Steny Hoyer held this seat for 45 years. Now 30 candidates — 24 Democrats, 3 Republicans, and 3 independents — are competing to replace him. This is the only guide that covers all of them.
By Michael Phillips | MDBayNews
| District at a Glance |
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Geography: All of Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s Counties; parts of Anne Arundel and Prince George’s Counties Population: ~783,000 residents | Median household income: ~$128,000 Demographics: ~43.5% White non-Hispanic, ~40% Black or African American Cook PVI: D+17 — Solidly Democratic; last Republican to win: Lawrence Hogan Sr. in 1972 Major employers: Naval Air Station Patuxent River, federal agencies, defense contractors, D.C. commuter economy Total spending to date: $8+ million raised or self-funded through Q1 2026 |
When Steny Hoyer announced his retirement in January 2026 after 45 years in Congress, everyone knew the floodgates would open. What followed was, as Maryland Matters put it, “close to biblical.” Thirty candidates filed before the February 24 deadline — 24 Democrats fighting over a primary that is effectively the election, three Republicans making their case to voters who haven’t sent a Republican to Congress from this district in more than half a century, and three independent candidates who will appear only on the November ballot.
The result is the most consequential open-seat contest in Southern Maryland’s modern political history. It will determine not just who represents Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s Counties in Washington, but which faction of the Democratic Party controls that seat — and whether the Southern Maryland counties that anchor the district’s geography get a voice, or get outvoted again by PG County.
MDBayNews has covered every major development in this race since Hoyer’s announcement. This guide covers every candidate on the ballot — the top tier with funding and infrastructure, the elected officials making their cases on the strength of their records, the grassroots candidates who got in because they believed someone had to, and the three Republicans who are making the argument that this district’s voters deserve a real choice in November.
The Republican Primary
Three candidates are competing for the GOP nomination on June 23. The winner faces the Democratic nominee in November in what is structurally an uphill race — but not an impossible one, particularly in the Southern Maryland counties where conservative sentiment runs deep and the Democratic field has tilted toward PG County candidates and national-brand politics.
Michelle Talkington
Republican · Bryans Road, Charles County · Small Business Owner / Contractor
Frontrunner — Best-funded GOP candidate; returning 2024 nominee
Talkington is the Republican field’s clearest frontrunner by name recognition, prior campaign infrastructure, and local roots. She ran against Hoyer in the 2024 general election and pulled 32% of the vote against a 45-year incumbent with a machine most challengers couldn’t match — a performance that demonstrated genuine organizational capacity in a district where Republicans often treat the general as a courtesy filing. She previously served as Chairwoman of the Charles County Republican Central Committee and ran for State Senate in District 28 in 2022, giving her two cycles of ground-level work in the district’s Southern Maryland core.
Her platform centers on cost of living, crime, and restoring what she calls a voice for “average hard-working Americans vs. career politicians.” She’s positioned herself as a practical conservative — not a media personality, not a national brand, but someone who has spent two campaign cycles meeting voters where they live across Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s. If any Republican can make the November margin meaningful, Talkington is the one.
Key issues: Cost of living, public safety, small business, constitutional governance, immigration enforcement
Chris Chaffee
Republican · Barstow, Calvert County · General Contractor / Farmer
Contender
Chaffee has the most Maryland GOP history of the three. He ran for this exact seat in 2014, then ran statewide for U.S. Senate in the 2024 Republican primary against Larry Hogan. He’s a general contractor and farmer from Calvert County — the kind of working-class Republican biography that resonates in a district where defense industry workers, farmers, and tradespeople make up a significant share of the electorate. His America First positioning and Calvert County roots give him a geographic foothold that neither Talkington (Charles County) nor DuVal has in the northern end of the district. In a three-way primary, he could pull enough Calvert voters to make the outcome competitive, though Talkington’s two-cycle head start is significant.
Key issues: Economic populism, border security, energy independence, veterans
Bryan DuVal
Republican · Frequent Candidate · Businessman
Long Shot
DuVal has filed for the MD-5 Republican nomination in 2020, 2022, and now 2026 — making this his third consecutive attempt at the seat. He has not broken through in either prior primary. Persistence is a quality, and his name will be familiar to regular Republican primary voters, but the field hasn’t gotten more favorable for a candidate who hasn’t been able to consolidate a win with two previous cycles to build from. His campaign website is Facebook-based, which tells most of the story about his infrastructure.
