MARYLAND 2026 GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY ELECTION ANALYSIS

What Does Winning Look Like?

This data dashboard examines how candidates won primary contests across Maryland. We gathered data on all 2026 primary contests and their preliminary outcomes. For single-winner contests, we identified which winners prevailed with a plurality (under 50% of the vote) rather than a majority. For multi-seat contests, we analyzed whether winners reached a specific vote share threshold for the seats being elected (e.g., the Droop threshold of 1 / (seats + 1) of votes cast).

Maryland Has a Plurality Problem: Plurality outcomes indicate that a majority of voters may have preferred a different candidate to the person with the most votes. Voters can feel unrepresented in the outcome or fear that vote splitting benefited another candidate. For multi-seat (e.g., at-large) contests, it is all about fair representation. Under our current system, a candidate can win a seat with a very low percentage of the vote. This gives a small but cohesive voting bloc the power to elect all of their preferred candidates, silencing the voice of other voting blocs.

The Solution: Ranked Choice Voting eliminates non-majority winners and spoilers, and ensures fair representation. Learn more at rcvmd.org.

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Updated —

0

Counties

0

CONTESTS

0 single-seat · 0 multi-seat

0

UNCONTESTED  SINGLE-SEAT CONTESTS

races with only one candidate

0

UNCONTESTED MULTI-SEAT CONTESTS

multi-seat races with more candidates than the number of seats being elected

0(0%)

SINGLE-SEAT MAJORITY WINNERS

candidates with 50% or more of the vote

0(0%)

SINGLE-SEAT PLURALITY WINNERS

candidates with under 50% of the vote

0(0%)

MULTI-SEAT WINNERS

candidates reached threshold

0(0%)

MULTI-SEAT WINNERS BELOW THRESHOLD

candidates seated under the threshold

2,045

TOTAL CANDIDATES

866 running for a single seat · 1,210 running at-large (multi-seat)

Glossary

Key terms used throughout the dashboard
Majority winner
A candidate who wins a single-seat contest with more than 50% of the vote — supported by more voters than all opponents combined.
Plurality winner
A candidate who wins a single-seat contest with the most votes but less than 50% — meaning a majority of voters preferred someone else.
Single-seat contest
A race that elects one winner (e.g., Governor, County Executive, a single council district).
Multi-seat contest
A race that elects two or more winners at once (e.g., at-large council seats, Central Committee). Voters cast multiple votes and the top finishers are seated.
Threshold share (Droop)
The vote share a candidate needs in a multi-seat contest to mathematically earn a seat: 1 / (seats + 1) of votes cast. In a 3-seat race the threshold is 25%.
Seated below threshold
A candidate who won a multi-seat seat without reaching the Droop threshold. A small but cohesive bloc can capture seats ahead of larger groups when this happens.
Uncontested contest
A race in which the number of candidates is less than or equal to the number of seats — voters have no real choice because every candidate is guaranteed a seat.
Ranked Choice Voting Maryland