When you go to vote, you’ll find five statewide “Ballot Questions” for you to vote on. Some are pretty minor (#1-3), one is very substantial (#4 – legalize recreational use of marijuana), and one is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” (#5) — see below. Here’s a link to a good summary of the five questions, from Maryland Matters: https://www.marylandmatters.org/2022/10/27/know-your-ballot-the-five-constitutional-questions-facing-maryland-voters-this-election-year/.
We see no reasons not to vote for #1-4 – but please vote AGAINST #5 – here’s why: The proposed change is a power grab by attorneys, taking power away from the people. In most counties in MD, including Kent Co., Judges of the Orphan’s Court do not need to be attorneys – they receive training to manage estates and wills, and they generally do a fine job. Here’s what they do: https://mdcourts.gov/orphanscourt. The proposed change would require all wills and estates to go through a Circuit Court, involving costly attorneys’ fees in every case. While it purports to only apply to Howard County, this constitutional amendment could be used to leverage the same change in other counties — it’s a bad idea, and needs to be defeated!
Logo image from state website.