Key issues: Unspecified conservative platform
The Democratic Primary: Top Tier
Three candidates have separated from the pack on fundraising: Harry Dunn ($2M+), Quincy Bareebe ($3.3M+ self-funded), and Adrian Boafo ($401K with institutional backing). A fourth, Rushern Baker, leads in name recognition and in the only publicly released poll. These four, along with Wala Blegay, constitute the race’s first tier.
Adrian Boafo
Democrat · Bowie, Prince George’s County · Maryland State Delegate, District 23
Top Tier · Establishment Frontrunner
$401,080 cash on hand as of March 31 · Hoyer endorsed · Teachers’ unions endorsed
Boafo is 31 years old, a sitting state delegate from Bowie, and Hoyer’s chosen successor — the endorsement that matters most structurally in a race built on Hoyer’s legacy. He worked as Hoyer’s campaign manager between 2019 and 2021, which is where the relationship was cemented, and his fundraising has been bolstered by Hoyer’s congressional allies, former staffers, and the Annapolis lobbying community. The national and state teachers’ unions have both come in for him, which adds organizational infrastructure that most candidates in this field don’t have.
His legislative record includes a bill strengthening wage theft protections, legislation on cell-phone-free schools, and the ICE Breaker Act — the last of which prohibits post-Trump ICE agents from serving in state law enforcement and has drawn accountability coverage here at MDBayNews. That bill is a red flag for Southern Maryland voters in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s who have a different relationship with federal law enforcement than PG County progressives. Whether AIPAC — which has been decisive in past Maryland Democratic primaries — invests in Boafo’s race on Hoyer’s behalf is the single biggest unanswered financial question in the race.
Key issues: Worker protections, education, continuity of Hoyer’s federal investment record
Quincy Bareebe
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Healthcare Executive, Accountant
Top Tier · Self-Funded Challenger
$3.35M self-funded; $1.49M cash on hand as of March 31 · Running cable TV and mail
Bareebe has the most money on hand of any candidate in this race and is spending it. She ran against Hoyer in the 2024 Democratic primary, took 10% of the vote in a field Hoyer dominated, and came back with a war chest and a message: this district deserves someone who built something here, not a career politician or a national name. She runs a home health care company, has deep roots in the district’s healthcare economy, and has been on television and in mailboxes longer than almost anyone else in the field.
The knock on Bareebe is that money hasn’t translated to poll numbers — she registered in single digits in the one publicly released survey from late February. But that poll was taken before her spending ramped up dramatically in Q1, and in a 24-person field where name recognition is everything, sustained TV and mail presence has a compounding effect. Her self-funding means she doesn’t run out of runway. If the race consolidates to a top four by June, she’s positioned to be in it.
Key issues: Cost of living, healthcare, protecting federal workforce, Chesapeake Bay, small business
Harry Dunn
Democrat · Montgomery County (does not reside in district) · Retired U.S. Capitol Police Officer
Top Tier · National Brand Candidate
$2.07M raised Q1 2026 · Democracy Defenders PAC · Does not live in MD-5
Dunn became nationally known for defending the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and has built a political brand around that moment and opposition to Donald Trump. He raised over $4.5 million for his 2024 run in the adjacent MD-3, finished second out of 22 candidates despite not living in that district either, and parlayed those funds into his Democracy Defenders PAC before pivoting to MD-5. He’s doing it again: living outside the district, raising national money, and running on a Jan. 6-and-Trump platform in a race where Southern Maryland voters are worried about NAS Pax River, Route 4 congestion, and whether their federal jobs survive DOGE.
The non-residency issue isn’t just a talking point — it’s a genuine question of credibility for voters in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s who have watched PG County dominate the district’s political conversation for decades. Former Capitol Police Lt. Tarik Johnson — Dunn’s former colleague — publicly criticized the campaign as “self-serving.” Dunn has dismissed those concerns and points to his second-place finish in MD-3 as proof that residency isn’t disqualifying. He’s not wrong that it hasn’t stopped him before. The question is whether Southern Maryland voters feel differently about being represented by a Montgomery County resident than PG County Democratic primary voters did in 2024.
