Early voting in Maryland began yesterday (Thursday, October 25). It continues till next Thursday, Nov. 1 INCLUDING SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, Oct. 27 and 28. Check the messages about Early Voting and its advantages from candidates and advocates, and Plan to Vote -- then help your friends, neighbors and community to make their voices heard too.

After a year of briefings, community meetings, and forums, the Prince George’s County Council voted Tuesday night [Oct 23] to establish a Fair Elections program for County Executive and County Council races. The Fair Elections Bill now heads for the County Executive's desk. Prince George's has joined Montgomery and Howard counties, the District of Columbia and (soon) Baltimore City in taking steps to get big money and its influence out of local elections. Progressive Maryland and Progressive Prince George's have worked hard as a part of the Fair Elections Maryland Coalition to see this democratizing bill passed.

It’s dawn on October 25 – the first day of Early Voting in Maryland.

Do you know where your interests are?

Make a plan to vote for your interests.

Sarah Lacey supports increased public transportation, satellite government offices and libraries within the District, and government transparency above all. Most importantly (to me), she supports fully funding public education and county services. That means paying teachers, police, and firefighters what they deserve, as well as improving the school buildings in District 1.

From former Sen. Barbara Mikulski: "...If you invest more in education, you pay less in incarceration. Schools always cost less than prisons. But under Larry Hogan, we've seen our education budget get tighter and tighter, while our budget for prisons continues to balloon. Maryland is falling behind because we're just not investing where it counts." Ben Jealous will turn that around.

It is proving pretty hard to get entrenched big money out of Prince George's politics. But there is a solid chance for change TODAY, Tuesday October 23, when the County Council votes on a bill providing for small donor contributions to political candidates who pledge to run without large contributions from the big donors who have played such a big role in county politics. Read about the possibilities for change in this account.

MAKING A PLAN TO VOTE – AND HELPING OTHERS TO DO THE SAME

Early Voting in Maryland begins Thursday (Oct. 25) across the state. Remember, if you make a plan to vote early and something doesn’t work out, you can still vote the following day, right up through Nov. 1. So make your plan, follow through -- then help to turn out your neighbors and your community. In this crucial election, expanding the electorate is the key to ending business as usual.

"Larry Hogan is running as a bipartisan. But why should we want that? Bipartisanship legitimizes reactionary American politics. Those who strive for bipartisanship and neglect party differences enable the rightward shift of American politics and ignore the extremism of the entire Republican Party."

A University of Maryland student deftly outlines the history of this corruption of our political landscape, writing in the student newspaper, The Diamondback.

As Maryland prepares to name a new governor on November 6, voters have a clear choice: Ben Jealous has put forward a platform of clear, progressive and achievable goals that include universal health care and kindergarten, debt-free college, a statewide $15 minimum wage and a 29 percent salary increase for teachers. And a plan to pay for it.

Larry Hogan’s platform, in contrast, is like much of his career: “go along to get along.” The "moderate" label he claims is belied by the pro-business and anti-people record he tries to hide.

Every specious argument in favor of Larry Hogan turns out to be an argument in favor of electing Ben Jealous governor of Maryland. Taking credit for nothing going wrong is a far cry from governing.

Check our blog below for more.