{"id":11575103,"date":"2025-07-23T17:33:28","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T21:33:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/?p=11575103"},"modified":"2025-07-23T18:05:48","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T22:05:48","slug":"maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms\/","title":{"rendered":"Justice Department, conservative law firm set sights on Maryland voter registrations"},"content":{"rendered":"

Maryland elections officials face the potential of a federal investigation and a separate federal lawsuit led by local, state and national Republicans over allegations of improperly maintained voter rolls.<\/p>\n

In two letters sent four days apart, the Justice Department\u2019s Civil Rights Division and lawyers representing the state and national Republican Party and two party officials in Maryland raised concerns about efforts to purge duplicate and ineligible voters \u2014 including those who are deceased, incarcerated or undocumented immigrants. Both letters, obtained by Maryland Matters, cite federal election law and a 2023 state audit that raised questions about the accuracy of state voter rolls.<\/p>\n

State Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis acknowledged that his agency received both letters in the past week.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re reviewing the DOJ letter,\u201d DeMarinis said in an interview. \u201cWe are acknowledging that \u2014 like the general public \u2014 information is available under the public information act, and we will respond accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The July 14 Justice Department letter requested voter registration data from November 2022 to November 2024. Federal attorneys also asked the state to provide \u201cthe number of voters identified as ineligible to vote\u201d during that period because they were a \u201cnon-citizen \u2026 adjudicated incompetent\u201d or had a felony conviction.<\/p>\n

Federal attorneys set a 14-day deadline for state officials to provide the information.<\/p>\n

A Justice Department spokesperson, in an email, declined to comment.<\/p>\n

The letter comes as a growing number of election boards around the nation are facing scrutiny from a federal government led by a chief executive who has widely claimed he was the victim of extensive voter fraud.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt heightens concerns about federalism and the roles between federal and state governments involved in election administration,\u201d DeMarinis said.<\/p>\n

Separate federal lawsuit threatened<\/h4>\n

In a separate but parallel letter, attorneys representing a group of local, state, and national Republicans alleged \u201cimplausibly high\u201d voter registration percentages, both statewide and in some individual counties. The letter was sent to state and local elections officials four days after the Justice Department request.<\/p>\n

In a 12-page notice of intent letter, attorneys with the firm Consovoy McCarthy said they represent the Republican National Committee and the Maryland Republican Party.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaryland is failing to maintain accurate and up-to-date voter rolls, in clear violation of federal law,\u201d Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley said in a statement. \u201cCitizens deserve to know their vote isn\u2019t being canceled out by duplicate or ineligible voters. We\u2019re demanding action because clean voter rolls are essential to protecting free and fair elections in Maryland and across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statement also referenced a 2023 report from the Office of Legislative Audits that raised questions about how the state maintains its voter rolls. That report raised concerns that\u00a0potentially deceased residents\u00a0remain on state voter rolls. State elections officials said\u00a0auditors exaggerated those claims.<\/p>\n

Maryland was sued last year by two organizations claiming widespread problems with the state\u2019s voter registration system, but a U.S. District Court judge in Baltimore dismissed the case for lack of standing by the groups bringing the suit, citing the groups\u2019 lack of standing to file a lawsuit. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal in February.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0 Maryland Republican Party spokesperson referred all questions about the letter to Nicolee Ambrose, a Republican National Committeewoman and 2022 Republican congressional candidate who is also represented by the law firm, according to the letter. Ambrose did not respond to a request for comment, but she did comment about the letter in a social media post.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Maryland State Board of Elections has run out of excuses for violating federal law,\u201d she wrote on Facebook. \u201cIt is imperative they do their job and clean up Maryland\u2019s egregiously out-of-date and inflated voter rolls.\u201d<\/p>\n

The firm also said it represents Reardon Sullivan, whom it described as chair of \u201cCommittee to Control MoCo Spending,\u201d a ballot issue committee. He is also a former chair of the Montgomery County Republican Central Committee.<\/p>\n