Key issues: Democracy protection, opposing Trump, abortion rights, lowering costs, public safety
Rushern L. Baker III
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Former Two-Term County Executive, Attorney, Army Veteran
Top Tier · Name ID Leader
$202,645 raised; $169,889 on hand as of March 31 · Internal poll: 22% — leads field
Baker leads the only publicly released survey of this race at 22%, largely because he’s the most recognizable name in a crowded field. He served two terms as Prince George’s County Executive, ran for governor in 2018 and 2022, and has been on statewide ballots enough that his name registers with 69% of likely primary voters — the highest recognition in the field. He announced late, entered with the argument that this moment demands a “battle-tested leader” over “on-the-job training,” and frames the race around economic contrast with Trump rather than intra-party ideology.
His central liability is money. He raised $202,645 to Bareebe’s $3.35 million and Dunn’s $2 million. Political analysts have openly questioned whether Baker can sustain his poll position without a significant fundraising surge or outside expenditure on his behalf in the final weeks. Name recognition doesn’t pay for mail or TV, and in a district this large — running from PG County suburbs down through St. Mary’s County — you need both. Whether he can translate 22% in a February poll to actual June votes depends almost entirely on whether he closes the resource gap.
Key issues: Economic security, healthcare, fighting Trump’s agenda, Day One readiness
Wala Blegay
Democrat · Prince George’s County · County Council At-Large Member, Attorney, Former Congressional Aide
Top Tier · Grassroots Funded
$386,654 raised Q1; $251,081 cash on hand · Backed by County Executive Aisha Braveboy
Blegay is 41, a former staff attorney with the D.C. Nurses Association turned Prince George’s County Council member, and the candidate with perhaps the most specific platform aimed at the district’s defense economy. Her ISM statement commits directly to protecting NAS Patuxent River from BRAC threats — the Base Realignment and Closure process that periodically rattles Southern Maryland — and expands into defense innovation, apprenticeships, and federal procurement protections for small businesses. That’s a substantively different pitch than the national-brand candidates are making.
She raised $386,654 in Q1 — solid for an at-large council member — fueled largely by her Prince George’s County political network, including County Executive Aisha Braveboy and several council colleagues. She polled at 11% in the Baker internal survey. The path for Blegay runs through an argument that she’s the right mix of experience, energy, and substantive policy focus — younger than Baker, more locally grounded than Dunn, and with a specific defense-economy pitch that could resonate in the Southern Maryland counties the PG-heavy Democratic field has largely ignored.
Key issues: NAS Pax River / defense economy, healthcare affordability, federal workforce, immigration reform, Medicare for All
Harry Jarin
Democrat · Anne Arundel County · Volunteer Firefighter, Emergency Services Consultant
Top Tier · First Responder Lane
$426,971 raised; $278,396 cash on hand as of March 31 · Source: FEC Q1 2026
Here is the race’s most underreported story: Harry Jarin has more cash on hand than Rushern Baker, more than Arthur Ellis, more than Nicole Williams before she dropped out, and is within striking distance of Wala Blegay. His $278,396 in the bank as of March 31 — on $426,971 raised — places him squarely in the race’s funded tier. He has been systematically overlooked because he hasn’t generated the media hooks of a Capitol Police officer or a former county executive, but his FEC numbers say he is a serious candidate.
Jarin has been in this race since 2025 — among the earliest entrants in the entire field — and his candidacy is built around a bio that plays well in the district’s commuter, military, and emergency services communities. A volunteer firefighter and emergency services consultant from Anne Arundel County, he’s campaigned on generational change, infrastructure investment, and congressional accountability. His Anne Arundel County address gives him a geographic foothold that most of the PG-heavy Democratic field doesn’t have, and his first-responder background resonates differently than the lawyer-and-lobbyist profiles dominating the top of the field. He’s been doing the work longer than almost everyone else in this race. Voters looking for a credible, self-funded, locally rooted alternative to the national-brand candidates should look at his numbers before writing him off.
Key issues: Infrastructure, first responder support, generational change, congressional accountability
The Democratic Primary: Second Tier
These are the elected officials, veterans, and established community figures who entered with credible credentials and real district ties — but whose fundraising hasn’t broken into the top tier. In a crowded field, any of them could pick up enough votes to matter, particularly in their home counties.
Arthur Ellis
Democrat · Charles County · Maryland State Senator, District 28; Accountant; Disabled USAF Veteran
Second Tier · Southern MD Voice
$212,537 raised; ~$200K self-funded; $207,656 on hand
Ellis is the most prominent Southern Maryland elected official in the Democratic field — an eight-year state senator from Charles County who also staged a notable one-man redistricting protest on the Senate floor earlier this year, refusing to register his presence until Senate President Ferguson allowed a vote on the congressional redistricting bill. That’s the kind of accountability politics MDBayNews covers, and it earned him attention in a session where most legislators were following orders.
