Fewer than one in four Montgomery County voters cast ballots in the primary for County Council and County Executive, the offices that control land use, the county budget and Planning Board appointments.
The county Board of Elections certified the June 23 primary results on Wednesday, confirming that just 161,146 of 701,022 eligible voters participated. That works out to 22.99%. Board President David Naimon said turnout was 2 percentage points below the 2024 primary and 4 points below 2022.
It is the lowest primary turnout in at least three election cycles.
The thin turnout produced razor-close outcomes. In the District 3 County Council Democratic race, Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman defeated Rockville City Council member Izola Shaw by fewer than 400 votes. School board member Karla Silvestre edged out immigration attorney Fatmata Barrie by just over 1,100 votes in the at-large council race.
Naimon said no race was close enough for a candidate to request a recount. "Our experience in 2018 and 2022 was that recounts did not change the margin of victory by even a handful of votes," he said.
Statewide, Maryland's gubernatorial primary drew 24.18% of eligible voters, down from 27% in 2022, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections. Montgomery County trailed even that weaker statewide figure.
Apple Ballot wins big again
The Montgomery County Education Association said in a June 29 release that its "Apple Ballot" endorsement slate won 80% of its primary races. MCEA Vice President Danillya Wilson called it "the most influential endorsement a candidate can earn." Among the winners: County Executive candidate Will Jawando. Three MCEA-backed candidates lost, including Shaw, Barrie and at-large candidate Josie Caballero.
The teachers union distributes the Apple Ballot before every county election and typically backs Democrats.
What's next
The general election is Tuesday, November 3. Voter registration reopened July 7, and the deadline to register or update a registration is Tuesday, October 13. Early voting runs Thursday, October 22, through Thursday, October 29. Residents can check their status at voterservices.elections.maryland.gov.
