Dear Friend,

What can we do when one political party’s leaders openly and aggressively try to take away our democracy and roll back women’s rights and civil rights? When they attack our efforts to embed racial and restorative justice in our societal systems, how do we respond? One of the most meaningful things we can do during this time is to show up for this election and to make sure others do! National Voter Registration Day is tomorrow, September 20th so it’s a perfect time to check your voter registration status and make sure your family members are registered. Check out the Board of Elections site to get more information.

It’s also the time to get involved in grassroots voter outreach and voter turnout in Maryland. Our state can become a leader on racial, gender, economic and social justice if we elect Wes Moore and other Democrats running up and down the ticket. Fifty days from now let’s make sure we’re celebrating the victories of progressive candidates running on the issues we care about.

What can we do to make sure Marylanders soundly reject the hard right message coming from the top of the GOP ticket and Congressmen like Andy Harris? Get busy making calls, knocking doors, registering voters, and firing up voter turnout in this critical year. There’s too much at stake to take this election outcome for granted. Please take a minute to fill out this form and join the PM election team.

Don't forget to also sign up for our Day of Action this Saturday, September 24th. We will be door knocking and making phone calls to reach voters in Prince George's County. We hope you will join us!

We’re looking forward to winning with your help and building a stronger progressive base for the future!

Many Thanks,

The Progressive Maryland Team

📝 Election Corner:

Recent Endorsements:

Last week, Progressive Maryland announced some exciting new endorsements for the 2022 General Election: Wes Moore for Governor, Anthony Brown for Attorney General, Brooke Lierman for Comptroller, Dawn Gile for State Senate (District 33), and Karl Bickel for Frederick County Sheriff.

Other newly endorsed candidates include Shawn Livingston for Anne Arundel County Council (District 7), Jacob Bennett for Harford County Council (District F), Stephen Puopolo for Harford County Board of Education (District A), Jonathan Briggs for Prince George's Board of Education (District 2), Branndon Jackson for Prince George's Board of Education (District 6), and Kent Roberson for Prince George's Board of Education (District 9).

Find our full list of endorsements on our website.

Important General Election Dates:

Voter Registration:

In person during early voting : Oct 27 - Nov 3
In-person at voting location on Election Day : Nov 8
Online : Oct 18
By mail (postmarked by) : Oct 18

Absentee and Mail In Ballot Requests and Return Dates Ballot deadlines:

Request ballot (received by) : Nov 1
Return ballot by mail (postmarked by) : Nov 8
Return ballot in person : Nov 8

Voting In Person Dates:

Early voting : Oct 27 - Nov 3
In-person : Nov 8

Task Forces & Campaign Updates:

Healthcare For All:

If, like so many of us, you’re fed up with drug company price gouging and the harm they’re causing please join the fight. President Biden recently spoke out against Big PhRMA’s greed, now we need him and his Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, to take Executive Action to lower prices.Take a minute to sign this petition and join us for a National Day of Action to Bring Down Rx Prices on October 6th. Sign up here! We’ll be calling out House and Senate Republicans who constantly side with drug company lobbyists against patients. And calling on Sec. Becerra to intervene. Come to D.C. on October 6th or join us online with folks from across the country. If you have questions or want to help, please contact Patty.

Progressive Maryland's Justice Task Force, Returning Citizens Task Force and Drug Task Force:

Special Virtual Event October 13: This is a chance to learn about the issues we’re organizing on and find out ways to get directly involved. We’ll also hear from some special guests! You must register for this event to get the Zoom link. Questions? Please contact Kurt or Dev.

Returning Citizens Task Force:

Update: We’re discussing the Prince George’s County Executive’s affordable housing initiative and what it may or may not mean for returning citizens. While the proposal is a good step, more could be done especially given the amount of rental assistance money that has gone unused. More to come once we put together our recommendations.

Next Task Force meeting: Tuesday, September 26, 6-7 pm on zoom. We’ll hear a presentation about Progressive Maryland’s newly launched co-governing project designed to help us advance our issues in Annapolis.

Voter registration/expungement clinic Saturday, October 22, in conjunction with other Get Out the Vote activities this Fall. The clinic will be held at a local church and will be focused on letting returning citizens know their voting rights. Stay tuned for details or contact Kurt about this event and the work of the RCTF.

Local Chapter Updates:

Progressive Prince George’s

Zoning Campaign: We won! Our organizing and partnership with PG Changemakers helped spark a huge public outcry forcing Councilmembers Hawkins and Franklin to withdraw their anti-democratic zoning bill (Council Bill 91.) Their bill sought to prevent a simple Council Majority from passing community-centered zoning legislation and instead require 8 votes or a Supermajority. It was an attempt to take power from residents and from the new bloc of more progressive members who will come on to the Council next year. BUT there’s more to be done. We need to speak out against CB 92-2022 which will strip away opportunities for the community to weigh in on a development project that’s unwanted.

Help defeat this measure:

- Add your voice by signing this petition.

- Commit to testifying.

- Send a pre-filled email or write one of your own!

- Fill out this form to get involved with Progressive Prince George’s.

Progressive Harford County

Join Progressive Harford County during our virtual monthly meeting TONIGHT, Monday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m. We'll lay out our game plan to elect our endorsed candidates and garner support for the cannabis legalization ballot measure.

State and National News:

As a deadline for funding the federal government looms (especially important for the many federal workers in Maryland) the potholed pathway to that goal puts federal matters atop this edition of News You Can Use.

And in Maryland: Yes, we will all be voting in November, and many of us by mail, before November. How long will we have to wait for mail ballots to be counted? Well we'll have to ask Larry Hogan and Dan Cox. Both are GOP types from supposedly the opposite ends of the party, but both have a thumb on the scale that could stretch out the wait for results and invite conspiracy theories from Cox supporters. It’s the GOP playbook nationwide. It's in court now, when it really didn't need to be except for a capricious Hogan veto before the Primary that made Maryland the only state that doesn’t start to count mail-in votes as they come in! This leaves us vulnerable to false claims from the Trump wing of the GOP. Read much more in this week’s Progressive News You Can Use.

Progressive Maryland BlogSpace:

We value creating space for our members to express their thoughts on any issues related to our campaigns. Have an idea for a blog post? You can submit writing, film, graphic design, etc. to be published on our website to the blog moderator Woody.

Click here to view this memo in your web browser.

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Don't forget to follow us on social media!

Progressive Maryland
P.O. Box 6988
Largo, MD 20792
United States

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