Running for office in Prince George's County, Maryland.

The short version.

A plain-language guide to how county ballot access works in all 24 of Maryland's local election jurisdictions -- 23 counties plus Baltimore City. 2026 is Maryland's gubernatorial year, which is the year county offices are elected, and the regular doors have closed: certificates of candidacy were due at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, the primary was held on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, and the petition route for unaffiliated candidates closed at 5 p.m. on Monday, August 3, 2026. One door is still open. A write-in candidate for any office on the November 3, 2026 ballot can still file a certificate of candidacy up to 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 15, 2026.

Maryland runs elections through 24 local boards of elections, one for each county and one for Baltimore City, and county candidates file with their local board rather than with the state. Twelve counties are governed by a Board of County Commissioners and eleven by a County Council under a ratified charter; Baltimore City is a municipality that Maryland election law treats as a county in its own right (EL Sec. 1-101(p)). Not every office exists in every jurisdiction, so this page lists what the State Board of Elections actually certified for your ballot rather than a generic Maryland list.

This page covers that for Prince George's County and points you at your local election office for anything specific to your county. It is not legal advice; the official rules live with your election office and the Maryland State Board of Elections.

Prince George's County by the numbers.

The 2027 ballot in Prince George's County.

These 2027 dates are confirmed against the state's own published calendar or statute. Anything our research could not confirm is left off this page rather than estimated.

• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Cheverly (Prince George's County) — All six Ward Councilmembers (2-year terms, one per ward). The Mayor is a 3-year term and is NOT on the 2027 ballot.
  Candidate filing: closes March 19, 2027.
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Riverdale Park (Prince George's Co.) — Mayor and all six ward Councilmembers (one per ward), 2-year terms — full slate.
  Candidate filing: closes April 8, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of North Brentwood (Prince George's Co.) — Mayor plus one Councilmember (Council seat 1) — the 2019+4n class. The 2020+4n class elects two Councilmembers in even years.
  Candidate filing: closes April 3, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. City of New Carrollton (Prince George's Co.) — Mayor and all five Councilmembers, at large, 2-year terms — full slate (staggering abolished as of the 2023 election).
  Candidate filing: opens February 16, 2027 (est.), closes March 31, 2027, 5:00 p.m. (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. City of Mount Rainier (Prince George's Co.) — One Councilmember from each of the two wards (4-year terms, biennial odd-year staggering). The Mayor is the 1997+4n class (2025/2029) and is NOT up in 2027.
  Candidate filing: closes April 5, 2027, 6:00-8:00 p.m. (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Morningside (Prince George's Co.) — Two of four at-large Council Members (2-year overlapping terms; two elected every year). The Mayor is a 3-year term (1974+3n = 2025/2028) and is NOT up in 2027.
  Candidate filing: closes March 1, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. City of District Heights (Prince George's Co.) — One Commissioner from each of the two wards (2007+4n class, 4-year terms). The Mayor and the other two ward Commissioners are the 2006+4n class (2026/2030) and are NOT up.
  Candidate filing: closes April 3, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Cottage City (Prince George's Co.) — Two of five Commissioners: the Ward 1 commissioner and the Commissioner at Large (odd-year class; wards 2, 3, 4 are even-year). 2-year terms.
  Candidate filing: closes April 3, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 3, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Brentwood (Prince George's Co.) — Mayor and all four Councilmembers, elected at large, 2-year terms — full slate.
  Candidate filing: closes March 19, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 11, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Town of Landover Hills (Prince George's Co.) — Mayor plus one Councilmember from each of the three wards (1995+4n class, 4-year terms). The 1997+4n council class (2025/2029) is NOT up.
  Candidate filing: opens February 10, 2027 (est.), closes March 27, 2027 (est.).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• May 11, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. City of Hyattsville (Prince George's Co.) - one Councilmember from each of the five wards (4-yr staggered terms). The Mayor is elected with the other ward class (2025/2029) and is not up.
  Candidate filing: closes Mar 12, 2027 (5:00 p.m., second Friday in March).
  Source 1 · Source 2
• November 2, 2027 Municipal General — Municipal. Mayor and/or council seats, varying by town; most are staggered so only part of each body is up. CONFIRMED PARTICIPANT: GAITHERSBURG (Montgomery Co.) — the city's official page states 'The next municipal election will take place on November 2, 2027' (Mayor and Council on staggered four-year terms).
  Source 1 · Source 2

2027 dates can move, and a municipality can change its own election date by ordinance. Which seats are on a given ballot depends on when each was last filled. Confirm anything you are relying on with the Prince George's County Board of Elections before you act on it.

