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by Rusty Sullivan, Direct Line–News* Talk* Politics*
Maryland Democrats have come up with many bad ideas over the years: tax hikes, sanctuary-state policies, rent control, you name it. But mid-cycle redistricting, just two years after new maps were finalized, may be the most reckless political stunt yet. It isn’t just misguided. It’s almost certainly illegal, destined for a courtroom shredder, and Marylanders will be stuck with the legal bills for yet another Democratic fantasy. Let’s start with the obvious: Maryland has some of the strictest constitutional and judicial limits on redistricting of any state in the country. After the 2020 Census, the courts made it crystal clear: Districts must be compact. Districts cannot be drawn to rig partisan outcomes. Districts must reflect genuine communities of interest, not political wish-lists. And this is key: the state expects a full decade of map stability, not an every-two-years power grab. The 2022 court rulings were a direct rebuke to Democratic gerrymandering. Judges told Annapolis: your partisan engineering stops now. Maryland Democrats did not just lose that case; they were embarrassed. The court’s message was unmistakable. Yet here we are again. Wes Moore, fresh off turning a $2 billion surplus into a structural deficit, now wants to redraw the congressional map halfway through the decade because… why? Because Maryland still has one Republican in Congress, and the Democratic machine wants a clean sweep? Because national Democrats need a bailout after losing House seats? Because the Governor’s political team thinks a new map could juice turnout in 2026? Whatever the reason, it isn’t “fairness” or “good government.” And Marylanders know it. The Courts Will Laugh This Out of the Room. Let’s not pretend otherwise. Any mid-cycle redistricting plan will be challenged within hours of passage. And Maryland’s courts, which rejected far more subtle Democratic gerrymanders, are not going to endorse a blatant partisan rewrite undertaken without a census, without legal justification, and without any constitutional trigger. There is no racial imbalance that requires mid-decade intervention.
There is no population crisis.
There is no legal mandate.
There is only partisan ambition. Maryland’s judiciary has repeatedly shown that it will not rubber-stamp partisan games. In 2022 a ruling by Maryland Senior Judge Lynn A. Battaglia struck down the state’s Democratic-drawn congressional map as an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander. If Democrats couldn’t defend their 2022 map, which actually followed a census, imagine how quickly the courts will dismantle a 2025 or 2026 “Wes Moore Special,” crafted out of pure political opportunism. Even Democrats Are Warning Moore to Stop. And here’s the kicker: Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, one of the most influential Democrats in the state, is practically waving a red flag in the Governor’s face. Ferguson has already warned publicly that mid-decade redistricting is: Legally dangerousPolitically recklessPotentially catastrophic for Maryland Democrats. He has made it clear that the risks outweigh the rewards. He’s not speaking as a Republican critic. He’s speaking as the person who will be responsible when the plan explodes in the courts and Democrats take the blame. When the Senate President tells the Governor, “Don’t do this,” maybe Wes Moore should listen. This Isn’t Redistricting. It’s Desperation. Maryland Democrats have had total control for nearly two decades. They control the Governor’s Mansion, the State House, the Senate, and every county government besides a handful on the Eastern Shore. Yet Maryland is losing residents, losing competitiveness, and losing its fiscal footing. Mid-cycle redistricting isn’t about fairness.
It’s about finding someone else to blame for their own failures. Instead of growing jobs, fixing schools, lowering taxes, or making Maryland livable again, they’re trying to redraw district lines like children rearranging crayons. It’s unserious, and Marylanders deserve better. Maryland Needs Stability, Not a Political Circus. The state is still recovering from massive economic shocks, a workforce exodus, and broken promises on affordability. The last thing Maryland needs is lawsuits, chaos, uncertainty, and a map that will be tied up in courts for years. The law does not support it.
The courts will not uphold it.
And even the Democrats’ own leadership is sounding the alarm. Wes Moore should take the hint:
Drop the redistricting fantasy. Focus on fixing the state. And leave Maryland’s decade-long redistricting tradition intact. Because if he pushes forward anyway, the only map he’ll succeed in redrawing is his own path straight into political irrelevance.
EndnotesMaryland Matters, “In First Night of Redistricting Testimony, Majority of Speakers Say ‘No,’” Maryland Matters, November 14, 2025.Maryland Matters, “Mid-Decade Redistricting Poses More Risk Than Reward, Ferguson Warns,” Maryland Matters, November 7, 2025.Politico, “Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson: Mid-Decade Redistricting Too Risky,” Politico, October 28, 2025.Maryland Matters, “GOP Counters Democrats’ Push for Redistricting with Call for ‘Fair and Principled’ Process,” Maryland Matters, November 13, 2025.Maryland Matters, “Moore Pushes for Congressional Redistricting, Setting Up Confrontation with Senate,” Maryland Matters, October 30, 2025.Maryland Circuit Court Decision on 2022 Congressional Redistricting, Anne Arundel County Circuit Court, March 2022.Maryland Court of Appeals, ruling on 2022 Legislative Map, “Legislative Redistricting of the State of Maryland,” Court of Appeals of Maryland, April 2022.Maryland Matters, “Briefs: First Meeting of Redistricting Panel Yields Little Drama, Less Information,” Maryland Matters, November 2025.Battaglia MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDERRusty Sullivan is a contributor to Direct Line News. He can be contacted at Rusty.Sullivan@mcgopclub.com