Maryland House of Delegates District 8

Maryland House of Delegates District 8 is represented by Nick Allen (D), Harry Bhandari (D), and Kim Ross (D).

As of the 2020 Census, Maryland state representatives represented an average of 43,867 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 41,063 residents.

About the office

Members of the Maryland House of Delegates serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Maryland legislators assume office the second Wednesday in January after the election.^[1]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Section 9 of Article 3 of the Maryland Constitution states, "A person is eligible to serve as a Senator or Delegate, who on the date of the person's election, (1) is a citizen of the State of Maryland, (2) has resided therein for at least one year next preceding that date, and (3) if the district that the person has been chosen to represent has been established for at least six months prior to the date of the person's election, has resided in that district for six months next preceding that date and, beginning January 1, 2024, has maintained a primary place of abode in that district for six months next preceding that date.

If the district that the person has been chosen to represent has been established less than six months prior to the date of the person's election, then in addition to (1) and (2) above, the person shall have resided in the district for as long as it has been established and, beginning January 1, 2024, shall have maintained a primary place of abode in the district for as long as it has been established.

A person is eligible to serve as a Senator, if the person has attained the age of twenty-five years, or as a Delegate, if the person has attained the age of twenty-one years, on the date of the person's election."^[2]

Section 12 of Article I of the Maryland Constitution states, [A] person is ineligible to enter upon the duties of, or to continue to serve in, an elective office created by or pursuant to the provisions of this Constitution if the person was not a registered voter in this State on the date of the person's election or appointment to that term or if, at any time thereafter and prior to completion of the term, the person ceases to be a registered voter."^[2]

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024^[3]
Salary	Per diem
$54,437/year	$115/day for lodging. $63/day for meals.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in the Maryland General Assembly, the governor is responsible for appointing a replacement.^[4]

The governor makes an appointment based on the recommendations of the political party committee that holds the vacant seat. The political party committee has up to 30 days after the vacancy to submit a list of recommended candidates to the governor. If the party committee fails to act by the 30-day deadline, or if the former officeholder was not affiliated with any party, the governor has 15 days to appoint a person from the political party that last held the seat.^[5]

The person appointed to the seat serves for the remainder of the unfilled term.^[6]

See sources: Maryland Const. Art. 3, Sec. 13

District map

Redistricting

2020 redistricting cycle

See also: Redistricting in Maryland after the 2020 census

Maryland adopted legislative maps on January 27, 2022, when the Maryland House of Delegates approved new legislative district boundaries that had been approved on January 20, 2022, by the Maryland State Senate. The vote in the state Senate was 32-14 and in the House of Delegates was 95-42, both strictly along party lines.^[7]^[8]^[9]^[10]Since legislative maps are not subject to gubernatorial veto, the maps were therefore enacted.

How does redistricting in Maryland work? In Maryland, the primary authority to adopt both congressional and state legislative district lines rests with the state legislature. The governor submits a state legislative redistricting proposal (an advisory commission appointed by the governor assists in drafting this proposal). The state legislature may pass its own plan by joint resolution, which is not subject to gubernatorial veto. If the legislature fails to approve its own plan, the governor's plan takes effect. Congressional lines are adopted solely by the legislature and may be vetoed by the governor.^[11]

The Maryland Constitution requires that state legislative districts be contiguous, compact, and "give 'due regard' for political boundaries and natural features." No such requirements apply to congressional districts.^[11]

Maryland House of Delegates District 8
until January 10, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Maryland House of Delegates District 8
starting January 11, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2022

See also: Maryland House of Delegates elections, 2022

General election

General election for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 (3 seats)

The following candidates ran in the general election for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Harry Bhandari (D)	21.6	19,702
✔		Carl Jackson (D)	20.8	18,950
✔		Nick Allen (D)	19.8	18,062
	Submit photo	Kathleen Smero (R)	13.0	11,838
	Submit photo	Timothy M. Neubauer (R)	12.4	11,259
	Submit photo	Glen Geelhaar (R)	12.3	11,243
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	74

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 91,128
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 (3 seats)

Incumbent Carl Jackson, incumbent Harry Bhandari, and Nick Allen advanced from the Democratic primary for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 on July 19, 2022.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Carl Jackson	34.0	7,712
✔	Harry Bhandari	33.8	7,678
✔	Nick Allen	32.2	7,306

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 22,696
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Annel McCollim (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 (3 seats)

Timothy M. Neubauer, Kathleen Smero, and Glen Geelhaar defeated Manpreet Hundal in the Republican primary for Maryland House of Delegates District 8 on July 19, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Timothy M. Neubauer	28.7	2,672
✔	Submit photo	Kathleen Smero	28.2	2,629
✔	Submit photo	Glen Geelhaar	28.0	2,609
	Submit photo	Manpreet Hundal	15.1	1,404

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 9,314
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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