Sullivan, in an email, said \u201censuring updated and accurate voter rolls is a non-partisan issue that affects every Maryland voter.\u201d Issues with inaccurate voter rolls \u201cdirectly [affects] our committee\u2019s efforts to collect valid signatures for our ballot petition,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

Data cited in the GOP letter alleges that there are more voters than adults who are eligible to vote in Maryland, which Sullivan said \u201cis obviously impossible. … Maryland must take this issue seriously and remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists prior to the 2026 election.\u201d<\/p>\n

Allegations in the letter include state elections officials failing to maintain accurate voter registration rolls and counties with \u201cimplausibly high\u201d voter registration rates. It said its analysis of state records identified two counties \u2014 Howard and Montgomery \u2014 as having \u201cmore active registered voters than eligible adult citizens\u201d between 2019 and 2023.<\/p>\n

Both Republicans on the five-member state board of elections have ties to those counties: Diane Butler is a former member of the Howard County Board of Elections and\u00a0Jim Shalleck, vice chair of the panel, served six years as president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections.<\/p>\n

The law firm\u2019s analysis compared state voter registration totals and annual census data estimates.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis evidence shows that your office and officials in these counties are not conducting appropriate list maintenance to ensure that the voter registration roll is accurate and current, as required by federal law,\u201d the firm wrote in its letter.<\/p>\n

Virginia-based Consovoy McCarthy is known for its conservative pedigree, representing President Donald Trump in cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and arguing the case that ended the practice of race-based college admissions. Two of its attorneys clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.<\/p>\n

The firm said its clients \u201cwill bring a lawsuit\u201d against the state and local boards \u201cif you fail to take specific actions to correct these violations\u201d within 90 days.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve received it, and it is under review,\u201d DeMarinis said when asked about the Consovoy McCarthy letter.<\/p>\n

David Naimon, president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, said the local agency is reviewing the letter and declined further comment.<\/p>\n

Officials in Howard County did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

Sowing ‘doubt’ and ‘conspiracy theories’<\/h4>\n

Maryland is one of a growing number of states where election officials have received letters from the Justice Department.<\/p>\n

Some see the effort as a weaponization of federal law enforcement for political reasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re just trying to come into a state that is currently dominated by Democratic leaders and sow doubt and imply there\u2019s a problem where none exists,\u201d said Senate Education, Energy and the Environment Committee Vice Chair Sen. Cheryl C. Kagan, a Montgomery County Democrat, who devotes much of her legislative policy focus to elections law.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t forget that next year is an election year in Maryland,\u201d she said. \u201cSo, if Republicans, whether they are in the administration or in the political party, are looking to plant conspiracy theories or doubt, this is the right time to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Federal laws restrict the federal government\u2019s ability to centralize information on Americans, said David Becker, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research. Even if states provide voter registration information to the public, they often redact sensitive information.<\/p>\n

In Orange County, California, the DOJ sued local election officials in June, seeking unredacted voter registration information, such as Social Security numbers and driver\u2019s licenses, as part of an investigation into noncitizen voting.<\/p>\n

More than 350 election officials from some 33 states participated in a conference call about federal actions Monday hosted by Becker, who was previously an attorney in the DOJ Voting Rights Section during the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He said the interest in the call shows the level of uncertainty and anxiety over the current \u201cfederal imposition\u201d on election administrators.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe DOJ seems dead set on acquiring personal information on voters, including driver\u2019s license numbers, Social Security numbers and dates of birth \u2014 records that are highly protected under federal law and under state law and which state election officials are sworn to protect,\u201d\u00a0Becker told Stateline.<\/p>\n

Maryland joins growing list of states<\/h4>\n

At least nine states have received requests for information over the past three months, according to letters from the DOJ obtained by Stateline. Some states also received emails from a DOJ official last week asking for meetings to discuss information-sharing agreements.<\/p>\n

