Maryland mail-in ballots may delay final election results until mid-November

The Baltimore Banner reported that Maryland's expanded voting options, including mail-in ballots, could delay final election results beyond Election Day. Mail-in ballots postmarked by November 3 and received by November 13 will be counted, with local officials able to continue tallying votes until the certification deadline on December 3.

As of October 29, more than 656,000 mail-in ballots had been sent to Maryland voters for the 2026 general election, with about 59% returned so far. This is a slight increase from the 2022 midterm election, when 639,500 ballots were sent out and about 85% were returned by Election Day.

Maryland ranks 17th nationally in the share of votes cast by mail, according to federal election data analyzed by The Baltimore Banner. Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-to-1 in the state but have submitted four times as many mail-in ballots in this election cycle.

Local election officials begin canvassing mail-in ballots before Election Day, verifying signatures and postmarks. Canvassing is conducted by bipartisan teams and is open to public observation, with schedules posted on local election board websites. As of now, about 174,000 mail-in ballots have been validated, indicating that significant counting remains before final results are known.