Overview
- Lawmakers opened a three-day special session on Monday to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would exempt congressional districts from the state rules on compactness and natural boundaries.
- The proposal must win a three-fifths vote in both chambers to reach the Nov. 3 ballot and would not change maps for the 2026 elections but could permit redrawing for 2028 if voters agree.
- Sponsors also filed legislation to send legal challenges over congressional maps directly to the Maryland Supreme Court to speed resolution and reduce lower-court reversals.
- The move has deepened splits among Democrats after a year of debate and follows a 2022 judge’s ruling that struck down Maryland’s 2021 congressional map as extreme partisan gerrymandering.
- Republicans call the measure a partisan power grab, have launched a campaign to defeat it, and Rep. Andy Harris and allies have pledged litigation if lawmakers redraw districts under the new rules.