. Democrat Malcolm Thomas Colombo withdrew from the race on April 18.

General election dates

The general election is Nov. 8, also preceded by early voting, from Oct. 27 to Nov. 3. Any voter can also request a mail-in ballot for either election.

This article will continue to be updated as new developments occur.