By KIT SLACK
On March 4, Prince George’s County will conduct a special election to choose a county executive, as well as a county council member for District 5.
The March 4 election will be a primary election. However, since most Prince George’s County voters are Democrats, winners of the primary election will likely win in the May 27 general election.
Candidates must file with the Prince George’s County board of elections by Dec. 20th.
These special elections will be conducted entirely by mail, with ballots going to all 600,000 registered voters in Prince George’s County twice.
The county council adopted this timeline Dec. 10, 2024, compressing a timeline proposed by the Board of Elections which would have held the general election in mid-June.
In a Dec. 10 public meeting, Council member Tom Dernoga (District 1) said he was concerned about the length of time that county residents would have no elected representative, both at the county executive level and for District 5.
Council member Krystal Oriadha (District 7) expressed frustration with the costs of multiple special elections at a time of budget shortfalls.
Dernoga had proposed combining the special primary and general elections in meetings this fall, but could not find a majority on the council to support the change.
Also on Dec. 10, former county executive Rushern Baker announced his intention to run for county council, joining a crowded field that already includes At-large Councilmembers Jolene Ivey and Calvin Hawkins, and State’s Attorney Aiesha Braveboy.
County council member Jolene Ivey vacated her District 5 seat last Thursday when she was sworn in as an at-large county council member, a position she was elected to in November through a special election after Mel Franklin resigned last summer, accused of embezzling his campaign funds.
Ivey’s former district, District 5, includes the towns of Cheverly and Bladensburg, which, this weekend, began a public dispute about which town will incorporate the old county hospital site that is being redeveloped.
