Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidate Valerie Ervin received a boost Thursday in her attempt to get her name onto the June primary ballot when the state Democratic Party publicly supported the effort. “The Democratic Party believes that Maryland law requires the Maryland Board of Elections to do everything in its power to list all eligible gubernatorial candidates and to conduct a smooth election process for all voters,” party Chairwoman Kathleen Matthews said in a statement Thursday. “Voters deserve nothing less.” And an attorney for Ervin and her running mate, Marisol Johnson, appeared before the Maryland State Board of Elections in Annapolis to press the campaign’s case for new ballots.
Ervin is taking the place of her former running mate, Kevin Kamenetz, who died of sudden cardiac arrest on May 10. She wants to make sure her name appears on ballots and sued this week to compel the state to produce accurate ballots.
But state elections officials have said it’s not possible to reprint or modify the ballots, and instead will notify voters that ballots cast for Kamenetz will count as votes for Ervin. “We believe we can provide adequate notice to all Democratic voters,” said Nikki Charlson, deputy state elections administrator.
Ervin’s attorney, Mariana Cordier, disagreed. “We believe the voters of Maryland will not be fully advised and informed,” Cordier said of the plan. She said the plan “can definitely affect the integrity of the election.”
Full Article: Ervin gets party’s backing on ballot | The Baltimore Sun.