His campaign launch in Indian Head — held while the Senate was in session — sent a deliberate geographic signal: this candidate is from Southern Maryland, not a PG County transplant making a strategic filing. His challenge is identical to Baker’s: name recognition and local credentials without the money to match the top-tier field. At roughly $200K in self-funding and minimal outside donations, he’s betting that Charles County voters will consolidate around their home senator in a field where Southern Maryland has been largely an afterthought.
Key issues: Southern Maryland representation, economic growth, education, infrastructure, USAF veteran issues
Reuben B. Collins II
Democrat · Charles County · Commission President, Attorney
Second Tier · Southern MD Voice
$11,575 raised; minimal spending
Collins is the first African American to serve as Charles County Commissioner President since his 2018 election, and he entered the race explicitly to bring a Southern Maryland perspective to a primary dominated by PG County candidates and national figures. His platform hits economic growth, infrastructure, broadband expansion, and support for small businesses — issues drawn directly from his work managing Charles County’s pandemic recovery and transportation advocacy. He chairs the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments in 2026 and serves on the Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland, giving him direct institutional experience in exactly the regional coordination that matters for federal appropriations and defense contracts. His fundraising is minimal at $11,575, which is the race’s central obstacle for him — name ID outside Charles County is limited, and without money, it doesn’t grow. But in a field this large, a consolidating Charles County vote combined with crossover in Calvert and St. Mary’s could make him a factor.
Key issues: Economic development, infrastructure, broadband, small business, Southern Maryland regional advocacy
Ellis D. Colvin
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Cybersecurity Consultant, U.S. Army Veteran
Second Tier · Veterans / Tech Lane
Colvin brings a background that’s genuinely distinct in this field: Army veteran turned cybersecurity professional. In a district with NAS Pax River at its center — one of the Navy’s most important test and evaluation installations, with significant cybersecurity and defense technology work — that combination of military service and technical expertise is directly relevant to what the district’s defense economy actually does. He has not been visible in major coverage of the race, and his fundraising hasn’t registered in public reports, but his professional profile is one of the more substantively interesting in the lower tier.
Key issues: Cybersecurity, defense technology, veterans affairs, national security
Dave Sundberg
Democrat · North Beach, Calvert County · Former FBI Assistant Director
Second Tier · Law Enforcement / Calvert
Sundberg’s bio line at the candidate forum said it directly: “My entire adult life has been about protecting people.” A former FBI assistant director now living in North Beach, Calvert County, he brings federal law enforcement credibility at a moment when the district’s relationship with federal agencies — and the federal workforce — is at the center of almost every Democratic candidate’s pitch. His Calvert County residency matters geographically: he’s one of the few candidates with a credible claim on Northern Southern Maryland, and his law enforcement background gives him a different security-oriented frame than the Jan. 6 / democracy-protection lane that Dunn occupies. If there’s a lane for a serious federal law enforcement veteran who can speak to both the district’s defense economy and its public safety concerns, Sundberg fits it. He just needs voters to find him in a 24-person field.
Key issues: Public safety, federal workforce protection, national security, Calvert County representation
Alexis Solis
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Consulting Firm Owner
Second Tier
Solis runs a consulting firm and has been active in the race since early filing. She has a campaign website and has appeared at candidate forums. Her platform focuses on affordability, protecting the federal workforce, and community investment. Limited additional public profile available; she was absent from the Southern Maryland forum covered by the Enterprise-Spectrum in early May.
Key issues: Affordability, federal workforce, community investment
The Democratic Primary: Full Field
Every candidate on the June 23 Democratic ballot deserves a place in a comprehensive voter guide. These candidates filed, are legally on the ballot, and represent a range of backgrounds, geographies, and ideas that voters have the right to know about. Some have dropped out of active campaigning but remain on the ballot; all names appear here as filed with the Maryland State Board of Elections.
Mark Arness
Democrat · Has previously run Republican · Prior MD-5 candidate
Arness ran against Hoyer in 2016 as a Republican, taking less than 30% of the vote. He has since registered as a Democrat and filed again for the open seat. His shift in party registration and the full arc of his candidacy make him one of the race’s more unusual entries — the kind of story that often gets lost in a 24-person field. Limited current campaign activity documented.