Maryland election calendar (2026).

Maryland runs one statewide election calendar for every county and for Baltimore City. The dates below cover the 2026 gubernatorial cycle. Three of the four doors have closed; the write-in door has not.

Status as of October 18, 2026. Dates that have already passed are greyed out and marked CLOSED.

• Tue Feb 24, 2026, 9 p.m.CLOSED. Deadline to file a certificate of candidacy for the 2026 primary -- CLOSED. In a year the Governor is elected, the deadline is 9 p.m. on the last Tuesday in February (EL Sec. 5-303(a)(1)). County candidates file with their local board of elections.
• Tue June 23, 2026CLOSED. Maryland's 2026 primary election -- PAST. Early voting for the primary ran June 11 through June 18.
• Mon Aug 3, 2026, 5 p.m.CLOSED. Deadline for an unaffiliated or new-party candidate to petition onto the November 3, 2026 general election ballot -- CLOSED (EL Sec. 5-703(d), (f)).
• Thu Oct 15, 2026, 5 p.m.CLOSED. Write-in candidate filing deadline. A write-in candidate's certificate of candidacy is due by the earlier of 5 p.m. on the 7th day before early voting starts, or 7 days after a total of $51 or more is spent to promote the candidacy by the candidate's campaign finance entity (EL Sec. 5-303(c)). Early voting for the general starts Thursday, October 22, 2026, which puts the calendar deadline at Thursday, October 15.
• Thu Oct 22 - Thu Oct 29, 2026Early voting for the general election, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, at early voting centers in your county of residence.
• Tue Nov 3, 2026Maryland's 2026 general election. Polls open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. County offices elected this year serve 4-year terms.
• Expected February 2030Best estimate for the next regular certificate-of-candidacy deadline for county offices, which ride Maryland's four-year gubernatorial cycle. Confirm the exact date with your local board of elections.

The statewide calendar is set by the Election Law Article, but which seats appear on your ballot, and any municipal race running alongside them, is a local question. Confirm every date with your local board of elections before you rely on it.

Offices on the ballot in Prince George's County.

The offices below are the ones the Maryland State Board of Elections certified for this jurisdiction's November 3, 2026 general election ballot. Maryland's counties are not uniform: a County Executive exists only in charter counties, an elected County Treasurer in only three jurisdictions, and three counties do not elect Orphans' Court judges at all.

• County Executive -- the elected head of Prince George's County's government, a 4-year term on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• County Council -- Prince George's is a charter county and elects both at-large and district council members on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• State's Attorney -- the county's elected prosecutor, on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• Clerk of the Circuit Court -- keeps the court's records and issues licenses; on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• Register of Wills -- administers estates and the probate process; on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• Judge of the Orphans' Court -- hears estate matters; a genuinely low-barrier first race, and on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• Sheriff -- on the November 3, 2026 ballot
• Board of Education -- a nonpartisan school board seat, on the November 3, 2026 ballot

Statewide and legislative seats covering Prince George's County are on the same ballot:

• Governor and Lieutenant Governor -- statewide, 2026
• Comptroller -- statewide, 2026
• Attorney General -- statewide, 2026
• State Senate and House of Delegates -- every seat, by legislative district
• Representative in Congress -- by congressional district
• Judge of the Circuit Court, and retention questions for the Supreme Court of Maryland and the Appellate Court of Maryland
• Democratic and Republican Central Committee members -- a $10 filing fee, and the cheapest partisan office in the state to enter

Which specific seats and districts are up in your jurisdiction is set by charter or public local law and by when each seat was last filled. The State Board's certified candidate list and your local board of elections are the two places to confirm it.

How to get on the ballot.

Maryland runs four routes onto a county ballot: a party primary, an unaffiliated or new-party petition, a write-in filing, and appointment to fill a vacancy. Three of those closed earlier in 2026. The write-in route is open until 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 15, 2026, and it is the only one this guide can still send you through.

Write-in candidate -- open until 5 p.m. Thursday, October 15, 2026.

