Early voting struck down, AG candidate Perez off ballot

Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2006

The Maryland Court of Appeals on Friday struck down a law that would have allowed five days of early voting and disqualified a Democratic attorney general candidate, Montgomery County Councilman Thomas E. Perez, because he did not have the legal experience required by state law to run for the position.

Without explanation, the court initially ordered Perez’s name to be removed from absentee ballots and electronic voting software, but state election administrators filed a motion Monday saying that two weeks is not enough time to prepare thousands of machines and print a new version of hundreds of thousands of paper ballots. Rather, officials asked the court to post signs at polling places and include fliers with absentee ballots to notify voters of Perez’s ineligibility and that a vote cast for him will not count.

The state constitution requires attorney general candidates to practice law in Maryland for 10 years. Perez, a federal prosecutor who argued that he tried cases in Maryland since 1989, has been a member of the Maryland Bar Association since 2001.

Perez said in a statement posted on his campaign Web site that he was ‘‘deeply disappointed” in the court’s decision.

‘‘While I respect the rule of law, I strongly disagree with its assessment,” he wrote. ‘‘It is indeed regrettable that the fate of my candidacy will be determined in a courtroom instead of at the polls.”

Meanwhile, the court’s terse opinion on early voting, which affirmed an earlier decision in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, is a political victory for Republicans and Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., who called the plan an invitation for voter fraud and a partisan effort to boost Democrats’ chances this fall.

The Democrat-controlled General Assembly devised the plan that would have allowed voters to cast ballots on five days leading up to the primary and general elections. But the GOP minority alleged the location of many of the early voting sites would unfairly tip the scales for Democrats.

‘‘As reflected by the court’s decision and that of the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, the General Assembly’s early voting scheme was flawed, irresponsible and a blatant overreach of its authority under the Maryland Constitution,” Ehrlich (R) said in a statement. ‘‘I look forward to working with lawmakers next year to ensure that the laudable concept of early voting is implemented in a far more thoughtful, nonpartisan and constitutional manner.”

Two weeks ago, Anne Arundel Circuit Court Judge Ronald A. Silkworth said the early voting plan violated the ‘‘plain language” of the state constitution that requires elections to take place only on a single day.

Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley, the presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee, said he was disappointed with the decision.

‘‘It will make it more difficult for hardworking Marylanders, who are struggling to provide for their families and cannot afford to take time off on Election Day, to vote,” he said in a statement. ‘‘It’s unfortunate that Bob Ehrlich doesn’t feel the same way.”

Local election officials were generally relieved with the court rulings. Early voting had been thorny to institute — additional poll workers had to be recruited, new security procedures had to be put in place and polling sites had to be equipped with the proper technology.

‘‘There was a lot of groundwork that we all did,” said Catherine Countiss, elections chief in St. Mary’s County. ‘‘... Just about the time we got everything completed, now the court says it’s not going to happen, so it’s all for naught.”

The postponement of early voting is a welcome relief for local officials, said Mary L. DePelteau, Calvert County’s assistant elections administrator.

Yet, Perez’s ineligibility creates a new wrinkle. Sample ballots that included both Perez’s name and early voting information were already mailed, and local election boards now must notify voters that they will not be able to cast ballots prior to Election Day and that there are only two qualified Democratic attorney general candidates — Montgomery County State’s Attorney Douglas F. Gansler and Baltimore city’s former top prosecutor Stuart O. Simms.

‘‘They take [early voting] away but then we get the Perez issue, so it’s not like we are totally off the hook,” said Charles County elections’ chief Tracy Dickerson.

That probably means more manpower and more overtime for election workers, said Countiss, calling this year’s election cycle the most stressful and hectic since starting with the agency in 1979. ‘‘We never had legislators go in and make such drastic changes to our procedures and [the courts changing] things up to the last minute before. I don’t ever remember having to take a name off the ballot at this late stage of the game.”

Although last week’s rulings left little time to spare, political observers called it a good example of checks and balances.

‘‘It’s unfortunate that the final decision comes down two-and-a-half weeks before the primary, but the system functioned appropriately,” said Zach Messitte, a political science professor at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. ‘‘It’s messy, but it functioned appropriately.”

But he warned that potential Election Day problems remain. Voters will use touch-screen voting machines to cast ballots, and many poll workers — a majority of whom are senior citizens — have not been adequately trained to use the new technology. Even Messitte, a first-time chief judge, is concerned that training sessions have been too confusing.

‘‘You’ve got elderly people working with technology, which is not necessarily the best fit, so the potential here for problems — not based on fraud, but on confusion — I think [is] significant,” he said.

Perez, who announced his candidacy last spring, pledged to continue advocating for expanded health care access, preserving endangered natural resources and protecting consumers. He also vowed to support other Democrats running for statewide office, including Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley’s gubernatorial bid. On Tuesday, Perez endorsed his former rival Simms.

‘‘While the actions taken by the court [Friday] close the book on my campaign, my dedication to public service and progressive values remain stronger than ever,” he said.

Perez, 44, was endorsed by former Gov. Harry R. Hughes (D) and many labor unions. Their support in the attorney general race is now unclear.

‘‘Tom Perez, with his professional and political background, and his clear passion, he’s going to land on his feet,” Gansler said.

Stephen N. Abrams, a Republican candidate for comptroller and Montgomery County school board member with whom Perez had clashed, filed the lawsuit questioning Perez’s qualifications after the attorney general’s office, in a May advisory opinion, initially cleared him to run. The Anne Arundel Circuit Court agreed, but Abrams’ appeal was overturned.

Frederick Count State’s Attorney Scott L. Rolle is running unopposed in the Republican primary for attorney general.

Staff writers Thomas Dennison, Douglas Tallman and Sean R. Sedam contributed to this report. E-mail Alan Brody at abrody@somdnews.com.