More MoCo residents voted early in 2026 primary election than in 2022, state data shows

Tens of thousands of mail-in ballots outstanding as of late Sunday; Primary Election Day is Tuesday

June 22, 2026 12:00 p.m.

The Isiah 'Ike' Leggett Executive Office Building in Rockville pictured during early voting for the 2026 gubernatorial primary election. Credit: Ceoli Jacoby

The number of Montgomery County residents who voted early in this year’s gubernatorial primary election was higher than in 2022, according to data from the Maryland State Board of Elections.

This year’s primary election is Tuesday, with candidates for local, state and federal offices on the ballot. The early voting period began June 11 and ended Thursday.

During the early voting period, data from the state elections board shows 28,576 people cast ballots at one of Montgomery County’s 14 early voting centers. That figure does not include people who filled out provisional ballots.

During the 2022 primary election, the number of county residents who cast ballots during early voting was 24,704. More county residents — 35,963 — voted early in the 2018 gubernatorial primary election.

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Early voting turnout in 2022 may have been impacted by the primary being moved from late June to mid-July because of legal challenges to the state’s congressional and state legislative maps, experts told Bethesda Today at the time.

This year, according to state election data, the most popular early voting location in the county was the Silver Spring Civic Building, where 3,416 people cast ballots in downtown Silver Spring. The least popular early voting location in the county was the White Oak Community Recreation Center, where 868 people cast ballots.

During early voting, people could vote at any one of the county’s 14 early voting centers. Voters must go to their assigned polling place on Election Day.

To determine your polling place, go to voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/votersearch or check a sample ballot that the Montgomery County Board of Elections has mailed to you.  All polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Anyone in line at 8 p.m. will be allowed to vote.

Mail-in ballots

As of 6 p.m. Sunday, 126,507 mail-in ballots had been sent to voters in Montgomery County, according to state data. That number does not include ballots mailed before May 14 that may have been impacted by a vendor error. It does include replacement ballots sent to voters who may have been impacted by the error.

Of the 126,507 mail-in ballots sent to county voters, the vast majority — 90,395 — were sent to registered Democrats. Of the remaining mail-in ballots, 12,512 went to registered Republicans and 23,600 went to other voters, including those not registered with a political party. The deadline to request a mail-in ballot was June 2.

Most of the mail-in ballots sent to county voters had yet to be returned as of 6 p.m. Sunday, state data shows. At that time, the county Board of Elections had received 32,290 ballots from Democrats, 3,098 from Republicans and 4,190 from other voters.

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Maryland has a closed primary system, meaning only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote in their party’s primaries while other voters can still receive a ballot to cast in nonpartisan contests such as for the school board.

Mail-in ballots will be accepted as long as they are postmarked by or before Tuesday or hand-delivered to a ballot drop box by 8 p.m. Tuesday. The Montgomery County Board of Elections lists dozens of drop-off ballot sites on its website for the primary election.

To ensure your ballot is postmarked by Tuesday, county election officials recommend bringing the ballot to a post office instead of placing it in the mailbox.

“Make sure you walk it in the post office, especially if it’s on the last day,” county Board of Elections spokesperson Gilberto Zelaya said during a virtual media briefing Wednesday. He added that most post offices close earlier than polling places, typically at 5 p.m.

To learn about candidates for county, state and federal offices, check out Bethesda Today’s 2026 Primary Election Voters Guide. The guide also includes answers to frequently asked questions about voting, links to recent government and politics coverage and a comprehensive list of endorsements.

For more information about the primary election, check out the Montgomery County Board of Elections Voter Information Guide.

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Originally published at Bethesdamagazine