Jerry Lightfoot
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Army Veteran
Lightfoot is a U.S. Army veteran running on a platform of service and veteran representation. He filed from Accokeek in Prince George’s County and has a campaign Facebook presence. Military service backgrounds are well-represented in this field, and Lightfoot is among a cluster of veteran candidates whose real-world experience in service deserves acknowledgment even where national profiles have not developed.
Key issues: Veterans affairs, community representation, affordability
Heather Luper
Democrat · Bowie, Prince George’s County · Social Worker
Luper, a social worker from Bowie, attended the Southern Maryland candidate forum and centered her opening remarks on worker solidarity, union rights, and voting rights. “We need to have a voice for the people. We need to have strong unions. We need to bring work back.” Her professional background in social services gives her a distinct vantage point on the district’s human services and healthcare needs that is genuinely different from the lawyers, executives, and political operatives who dominate the field.
Key issues: Union rights, voting rights, social services, worker protections
Elldwnia “Ella” English
Democrat · Leonardtown, St. Mary’s County · HR Professional, Doctoral Student, Community Activist
English is notable for her geographic origin: she’s from Leonardtown in St. Mary’s County — the southernmost part of the district, often the furthest from the PG County political gravity that shapes this race. Her presence at candidate forums and her community activist background suggest genuine district investment. As an HR professional and doctoral student, she brings a professional development lens to the race. Her presence from St. Mary’s County gives her a constituency case that several better-funded PG County candidates cannot make.
Key issues: Community development, Southern Maryland representation, workforce development
Terry Antonio Jackson II
Democrat · Prince George’s County · 23-Year U.S. Navy Veteran, 100% Disabled Veteran, Former DOJ Physical Security Specialist
Jackson’s Ballotpedia biography describes 23 years of Navy service, a 100% disability rating, and federal service with the Department of Justice as a Physical Security Specialist. His filing indicated he may have dropped out of active campaigning, though he remains on the state elections board website. His veteran and federal law enforcement background is substantively relevant to this district regardless of his current campaign status, and voters who know him should be aware he remains on the ballot.
Key issues: Veterans affairs, federal service, public safety, community trust
Walter Kirkland
Democrat · Laurel, Prince George’s County · Marketing Professional, Community Activist
Kirkland filed from Laurel and has an active campaign website and Facebook presence. His background in marketing and community activism gives him a communications-oriented profile in a race that rewards visibility. Limited additional documented policy detail; his campaign focuses on community representation and economic equity.
Key issues: Community investment, economic equity, representation
Keith Salkowski
Democrat · Olney, Prince George’s County · TV and Video Writer-Producer (Note: former Green Party nominee)
Salkowski is one of the field’s more interesting biographical entries: a TV and video writer-producer from Olney who was previously the Green Party nominee for MD-2 in 2004 before registering Democratic. At the Southern Maryland forum he framed his candidacy around “new leadership and bold solutions to address the challenges that American families face.” His creative professional background is genuinely different from everyone else in the field, and his prior third-party candidacy suggests an independent streak. Campaign presence documented; fundraising not prominent in public reports.
Key issues: Affordability, new leadership, working family support
Tracy Starr
Democrat · Crofton, Anne Arundel County · Former Federal Government Employee
Starr, from Crofton, is a former federal government employee who brought a direct working-class pitch to the Southern Maryland forum: “I’m here to stand up for you, for working families who really need support right now.” Her federal employee background is directly relevant to a district where thousands of residents work for or contract with the federal government and have watched DOGE and agency restructuring upend their livelihoods. Her Anne Arundel County address gives her a geographic foothold in that slice of the district.
Key issues: Federal workforce protection, working family support, affordability
Kenneth Simons
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Lobbyist
Simons has a campaign website and is a registered lobbyist — a background that plays differently depending on the voter. In a field full of candidates running against “career politicians and institutions,” being a professional advocate for institutional interests is a complicated entry point. Limited campaign profile available; absent from the Southern Maryland forum.
James Anderson Makle Jr.
Democrat · Emergency Medical Technician
Makle is an EMT who filed via Facebook-based campaign presence. His first-responder background is directly relevant to a district that includes rural Southern Maryland communities where emergency medical response times and infrastructure are real constituent concerns. His campaign is low-profile but his professional background makes him one of the field’s more credible grassroots entries.
Key issues: Emergency services, rural healthcare, community infrastructure
Leigha Messick
Democrat · Nonprofit Executive, Animal Shelter Owner, 2018 County Commission Candidate
Messick ran for county commission in 2018 and has since built a nonprofit and animal shelter operation. Her prior electoral experience and community service background give her more local roots than many of the field’s later entrants. Campaign documentation available through Facebook.
