The Maryland Forward Party has submitted a formal recommendation to Gov. Wes Moore and the Governor’s Redistricting Advisory Commission, calling for the use of congressional maps developed during the state’s 2021 independent redistricting process. The party has expressed concerns about the potential consequences of a rushed mid-cycle redraw ahead of the 2026 elections.
The party formally released its recommendation in a December 29 statement, contending that the final congressional maps developed by Maryland’s 2021 Independent Redistricting Commission were the product of a more comprehensive and bipartisan process and arguing that pursuing redistricting now would do so without updated census data. The party warned that rushing the process could potentially lead to the creation of “additional MAGA controlled districts,” which it said would run contrary to Moore’s intent.
Last November, Moore announced his plans to begin redistricting Maryland’s congressional districts ahead of the 2026 election cycle, bringing up redistricting years before it would typically be addressed after the decennial Census. As part of that push, Moore relaunched the Governor’s Redistricting Advisory Commission in November to gather public input, study existing maps, and develop recommendations that will be formally submitted to the legislature and the governor’s office.
At the time, the Maryland Forward Party urged state leaders to establish a fully independent commission that would allow sufficient time for the State Board of Elections to oversee the process. The party also called for several additional reforms, including the adoption of ranked-choice voting and opening Maryland’s primaries to non-affiliated voters through a single, all-candidate primary that would then advance the top four or five candidates to the general election.
In its recommendation to Moore and the current commission, the state Forward Party said that the 2021 commission conducted three rounds of public hearings and held dozens of meetings statewide to reach its determination, collecting thousands of public comments in the process and allowing residents to submit independently drawn maps through an online portal. All meetings were live-streamed and included accessibility features, with the party citing closed captioning and Spanish-language interpretation.
The party also noted that the commission’s final maps took into consideration existing political and geographic boundaries, preserved communities of interest, and complied with the Voting Rights Act and other legal requirements. It added that the commission’s after-action report later received an “A” rating from the Princeton Gerrymandering Project.
“Maryland Forward Party believes in free and fair elections and we believe that all Maryland voters should have a voice in our political landscape,” the party stated. “Independent Redistricting Commissions are among our top legislative priorities and are a key tool in empowering an electorate.”
The party further called recent mid-cycle redistricting efforts a “disturbing” threat to the health of democratic institutions nationwide and implored Maryland officials to lead by example by adopting a congressional map developed through an independent process.
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