who should you vote for?

So there's a primary election coming up here in Howard County.

Now's the time to get edumacated on the field of candidates for our local elections-- the school board, for Congress, and for the judges of the Circuit Court.  And there are a variety of ways to do it.  I'm most familiar with what the League of Women Voters of Howard County has been planning, and that's the majority of what I'll be pulling from below.  Please feel free to comment below on other forums that will educate folks on who to vote for.

Photo credit to Theresa Thompson.

Voter's Guide
Most people are probably familiar with the printed Voters Guide that comes in the newspaper shortly before the election.  It's a good source of information about our candidates straight from them, and that'll be coming out as we get closer to the election.

This year, it is also available online and expanded.  The League of Women Voters has a website where you can look up the candidate statements and answers online called Vote411.  Since there isn't a print limit, we've also been able to ask more questions of our candidates.  The best part is that most of the heavy lifting is done for you.  Visit http://onyourballot.vote411.org, enter in your address and registered political party and BAM!  All the races you can vote in with submitted candidate statements are available to you.

Trevor over at HoCoPolitico has a set of online Board of Education interviews going on and I would certainly encourage folks to check that out as well for another source of information.

Candidate Forums
The League is putting on their Candidate Forums again, much like in previous years.  The date for the Board of Education forum is Monday, March 5 at 6:00 pm and will be held at the Board of Education building at 10910 Route 108, Ellicott City.

The Forum for our Congressional and Judicial candidates will be held on Thursday, March 8 at 7:00 pm.  It will take place in the Banneker Room at the George Howard Building at 3430 Courthouse Drive, Ellicott City.

Both forums will be rebroadcast on TV as well as available online for your at-home viewing convenience (more info on that forthcoming).

A few notes...
Tuesday, April 3 is the primary election day.  Early voting will take place Saturday, March 24 through Thursday, March 29.   Check out the Maryland Elections Center for personalized information about where and when to vote.

You can register to vote or change your party and still vote in the primary election until Tuesday, March 13, so it's not too late.

Independent/unaffiliated voters CAN vote in the primaries for school board elections because they are nonpartisan.

With all the craziness over the past few months about the school board, it's important for us to go out and exercise the right that people fought for, testified on, and opined about.  We have a wide, diverse field of candidates to choose from, all with their own viewpoint, experience, and opinions to offer.  Let's ensure that best candidates move onto the general election in all the elections.

(And of course, disclosure: I'm on the board of the League of Women Voters and am the Voter services chair.)