I have been stumbling upon a lot of election related promotional literature lately. The Democratic Primary will be held on September 14th. This year I have seen numerous reminders about “early voting” on promotional pieces and web sites. I have seen “Early Voting begins September 3rd” or a phrase like that many times. I am not a fan of early voting, but it adds an entire new dimension to campaigning. It seems like most of the major campaigns are gearing up to tackle the early voting challenge. The Maryland Democratic Party provides early voting information here.
Patricia Jessamy and Gregg Bernstein recently debated at a church in Park Heights. ABC 2 covered the debate and in the video you can see that the church was pretty empty. Did either campaign publicize this event? The low attendance speaks volumes about the complacency of the average Baltimore voter. The low turnout is a very good sign for the status quo and Jessamy.
The Maryland State Board of Elections sent the following email about “Social Media Advertising” out:
“ Memorandum
TO: Candidates, Chairman and Treasurers
FROM: Jared DeMarinis, Director
Division of Candidacy and Campaign Finance
DATE: July 29, 2010
SUBJECT: Social Media Advertising
Recently the State Board of Elections has enacted new regulations to
reflect the abilities of political committees to advertise and
communicate on social networking sites, micro-blogs and electronic
advertisements.
A political committee who has established a social networking site, i.e.
Facebook or a micro-blog, i.e. Twitter must still remain in compliance
with §13-401 of Election Law Article. In order to remain in compliance
an authority line must be present on the home or landing page of the
social networking site or micro-blog site. If the micro-blog cannot
feasibly place an authority line on the landing page, then the committee
needs to register the account name and authority line with the State
Board of Elections.
A committee who is using electronic advertising is also required to have
an authority line. If the advertisement is too small for an authority
line then:
1. The ad must allow the viewer to click on the ad and take the
viewer to a home or landing page that displays the authority line; or
2. Register the ad with the Maryland State Board of Elections.
Examples of electronic advertisement ads deemed too small are:
* A paid text advertisement that is 200 characters or less in
length
* A micro-bar
* A button ad
For questions or concerns please contact the Division of Candidacy and
Campaign Finance at 410-269-2880.
Erin W. Dennis
Office Assistant
Maryland State Board of Elections
151 West Street, Suite 200
Annapolis, Maryland 21401-0486
Phone: 410.269.2928″
Adam is the most recognizable face of the recent resurgence in Reservoir Hill. He has appeared on many national and local radio shows, in several news publications, and at numerous events discussing his innovative urban redevelopment ideas and his unique lifestyle. Adam is a successful entrepreneur, community activist, and a local political guru who ran for city council in 2007. He is the founder and director of the TechBalt.com Buy a Block Project and BaltimoreHourly.com. His fearless local political commentary has rocked the local blog scene for most of this decade and he plans to take it to the next level in the next decade here on Charm City Current.