A person may not willfully and knowingly influence or attempt to influence a voter’s decision whether to go to the polls to cast a vote through the use of force, fraud, threat, menace, intimidation, bribery, reward, or offer of reward.
Election Article, 16-201 (a)(6)
I introduced the bill that added that provision to Maryland law.
Campaign literature implying that you couldn’t vote if you owed rent or hadn’t paid your parking tickets prompted me to act.
The Election Day telephone calls urging people to relax and stay away from the polls were illegal because of this law.
President Trump recently tweeted: We need every able-bodied man, woman to join army for Trump’s election security operation at defendyourballot.com.
That prompted me to speak with PJ Hogan, a former colleague in the General Assembly and now the vice chair of the Maryland State Board of Elections (SBE).
We discussed the need to remind all involved – voting officials, the voting public, and those who might disrupt the election process, of Maryland’s law.
At yesterday’s SBE meeting, Vice Chair Hogan reminded everybody of our law by reading it out loud.
https://elections.maryland.gov/about/board.html44:20
I’ve decided to print our law and take it with me to the polls when I’m there for early voting and Election Day.
Hopefully not to show it to a police officer because someone may be violating the law.
But to remind me that this is how the system works.