When asked whether Maryland had received any other letter or demands from the Department of Justice, DeMarinis said: \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeMarinis said the most recent letters will have little effect on how state elections are administered in the state.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy charge and my mission is to make sure Maryland\u2019s elections are safe, secure and transparent,\u201d DeMarinis said. \u201cI\u2019m not going to be deterred from that mission.\u201d<\/p>\n

The department\u2019s focus on elections comes after Trump directed Attorney General Pam Bondi in March to seek information about suspected election crimes from state election officials and empowered her to withhold grants and other funds from uncooperative states.<\/p>\n

For years, Trump advanced false claims about elections, including the idea that the 2020 election he lost was stolen. Now back in power, his administration is taking a new level of interest in how states \u2014 and even local authorities \u2014 administer elections.<\/p>\n

In March, Trump issued an executive order attempting to impose several election policies, including proof of citizenship requirements, reviews of state voter registration lists and requiring all mail in ballots be received by Election Day. That executive order is the subject of an ongoing court challenge.<\/p>\n

Stateline reporter Jonathan Shorman contributed to this article.<\/em><\/p>\n

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501(c)(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions:\u00a0scrane@marylandmatters.org. Follow Maryland Matters on\u00a0Facebook\u00a0and\u00a0Bluesky.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Maryland elections officials face the potential of a federal investigation and a separate federal lawsuit led by local, state, and national Republicans over allegations of improperly maintained voter rolls.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":111,"featured_media":90348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-07-23T22:01:19Z","apple_news_api_id":"09136d1c-8c37-4237-9477-9cff9435f398","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-07-23T22:01:19Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/ACRNtHIw3QjeUd5z_lDXzmA","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"middle","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"subheadline":"Maryland joins growing list of states subjected to scrutiny by the feds","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[94,83,84,85,93],"tags":[26242,24457,26071],"feature":[],"location":[342,223],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[3292],"class_list":["post-11575103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-election","category-latest-headlines","category-local-news","category-news","category-politics","tag-maryland-matters","tag-social","tag-trump-administration","location-howard-county","location-maryland"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"93","primary_tag":26071,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"","print_title":"Justice Department, conservative law firm set sights on Maryland voter registrations","print_subheadline":"Maryland joins growing list of states subjected to scrutiny by the feds","print_priority":"","print_placement":"cover","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":"1753416000","print_slug":"tbs-l-justicemarylandvoters-0724","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"Maryland elections officials face the potential of a federal investigation and a separate federal lawsuit led by local, state, and national Republicans over allegations of improperly maintained voter rolls.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":"","print_content":"

Maryland elections officials face the potential of a federal investigation and a separate federal lawsuit led by local, state and national Republicans over allegations of improperly maintained voter rolls.<\/p>

In two letters sent four days apart, the Justice Department\u2019s Civil Rights Division and lawyers representing the state and national Republican Party and two party officials in Maryland raised concerns about efforts to purge duplicate and ineligible voters \u2014 including those who are deceased, incarcerated or undocumented immigrants. Both letters, obtained by Maryland Matters, cite federal election law and a 2023 state audit that raised questions about the accuracy of state voter rolls.<\/p>

State Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis acknowledged that his agency received both letters in the past week.<\/p>

\u201cWe\u2019re reviewing the DOJ letter,\u201d DeMarinis said in an interview. \u201cWe are acknowledging that \u2014 like the general public \u2014 information is available under the public information act, and we will respond accordingly.\u201d<\/p>

The July 14 Justice Department letter requested voter registration data from November 2022 to November 2024. Federal attorneys also asked the state to provide \u201cthe number of voters identified as ineligible to vote\u201d during that period because they were a \u201cnon-citizen \u2026 adjudicated incompetent\u201d or had a felony conviction.<\/p>

Federal attorneys set a 14-day deadline for state officials to provide the information.<\/p>