A write-in candidate files a certificate of candidacy with the same board any other candidate would use, but on a different clock. Under EL Sec. 5-303(c) the filing is due by the earlier of two dates: 5 p.m. on the 7th day before early voting begins, or 7 days after a total of at least $51 is spent to promote the candidacy by the candidate's campaign finance entity. Early voting for the November 3, 2026 general election starts on Thursday, October 22, which sets the calendar deadline at 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 15, 2026.

Party primary -- closed February 24, 2026.

A candidate seeking a party's nomination for county office files a certificate of candidacy with the local board of elections. In a gubernatorial year the deadline is 9 p.m. on the last Tuesday in February (EL Sec. 5-303(a)(1)), which was February 24, 2026. The primary was held on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.

Unaffiliated and new-party petition -- closed August 3, 2026.

A candidate not seeking a party nomination reaches the general election ballot by petition, filed with the local board by 5 p.m. on the first Monday in August in the year of the general election (EL Sec. 5-703(d), (f)). For 2026 that was Monday, August 3.

Filling a vacancy on the ballot.

If a nominee withdraws, dies or becomes disqualified after the primary, the party's central committee may name a replacement under the Election Law Article's vacancy provisions. This route is not something a candidate can plan around, but it is worth knowing that a ballot line can reopen after the primary. Ask your local board what the current status of any seat is.

Statutory references: EL Sec. 5-303(a)(1) (certificate of candidacy due 9 p.m. on the last Tuesday in February in a gubernatorial year; February 24, 2026) · EL Sec. 5-303(c) (a write-in candidate's certificate of candidacy is due by the earlier of 7 days after $51 or more is spent to promote the candidacy, or 5 p.m. on the 7th day before early voting starts) · EL Sec. 5-703(d), (f) (unaffiliated and new-party petition, 5 p.m. on the first Monday in August; August 3, 2026) · EL Sec. 5-401(b)(12) ($25 for any other public office), Sec. 5-401(b)(11) ($150 for offices voted on by the whole of Baltimore City), Sec. 5-401(b)(13) ($10 for party central committee), Sec. 5-401(a)(1) (no fee for a write-in candidate), Sec. 5-401(c)(2) (waiver on establishing inability to pay) · EL Sec. 8-201(a)(2)(i) (2026 primary, Tuesday June 23). The general election date is constitutional, Md. Const. Art. XVII Sec. 2, not statutory. · EL Sec. 1-101(p) ('county' means a county of the State or Baltimore City) · Md. Const. Art. IV Sec. 20(b) (Circuit Court judges sit as the Orphans' Court in Montgomery, Harford and Howard counties) · EL Sec. 3-506(a)(1) and COMAR 33.03.02.01B(3) (a Maryland registered voter may obtain the list on written application and a sworn statement that it will not be used for commercial solicitation or any purpose unrelated to the electoral process; 'electoral process' expressly includes qualifying as a candidate for public office and financing a campaign). Fees and signature counts change; confirm before you file.

The Prince George's County Board of Elections.

Maryland ballot access runs through this office. Your local board of elections takes the certificate of candidacy for every county office, holds the district maps, and is the source of truth for which seats are up and what paperwork goes with them.

Contact details verified 2026-08-14. Official statewide sources: Maryland State Board of Elections: Offices up for Election in 2026 · Maryland State Board of Elections: Requirements for Filing Candidacy · Maryland State Board of Elections: Local Boards of Elections · 2026 General Election Local Candidate Listings · Maryland Election Law Sec. 5-303 (filing deadlines, including write-ins) · Maryland Election Law Sec. 5-401 (filing fees and the inability-to-pay waiver).

Common questions.

After you qualify: the field operation.

Maryland is small and wildly uneven: Montgomery and Prince George's each hold roughly as many voters as several Eastern Shore counties combined, and Kent County's whole electorate would fit inside a couple of Baltimore County council districts. A council race in Columbia and a commissioner race in Snow Hill are different jobs. On the Shore and in Western Maryland a county race can be won on a few thousand doors; in the Washington and Baltimore suburbs the same office needs a real turf plan and a volunteer bench.

That is the part Motion51 was built for. You scope your district, cut turf, and send volunteers out with a phone instead of a clipboard. It works offline, so canvassing does not stop where the cell signal does, and every door is logged with a timestamp for your records. Our For Candidates page walks through what that looks like.

Counties next to Prince George's.

Running in a district that crosses a county line? Each of these has its own guide.

See all Maryland counties →