Maryland — The state-wide coalition Everyone Votes Maryland has been working tirelessly throughout the 2020 congressional 7th District Special Election, Primary, and now General Election to ensure that every Marylander knows their rights when it comes to voting and ensuring a fair and safe election process.

“In our democracy, it’s important that every voice be heard and every valid ballot counted,” said Joanne Antoine, Executive Director of Common Cause Maryland. “Marylanders stepped up to meet the challenges of this pandemic election, with more than 1.3 million people voting by mail and record-breaking early turnout. All those voters deserve to have their voices heard. Marylanders also stepped up to help each other on Election Day. We had more than a thousand Election Protection volunteers answering questions and helping solve problems yesterday, not just at the polls but also on social media. Those thousand volunteers made a deep, personal investment in this election – and they, also, deserve to see every valid ballot counted.”

“We have already seen impressive turnout in Maryland, and voters young and old have demonstrated great resiliency in their ability to navigate new voting processes amidst the pandemic,” said Maryland PIRG Foundation director Emily Scarr. “As we wait for results we should rest assured that our elections staff in Maryland and nationwide are doing the painstaking work of ensuring every vote is counted in a secure manner. This is democracy at work.”

“This election season, Maryland League of Conservation Voters Education Fund deployed a comprehensive civic engagement campaign aimed at ensuring Maryland voters – and particularly those from underrepresented communities — knew how to use their vote to advocate for smart and equitable environmental policies,” said Kim Coble, Executive Director of Maryland LCV Education Fund.

“We need to be patient and let election officials count all the votes. Maryland’s primary in June was conducted mostly by mail. It took several days after primary day to count all the votes that had been mailed on time for Mayor of Baltimore,” said Maryland Sierra Club political chair Rich Norling. “Some other states have laws that don’t allow them to start processing and counting their thousands of mailed ballots until election day itself. So be prepared for patience as election officials get an accurate count of all the mailed-in ballots.”

“Thanks are owed to the many Maryland volunteers, poll workers, and public election officials for ensuring fair and safe elections during this pandemic,” said Larry Ottinger, Board Chair of Our Maryland Education Fund.  “And to the record number of Marylanders who have voted during this pandemic – whether by mail or in person – to make their voices heard in our democracy.”

“The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) strongly supports every effort to make sure that all the ballots cast in this election are counted. We’d like to thank everyone who worked tirelessly to protect our democracy by ensuring a fair and transparent process that enables every eligible voter’s voice to be heard,” said Zainab Chaudry, Director, CAIR Office in Maryland.

“While COVID-19 has made voting unsafe for many voters with disabilities, mail-in ballots and remote accessible ballots have allowed many voters to cast their ballot safely and independently. But it may take longer for this year for your vote to be officially counted,” said Ben Jackson, Staff Attorney of Disability Rights Maryland.

“We are glad to see our Maryland leaders: Governor Larry Hogan, Senate President Bill Ferguson, and Speaker of the House of Delegates Adrienne Jones have committed to counting every last ballot before declaring winners of the 2020 General Election and hope other states will follow their good, democratic example,” said Cristi Demnowicz, chair of Represent Maryland.

“Baltimore Women United is proud of the efforts of Baltimoreans and Marylanders to turn out the vote this election season, to protect our elections and ensure they are safe and fair, and to make our voices heard as voters. We expect that every vote will be counted – this is our right and our demand. Voting is how the people speak; the time and effort to count all votes is how we are heard. The women of Baltimore will be heard,” said Jessica Klaitman, Baltimore Women United Steering Committee.

“We are proud of the enthusiasm and determination of Marylanders to vote and the massive effort by our coalition partners to ensure robust access to the ballot for all voters. No matter what the outcome of this election, we will continue to expand and protect democracy. Together, we must realize race equity, reimagine policing, end mass incarceration, protect immigrants’ rights, safeguard privacy, advance LGBTQ+ rights, and stop any rollback of our hard won civil rights and civil liberties,” said Dana Vickers Shelley, Executive Director, ACLU of Maryland.

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Everyone Votes Maryland is a nonpartisan coalition of national, state, and grassroots organizations dedicated to ensuring that all eligible Marylanders can have their voices heard on Election Day.

https://everyonevotesmaryland.org/