A Justice Department spokesperson, in an email, declined to comment.<\/p>

The letter comes as a growing number of election boards around the nation are facing scrutiny from a federal government led by a chief executive who has widely claimed he was the victim of extensive voter fraud.<\/p>

\u201cIt heightens concerns about federalism and the roles between federal and state governments involved in election administration,\u201d DeMarinis said.<\/p>

Separate federal lawsuit threatened<\/h4>

In a separate but parallel letter, attorneys representing a group of local, state, and national Republicans alleged \u201cimplausibly high\u201d voter registration percentages, both statewide and in some individual counties. The letter was sent to state and local elections officials four days after the Justice Department request.<\/p>

In a 12-page notice of intent letter, attorneys with the firm Consovoy McCarthy said they represent the Republican National Committee and the Maryland Republican Party.<\/p>

\u201cMaryland is failing to maintain accurate and up-to-date voter rolls, in clear violation of federal law,\u201d Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley said in a statement. \u201cCitizens deserve to know their vote isn\u2019t being canceled out by duplicate or ineligible voters. We\u2019re demanding action because clean voter rolls are essential to protecting free and fair elections in Maryland and across the country.\u201d<\/p>

The statement also referenced a 2023 report from the Office of Legislative Audits that raised questions about how the state maintains its voter rolls. That report raised concerns that\u00a0potentially deceased residents\u00a0remain on state voter rolls. State elections officials said\u00a0auditors exaggerated those claims.<\/p>

Maryland was sued last year by two organizations claiming widespread problems with the state\u2019s voter registration system, but a U.S. District Court judge in Baltimore dismissed the case for lack of standing by the groups bringing the suit, citing the groups\u2019 lack of standing to file a lawsuit. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal in February.<\/p>

A\u00a0 Maryland Republican Party spokesperson referred all questions about the letter to Nicolee Ambrose, a Republican National Committeewoman and 2022 Republican congressional candidate who is also represented by the law firm, according to the letter. Ambrose did not respond to a request for comment, but she did comment about the letter in a social media post.<\/p>

\u201cThe Maryland State Board of Elections has run out of excuses for violating federal law,\u201d she wrote on Facebook. \u201cIt is imperative they do their job and clean up Maryland\u2019s egregiously out-of-date and inflated voter rolls.\u201d<\/p>

The firm also said it represents Reardon Sullivan, whom it described as chair of \u201cCommittee to Control MoCo Spending,\u201d a ballot issue committee. He is also a former chair of the Montgomery County Republican Central Committee.<\/p>

Sullivan, in an email, said \u201censuring updated and accurate voter rolls is a non-partisan issue that affects every Maryland voter.\u201d Issues with inaccurate voter rolls \u201cdirectly [affects] our committee\u2019s efforts to collect valid signatures for our ballot petition,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>

Data cited in the GOP letter alleges that there are more voters than adults who are eligible to vote in Maryland, which Sullivan said \u201cis obviously impossible. ... Maryland must take this issue seriously and remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists prior to the 2026 election.\u201d<\/p>

Allegations in the letter include state elections officials failing to maintain accurate voter registration rolls and counties with \u201cimplausibly high\u201d voter registration rates. It said its analysis of state records identified two counties \u2014 Howard and Montgomery \u2014 as having \u201cmore active registered voters than eligible adult citizens\u201d between 2019 and 2023.<\/p>

Both Republicans on the five-member state board of elections have ties to those counties: Diane Butler is a former member of the Howard County Board of Elections and\u00a0Jim Shalleck, vice chair of the panel, served six years as president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections.<\/p>

The law firm\u2019s analysis compared state voter registration totals and annual census data estimates.<\/p>

\u201cThis evidence shows that your office and officials in these counties are not conducting appropriate list maintenance to ensure that the voter registration roll is accurate and current, as required by federal law,\u201d the firm wrote in its letter.<\/p>

