Posts by golddogkris

Delegate Marlon Amprey (D-Baltimore City) believes 2026 could be the year Maryland legalizes beer and wine sales within grocery stores.

He introduced legislation this year that would allow food retailers, pharmacies or gas stations to purchase a Class A liquor license, but the bill ultimately stalled in committee.

Amprey says the House Economic Matters Committee chairman vowed to seriously consider the bill during the upcoming legislative session and that Gov. Wes Moore has already pledged to support it.

The Baltimore Banner and Maryland Matters have previously covered a new statewide poll released by Maryland NOW, focusing on Governor Wes Moore’s softening poll numbers.  That’s interesting, but here are five other findings that deserve attention.

First, here is the methodology statement of the poll, which was conducted by Blended Public Affairs in partnership with Perry Jacobson.

A new poll shows Democratic Gov. Wes Moore losing ground on his approval ratings in deep-blue Maryland — a downward shift political analysts and elected officials blame on “anxiety” and the economy.

Democrats, meanwhile, are calling the poll “silly.”

Conducted jointly in late July by Blended Public Affairs and lobbying firm Perry Jacobson, the poll asked more than 1,250 Marylanders via text message about a variety of political and economic issues. Of those surveyed, 50% rated Moore’s job performance as either “excellent” or “good,” 42% said he was “not so good” or “poor,” and 8% were not sure.

Troubling poll news continues for Gov. Wes Moore (D) in a new survey that shows approval numbers for the first-term executive continue to slip and the gap between those who approve and disapprove of his performance continues to shrink.

The Maryland Now poll is the most recent of several over the last nine months that have shown a continued softening of support for the charismatic first-term governor.

Five in 10 surveyed in the latest poll said they approved of the job done by Moore. But the gap between those who approve and disapprove of the governor’s performance narrowed to 8 percentage points — a drop of 13 percentage points in six months.

The poll — conducted by Blended Public Affairs and powerhouse Annapolis lobbying firm Perry Jacobson — surveyed 1,256 Maryland residents by text message between July 24 and July 30. The poll has a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points.

Half of Marylanders give positive marks to Gov. Wes Moore’s performance in office, according to a new poll from two Annapolis-based advocacy firms.

The approval represents a slight slip for the Democratic governor, who has topped 50% approval in polls since taking office in January 2023.

Just weeks into President Donald Trump’s term, Marylanders are profoundly concerned about the economic turmoil caused by cuts to federal spending and jobs, according to a new statewide survey provided to Baltimore Fishbowl.

Nearly half of registered voters in Maryland want their top elected officials to fight aggressively against the Trump agenda, compared with the 31 percent who say the congressional delegation should compromise with Republicans to lower costs.

For the lawmakers who represent Maryland, “it’s becoming very quickly evident that there is not really an alternative” to fighting, said Donna Victoria, director of research at Blended Public Affairs, which conducted the independent “Maryland Now” survey in late February in partnership with the government relations firm Perry Jacobson.

A renewed effort to expand alcohol sales beyond liquor stores has the backing of a powerful new ally — Gov. Wes Moore (D) told Maryland Matters that he “wants something on my desk at the end of the session.”

The General Assembly has tried before to allow alcohol sales in grocery stores — and perhaps other retailers. Moore said that while he will not make the bill an official part of his 2025 legislative package, his office will push for passage of a bill in the coming session.

“I think it’s time to address this issue because it’s something that I have heard literally in every single corner of the state from Western Maryland to the Eastern Shore. From Oakland, Ocean City, Montgomery County and everywhere in between,” Moore said. “This is an issue that people are asking about.”

U.S. Sen.-elect Angela Alsobrooks resigned as the Prince George’s County executive on Monday, setting the stage for a special election to determine who will finish out the two years remaining in her four-year term.

U.S. Rep.-elect Johnny Olszewski has yet to step down as Baltimore County executive, but he doesn’t face the same time constraints that Alsobrooks did because of differences in the two counties’ charters.

Tara Jackson, chief administrative officer for Prince George’s County, assumed the role of acting executive following Alsobrooks’ departure.

Sen.-elect Angela Alsobrooks (D) officially resigned her post as Prince George’s County Executive on Monday morning, setting the stage for a special election that has already attracted three candidates and may draw more.

In a letter “to all residents of Prince George’s County” released Monday, Alsobrooks, who will be sworn in to her seat in the U.S. Senate on Jan. 3, said she was resigning from the county job effective 10 a.m. Monday.

“Thank you for your trust and partnership as we worked to build a stronger, united Prince George’s,” Alsobrooks’ letter said. “Serving the residents of this County has been the honor of my lifetime, and I am deeply proud of all we have accomplished together.”

City voters gave overwhelming approval Tuesday to a Baltimore City Charter amendment that advocates hope will help dramatically change and revitalize the Inner Harbor area.

Question F, which clears the way for the redevelopment, passed by a vote of 95,605 to 63,043. The 3-2 margin of victory was praised by the developer behind the planned project, as well as supporters who worked to ensure passage of the amendment.

“We are grateful to the people of our hometown and have always had faith they would believe in the power of progress,” said a joint statement from P. David Bramble and Peter Pinkard, co-founders of MCB, the company behind the project.

“Our vision for the future of Harborplace was developed through an inclusive and intensive public engagement process. That vision is one that looks forward – to an Inner Harbor for future generations of Baltimoreans, to an Inner Harbor with public parkland, mixed income housing and local business opportunities,” their statement said.

Maryland has an open seat in the U.S. Senate up for election this year that’s drawing national attention, with control of the chamber hanging in the balance. That means there’s plenty of polling, as the candidates and other interested parties search for indications of which way voters will go.

Tensions are rising in this year’s U.S. Senate primary as four different public polls have shown Congressman David Trone ahead of Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks.  Those polls are:

November: A Trone internal poll of 1,000 likely voters by Hickman Analytics: Trone 41%, Alsobrooks 34%.

December: A poll of 813 likely voters by Blended Public Affairs and lobbying firm Perry, White, Ross & Jacobson LLC: Trone 36%, Alsobrooks 31%.

When Lisa Harris Jones started lobbying in Annapolis in the late 1990s, she was almost always one of the few Black women in a room and sometimes the only. She recalled just a few female faces, mostly white, at the capital working to influence state policy, but she was usually surrounded by white male lawmakers and lobbyists.

“I have no memory of a Black female in a partnership position,” she said.

As the first Black woman to own and manage a law practice focused on lobbying and government relations, Harris Jones is known as a “trailblazer” in Annapolis, inspiring other Black women to enter the field and helping open doors.