Voting Guide

November 6, 2006 by Jason.

The election is a few days away, so I thought I would write a small voting guide for those of us in Western Maryland so that we can make an informed decision about all those smaller offices that we don’t hear too much about.

Question 1 Constitutional Amendment - Yes

Basically, the Governor cannot sell off public land without the approval of the Assembly. Since public land decisions effect all Marylanders, I support this amendment.

Question 2 Constitutional Amendment - Yes

They made a new court that handles appeals. This amendment standardizes the appeal process throughout Maryland, a good thing.

Question 3 Constitutional Amendment - Yes

This will raise the amount of money needed to qualify for trial by jury in civil suits. Less jury duty is a definite yes.

Question 4 Statewide Referendum - No

This one is complicated. Parts of the referendum have been found unconstitutional. The one part that bothers me is the addition of same-day voter registration. Basically, you can walk up to the polling place, register to vote, and vote all at once. I think this will invite abuse.

Sheriff - Rich Poffenberger

The Sheriff race is between Douglas Mullendore and Rich Poffenberger. They both are very qualified. Mullendore is currently the chief deputy of the sheriff’s department. Poffenberger is with the Maryland State Police. They both have very similar ideas on crime prevention and the increase in gang activity in the area. However, I prefer Poffenberger because of his pledge to increase communications between police agencies in our county. I think he could really get the state police, the local police, and the sheriff’s department working together in a coordinated fashion.

County Commisioners - Barr, Brightman, Hardin, Kercheval, Wivell

This is usually a hard one to figure out because there are many candidates. This group balances fiscal responsibility with controlled growth in the county. Yeah, you will probably have to write down there names or else forget in the booth!

Orphan’s Court - Incumbents

Honestly, it’s not that hard a job. Might as well go with the people who have experience.

Board of Education - Callaham, Powers

I’m not sure how many you get to vote for but these two are for increased trade education and more physical education requirements respectively. Sounds good to me!

Okay, that should get you through tomorrow. I didn’t put any of the statewide stuff on here because you probably already have a preference. It’s these local races that are tricky anyway. Hope you enjoyed this list, and feel free to print it out for your voting pleasure tomorrow!

Oh yes, and if you disagree with any of my choices, leave a comment and influence people your way! Maybe you will change my mind as well.

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