2026 Ballot Questions: AGAINST 1, 2 & 3 — FOR Question A

A Republican Voter Guide for Frederick County · General Election, November 3, 2026 · Sep 23, 2026

Question 1 — Arbitration Reform for State Employees

What it does: Requires the Governor’s budget to include the money for every state employee union contract, including terms imposed by an outside arbitrator when negotiations stall. A companion law, which takes effect only if this passes, sets up the binding-arbitration process.

Why we oppose it:

• An unelected arbitrator sets the price tag. When talks break down, a neutral decider who answers to no voter could set raises and benefits, and the Governor must then put that cost in the budget.
• It weakens the taxpayer’s side of the table. If the union knows an impasse leads to arbitration with a guaranteed budget line, the State loses leverage in every negotiation.
• It locks spending pressure into the Constitution. Maryland already faces serious budget strain. Once written into the Constitution, this cannot be undone by ordinary legislation if costs outrun revenue.
• Budget decisions belong with elected officials who can be held accountable at the ballot box.

Question 2 — Temporary Appointments to the Commission on Judicial Disabilities

What it does: When a member of the commission that disciplines Maryland judges is recused, disqualified, or reaches the end of a term, the Chair could recall a former member, or the Governor (at the Chair’s request) could appoint a temporary substitute or extend a member’s term.

Why we oppose it:

• It sidesteps Senate confirmation. Regular commission members must be confirmed by the Senate. Temporary substitutes and recalled members would serve without that check.
• Seats get filled case by case. A substitute chosen after a recusal is picked with a specific complaint against a specific judge already on the table. That invites the appearance, or the reality, of hand-picking who judges the judges.
• It concentrates power over judicial discipline in the Commission Chair and the Governor.
• There are better fixes. Standing alternates, confirmed in advance, would solve the vacancy problem without ad hoc appointments.

Question 3 — Congressional Redistricting

What it does: Removes the Maryland Constitution’s standards (compact districts that respect natural boundaries and county and city lines) from congressional maps, declares that nothing in the Maryland Constitution supplies any criteria for congressional districts, and lets the General Assembly send map challenges directly to the Supreme Court of Maryland.

Why we oppose it:

• It clears the way for an 8–0 gerrymander. Its purpose is to let Annapolis redraw the map to eliminate Maryland’s only Republican congressional seat.
• It overturns a court ruling that protected voters. In 2022, a Maryland judge threw out the legislature’s congressional map as an extreme partisan gerrymander. This amendment is designed to make that ruling impossible to repeat.
• It strips away protections for communities. Without the requirement to respect county and city lines, counties like Frederick can be carved up to serve party goals rather than keep communities together.
• It was rushed. Passed in a summer special session, it was blocked by two lower courts before a divided Supreme Court of Maryland allowed it onto the ballot. Even the Senate President has acknowledged it was rushed.
• It limits review. Sending challenges straight to the Supreme Court skips the trial-level fact-finding that exposed the 2022 gerrymander.

Question A (Frederick County) — Lifetime Term Limits

What it does: Changes the County Charter so a County Council member could never serve more than three terms, and the County Executive never more than two, in a lifetime. Today, those limits apply to consecutive terms.

Why we support it:

• It closes a loophole. Today’s limits apply only to consecutive terms. An official can sit out one term and then run again, resetting the clock indefinitely. This makes the limits the charter promised real.
• It keeps county government close to residents. Term limits favor citizen officials who serve for a time and return to private life, over career politicians.
• It opens the door to new candidates. Long-time incumbents build advantages in name recognition, fundraising, and connections that newcomers find hard to overcome.
• It limits entrenched influence. Fixed limits reduce the long-term relationships between officials and special interests that build up over decades in office.
• It follows a familiar principle. The U.S. President is limited to two terms for life. Voters still choose every election; this simply sets an outer boundary.
• Frederick County can lead. Frederick would become the first county in Maryland with lifetime limits for these offices.

The Bottom Line

Questions 1, 2, and 3 would permanently change the Maryland Constitution, and each moves power away from voters: to arbitrators, to appointed officials, and to map-drawers in Annapolis. Question A does the opposite. It strengthens the term limits already in our County Charter and keeps power turning over to the people.

On November 3, vote AGAINST Questions 1, 2, and 3, and FOR Question A.

2026 Maryland Primary Election Candidates