Harold Tolbert
Democrat · Entrepreneur
Tolbert attended the Southern Maryland candidate forum and presented as an entrepreneurship-focused candidate. Limited public profile beyond his candidacy filing. His background in entrepreneurship aligns with the district’s small business community.
Key issues: Small business, economic development
Nicole A. Williams
Democrat · Prince George’s County · Former State Delegate, District 22 (Suspended campaign May 5, 2026; remains on ballot)
Williams was a sitting state delegate from Hyattsville and one of the more credible legislative voices in the field before dropping out May 5, citing the cost of competing. Her statement — “perhaps it’s a bit of tragic poetry that, in the midst of an affordability crisis, that even the cost of running to represent the people of Maryland’s Fifth Congressional District is too high” — was one of the most pointed critiques of the money-dominated nature of this race. She remains on the ballot. Votes for Williams will count.
Independent Candidates (General Election Only)
These three candidates will not appear on the June 23 primary ballot. They are on the November 3 general election ballot regardless of who wins the primaries.
Jonathan Burruss
Independent (Unaffiliated) · Charles County · burruss4congress.com
Burruss is a Charles County resident running as an unaffiliated candidate in the general. His Southern Maryland roots give him geographic credibility in a county that has historically felt underrepresented relative to PG County’s political weight in the district. His platform and detailed positions are available at his campaign website.
Brian S. Jordan
Independent (Unaffiliated) · brianjordanforcongress.com
Jordan is running an independent general election campaign with an active website. His unaffiliated status positions him as a potential alternative for voters dissatisfied with both parties’ nominees — particularly relevant if the Democratic primary produces a far-left winner or a national-brand candidate with limited Southern Maryland ties.
Mildred Marie Hall
Independent (Write-In) · Prince George’s County
Hall is a write-in general election candidate from Prince George’s County. Write-in candidates require specific procedural steps by voters to have ballots counted; voters who support Hall should verify the correct procedure with the Maryland State Board of Elections before November 3.
“Everybody knew that when longtime Rep. Steny Hoyer finally stepped down it would unleash a flood of candidates. But this flood is close to biblical.” — Maryland Matters
The Race in Context: What to Watch
The Democratic primary will be decided by four dynamics playing out simultaneously between now and June 23.
Money vs. name ID. Bareebe has the most cash but the softest poll numbers. Baker has the best name recognition but the weakest fundraising. Dunn has both money and profile but a residency problem. Boafo has the establishment machine and the teachers’ unions. No single candidate has everything, which is why this race remains genuinely open.
AIPAC and outside money. The biggest unresolved financial question is whether AIPAC — which spent heavily in the 2024 MD-3 primary — invests in Boafo’s race on behalf of Hoyer’s legacy. If it does, the race changes shape significantly. EMILY’s List has indicated it will stay out, which is notable given the number of women in the field.
Southern Maryland vs. PG County. The district’s geography is being almost entirely ignored by the top-funded candidates. Dunn lives in Montgomery County. Baker, Boafo, Blegay, Bareebe, and Williams are all from PG County. The candidates making a geographic argument for Southern Maryland — Ellis, Collins, Sundberg, English — have far less money. If Southern Maryland voters consolidate around a regional candidate, that candidate could punch above their fundraising weight in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s. If they split, PG County wins by default.
Consolidation. Williams dropped out May 5. Analysts expect more candidates to follow as early voting approaches. Each dropout reshapes the math, particularly if they endorse a top-tier candidate who can absorb their support. The field that hits the June 23 ballot may look meaningfully different from today’s 24-person roster.
| 📅 Key Dates for MD-5 Voters |
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Early Voting: June 11–18, 2026 Primary Election Day: June 23, 2026 General Election: November 3, 2026 Voter Registration (online/mail): June 2, 2026 Same-Day Registration: Available through June 23 at early voting centers and polls Maryland Voter Info: elections.maryland.gov |
MDBayNews covers all candidates regardless of party. This voter guide was compiled from FEC filings, Maryland State Board of Elections records, candidate websites, Maryland Matters, the Southern Maryland Chronicle, the Washington Post, and candidate forum coverage. Fundraising figures reflect Q1 2026 FEC reports. MDBayNews has no endorsement policy. If you are a candidate with a correction or additional information, contact editor@mdbaynews.com.
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