A Maryland judge on Wednesday blocked the Democrats’ attempt to eliminate the state’s only Republican House seat.

Democrats proposed a constitutional amendment to eliminate the only Republican House seat in Maryland.

Maryland’s Democrat Governor Wes Moore recently called a special legislative session that could have paved the way for the Democrats to add an addition House seat amid the redistricting wars.

Anne Arundel County Circuit Court Judge Robert Thompson ruled that the Democrat lawmakers violate their own July deadlines for ballot measures.

The judge sided with the Oversight Project.

🚨Oversight Project Secures Massive Win in Howell v. Maryland State Board of Elections

We are grateful to have pursued this fight alongside members of the @MDFreedomCaucus and Members of the Maryland Senate as we fight to defend transparency, due process, and the integrity of… pic.twitter.com/fXouyIgXxE

— Oversight Project (@ItsYourGov) August 26, 2026

The AP reported:

A Maryland court has ruled against a proposed constitutional amendment that could have paved the way for Democrats to redraw the state’s congressional districts ahead of the 2028 elections.

The ruling Wednesday by a judge in the state’s capital city marks another setback in Democrats’ national attempts to counter a Republican redistricting movement pushed by President Donald Trump ahead of this year’s elections. The judge ruled that the amendment cannot appear on the November ballot, but he paused the effect of that ruling to allow for an appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Democrats already control seven of Maryland’s eight congressional seats. Democratic Gov. Wes Moore called lawmakers into a special session in August with a goal of making it easier to claim that final seat.

An amendment referred to the ballot by lawmakers seeks to sidestep a court ruling that struck down a previous Democratic redistricting plan in 2022. It would declare that a constitutional requirement for districts to be compact and take into account “natural boundaries” applies only to state legislative districts, not congressional ones.

Vice Chair of the Maryland Freedom Caucus Kathy Szeliga responded to the victory:

We are grateful for the dedicated team at
@ItsYourGov. We are thrilled to announce we prevailed in court yesterday on all counts.

Here’s what happened:

The legislature made rules, then didn’t follow them. Earlier in 2026, the General Assembly passed SB 29 establishing deadlines and procedures for constitutional ballot questions, including a July 1 certification deadline and public-notice requirements. HB 2100 wasn’t even introduced until August 3.

The State essentially argued that those rules didn’t apply to the legislature itself. The judge rejected that position. His basic conclusion was: when the legislature establishes the process for putting constitutional amendments before voters, the legislature has to follow that process too.
The judge found HB 2100 legally defective. He stated very directly: “Because the legislature did not follow the very laws it enacted,” HB 2100 was legally deficient.

There was a second, independent problem: the ballot wording was misleading. The ballot said the amendment merely “clarifies” Maryland’s Constitution. The judge said that’s misleading because the existing legal status is that Maryland’s constitutional districting requirements apply to both state legislative and congressional districts. In other words, HB 2100 wasn’t simply explaining existing law; it was attempting to change it.

There was a third problem: the ballot question contained two separate issues. It addressed the constitutional rules governing congressional districts and gave the Supreme Court of Maryland original jurisdiction over congressional redistricting cases. The judge said those are separate issues, while a referred constitutional question must concern a single issue.

We are grateful for the dedicated team at @ItsYourGov. We are thrilled to announce we prevailed in court yesterday on all counts.

Here’s what happened:

The legislature made rules, then didn’t follow them. Earlier in 2026, the General Assembly passed SB 29 establishing deadlines… https://t.co/7MGoVXJlzz

— Kathy Szeliga (@KathyforMD) August 26, 2026