Virginia-based Consovoy McCarthy is known for its conservative pedigree, representing President Donald Trump in cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and arguing the case that ended the practice of race-based college admissions. Two of its attorneys clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.<\/p>

The firm said its clients \u201cwill bring a lawsuit\u201d against the state and local boards \u201cif you fail to take specific actions to correct these violations\u201d within 90 days.<\/p>

\u201cWe\u2019ve received it, and it is under review,\u201d DeMarinis said when asked about the Consovoy McCarthy letter.<\/p>

David Naimon, president of the Montgomery County Board of Elections, said the local agency is reviewing the letter and declined further comment.<\/p>

Officials in Howard County did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>

Sowing 'doubt' and 'conspiracy theories'<\/h4>

Maryland is one of a growing number of states where election officials have received letters from the Justice Department.<\/p>

Some see the effort as a weaponization of federal law enforcement for political reasons.<\/p>

\u201cThey\u2019re just trying to come into a state that is currently dominated by Democratic leaders and sow doubt and imply there\u2019s a problem where none exists,\u201d said Senate Education, Energy and the Environment Committee Vice Chair Sen. Cheryl C. Kagan, a Montgomery County Democrat, who devotes much of her legislative policy focus to elections law.<\/p>

\u201cDon\u2019t forget that next year is an election year in Maryland,\u201d she said. \u201cSo, if Republicans, whether they are in the administration or in the political party, are looking to plant conspiracy theories or doubt, this is the right time to do it.\u201d<\/p>

Federal laws restrict the federal government\u2019s ability to centralize information on Americans, said David Becker, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research. Even if states provide voter registration information to the public, they often redact sensitive information.<\/p>

In Orange County, California, the DOJ sued local election officials in June, seeking unredacted voter registration information, such as Social Security numbers and driver\u2019s licenses, as part of an investigation into noncitizen voting.<\/p>

More than 350 election officials from some 33 states participated in a conference call about federal actions Monday hosted by Becker, who was previously an attorney in the DOJ Voting Rights Section during the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. He said the interest in the call shows the level of uncertainty and anxiety over the current \u201cfederal imposition\u201d on election administrators.<\/p>

\u201cThe DOJ seems dead set on acquiring personal information on voters, including driver\u2019s license numbers, Social Security numbers and dates of birth \u2014 records that are highly protected under federal law and under state law and which state election officials are sworn to protect,\u201d\u00a0Becker told Stateline.<\/p>

Maryland joins growing list of states<\/h4>

At least nine states have received requests for information over the past three months, according to letters from the DOJ obtained by Stateline. Some states also received emails from a DOJ official last week asking for meetings to discuss information-sharing agreements.<\/p>

When asked whether Maryland had received any other letter or demands from the Department of Justice, DeMarinis said: \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>

DeMarinis said the most recent letters will have little effect on how state elections are administered in the state.<\/p>

\u201cMy charge and my mission is to make sure Maryland\u2019s elections are safe, secure and transparent,\u201d DeMarinis said. \u201cI\u2019m not going to be deterred from that mission.\u201d<\/p>

