According to the Daily Record, the Maryland Democratic Party is accusing MDPetitions.com (used to help petition three state laws to referendum over the last year) of violating campaign finance laws. Website founder Del. Neil C. Parrott has responded by saying, “Here we have the Maryland Democrat party trying to use scare tactics” to prevent voters from striking down the referenda.
Donald F. Norris, professor and chairman of UMBC’s Department of Public Policy, comments that with so many hotly debated issues on the ballot this year, Maryland is getting a taste of types of accusations that more politically-diverse states experience regularly during the election season. Norris notes that using online tools such as MDPetitions.com to put issues on the ballot is a major way that Maryland conservatives are trying to increase their reach; he predicts that in the next General Assembly session laws will likely be adopted to “restrict the ability to petition legislation to the ballot.”
Norris also discussed early voting and the same-sex marriage referendum in the Gazette.
