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Baltimore County panel recommends $1.65 million for Fair Election Fund in FY2026
Summary
The Baltimore County Fair Election Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend a $1.65 million addition to the county's Fair Election Fund for fiscal year 2026, citing uncertainty about candidate participation in an unusually large election cycle.
The Baltimore County Fair Election Planning Commission voted unanimously on Jan. 13 to recommend that the county executive add $1,650,000 to the county's Fair Election Fund for fiscal year 2026.
Commission members said they based the recommendation on a spreadsheet exercise that modeled candidate participation under several scenarios, and on examples from other Maryland counties. Commission staff and members told the panel that the 2026 election cycle is likely to generate unusually high demand for public financing because the county will add council seats and several incumbents are expected to run for other offices, increasing the number of open contests.
Commission staff presented a cost model that applied participation rates similar to prior cycles used by other counties and adjusted for Baltimore County's expanded nine-seat council. Using those assumptions, staff said the total funding need through the 2026 and 2027 cycles could…
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