Stateline reporter Jonathan Shorman contributed to this article. <\/em>Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501(c)(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions:\u00a0scrane@marylandmatters.org. Follow Maryland Matters on\u00a0Facebook\u00a0and\u00a0Bluesky.<\/em><\/p>"},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1753394472","print_workflow_exported_username":"Tricia Bishop","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":"24225","print_status":"24232","add_export_buttons":"","print_endpoint":"tribune"},"really_short_title":"","short_title":"","syndication_source":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"","featured_media_content":{"content_type":"image","content":{"id":90348,"title":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA","filename":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2023\/06\/23\/qa-amid-disinformation-new-maryland-elections-head-says-we-have-to-be-that-trusted-source-in-democracy\/rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa\/","alt":"","author":"154","description":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","name":"rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":90312,"date":1687532192000,"modified":1753308043000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/","type":"image","subtype":"","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"June 23, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"Migration Temp","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Q&A: Amid disinformation, new Maryland elections head says 'we have to be that trusted source' in democracy","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":7391169,"filesizeHumanReadable":"7 MB","context":"","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":196,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":670,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections in June 2023. (Karl Merton Ferron\/Staff)"},"data":[{"id":90348,"title":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA","filename":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2023\/06\/23\/qa-amid-disinformation-new-maryland-elections-head-says-we-have-to-be-that-trusted-source-in-democracy\/rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa\/","alt":"","author":"154","description":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","name":"rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":90312,"date":1687532192000,"modified":1753308043000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/","type":"image","subtype":"","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"June 23, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"Migration Temp","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Q&A: Amid disinformation, new Maryland elections head says 'we have to be that trusted source' in democracy","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":7391169,"filesizeHumanReadable":"7 MB","context":"","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":196,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":670,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections in June 2023. (Karl Merton Ferron\/Staff)"}],"rendered_content":"\"\""},"attachments":[],"authors":[{"ID":3523,"display_name":"Bryan P. Sears","description":"","first_name":"Bryan","last_name":"Sears","user_nicename":"bryan-p-sears","user_login":"bryan-p-sears","user_email":"","type":"guest-author","linked_account":0,"website":"","twitter":"","facebook":"","google_plus":""}],"taxonomies":{"category":[{"term_id":94,"name":"Election","slug":"election","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":94,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":93,"count":3403,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":83,"name":"Latest Headlines","slug":"latest-headlines","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":83,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":72148,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":84,"name":"Local News","slug":"local-news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":84,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":10282,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":85,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":85,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":93,"name":"Politics","slug":"politics","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":93,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":85,"count":39191,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[{"term_id":26242,"name":"Maryland Matters","slug":"maryland-matters","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":26242,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":54,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":24457,"name":"social","slug":"social","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":24457,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":8115,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":26071,"name":"Trump administration","slug":"trump-administration","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":26071,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"Updates on actions of the Trump administration.","parent":0,"count":1162,"filter":"raw"}],"location":[{"term_id":342,"name":"Howard County","slug":"howard-county","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":342,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":223,"count":40012,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":223,"name":"Maryland","slug":"maryland","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":223,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":0,"count":243539,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_array":{"id":90348,"title":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA","filename":"RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2023\/06\/23\/qa-amid-disinformation-new-maryland-elections-head-says-we-have-to-be-that-trusted-source-in-democracy\/rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa\/","alt":"","author":"154","description":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections on Tuesday June 20, 2023.","name":"rsrvaljamnffrk73m6kojuanxa","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":90312,"date":1687532192000,"modified":1753308043000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/","type":"image","subtype":"","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"June 23, 2023","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"Migration Temp","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Q&A: Amid disinformation, new Maryland elections head says 'we have to be that trusted source' in democracy","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":7391169,"filesizeHumanReadable":"7 MB","context":"","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":196,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":670,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg","height":785,"width":1200,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Jared DeMarinis, Maryland's elections administrator, speaks at the Board of Elections in June 2023. (Karl Merton Ferron\/Staff)"},"syndication_canonical":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms\/","apple_news_notices":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Justice Department, conservative law firm set sights on Maryland voter registrations","url":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/23\/maryland-voters-justice-department-conservative-firms\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg?w=150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/migration\/2023\/06\/23\/RSRVALJAMNFFRK73M6KOJUANXA.jpg"},"articleSection":"Other","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Bryan P. Sears"}],"creator":["Bryan P. Sears"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Baltimore Sun","logo":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/baltimore-sun-fallback.png?w=600"},"keywords":["maryland matters","social","trump administration"],"dateCreated":"2025-07-23T21:33:28Z","datePublished":"2025-07-23T21:33:28Z","dateModified":"2025-07-23T22:05:48Z"},"rendered":"