By Brian Shane

Staff Writer

(March 26, 2026) A months-long push by Maryland Democrats to run candidates in every state legislative race has resulted in new challengers filing for seats representing Worcester County.

While Feb. 24 was the filing deadline for individual candidates to register for the June 12 primary, state election rules allow party central committees to add new candidates within 10 business days, a deadline that landed on March 10.

It means incumbent lower shore legislators who had been unopposed will now face an Election Day opponent.

Sen. Mary Beth Carozza will be challenged for her District 38 seat in the general election by Democrat Lino Cressotti of Ocean Pines.

If elected, he hopes to be focused on the concerns of working families, small businesses, and rural communities – which he said are “overlooked” in Annapolis.

“We need leadership that listens to residents and works collaboratively to deliver real results,” he said in a statement. “I will work with colleagues across Maryland to advance practical solutions that strengthen our local economy, support families, and ensure the Eastern Shore has a seat at the table when decisions are made that affect our future.”

Carozza, a Republican, said she’s “humbled and grateful” to represent Maryland’s Coast and the lower shore counties of Worcester, Wicomico, and Somerset.

“I believe public officials must earn and keep the trust of the people they represent. I will continue to work hard, day in and day out, on behalf of all my constituents, regardless of whether I am opposed or not in the 2026 election,” she said in a statement.

After serving one term in the House of Delegates, Carozza narrowly defeated incumbent Democratic Sen. Jim Mathias in the 2018 election. While unopposed in her 2022 Senate primary, Carozza went on to defeat Democratic challenger Michelle Gregory with 66% of the vote.

On the House side, incumbent Del. Wayne Hartman, who won’t have any competition in the primary, will be opposed in the general election by Democrat Laurie Anne Brittingham of Ocean Pines.

Hartman hasn’t faced any general election challenger since his first run for the House in 2018, when he defeated three other primary challengers. When re-elected in 2022, he again went unopposed in both the primary and the general election for his District 38C seat.

Hartman in an interview noted that he filed for election nearly a year ago, at the close of the 2025 legislative session “out of a desire to serve the constituents.”

“It was a goal of the state party to have someone in every race, so it did not come as a surprise,” he said. “We’ve had one-party rule in Maryland for over 100 years. I think it’s important that we have someone up here fighting against offshore wind… against Gov. Moore’s tax increases.

“In my eight years serving in Annapolis, I feel I’ve represented all the people in my district, whether they’re Republican, Independent, or Democrat. When I get a request for a meeting in my office, regardless of their affiliation, I take it. I’m here to serve all of them,” he added.

Brittingham did not respond via email for a request for comment. She is also a candidate for the District 2 seat on the Worcester County Democratic Central Committee. State election law does permit dual candidacy for party office.

The Maryland Democratic Party since October has been laboring to recruit and run candidates in every state legislative race for the Nov. 3 general election. The party says it hasn’t happened since 1974.

“For too long there were districts where Democrats did not always field candidates. That changes now,” said party chair Steuart Pittman in a March 11 statement. “By organizing in every corner of Maryland, we are rebuilding the party in places where we have lost ground and creating opportunities to compete, win seats, and grow our movement for years to come.”

Locally, the only county commissioner race where the Worcester County Democratic Central Committee added a candidate was in Ocean Pines. Vicky Wallace made her campaign for the District 5 seat official March 9.

She’ll go on to face the winner of the GOP primary, either incumbent Worcester County Commissioner Chip Bertino or challenger Joseph Schanno, Jr.

No other local races were affected after the March 10 party candidate deadline, and other local incumbents for non-legislative positions will continue to run unopposed.

They include State’s Attorney Kris Heiser, Clerk of the Circuit Court Susan Braniecki and Register of Wills Terri Westcott.

No Democrats filed for Worcester County Sheriff. The winner of the GOP primary between incumbent Sheriff Matt Crisafulli and challenger Jeffrey Buhrt will take the seat.

Elections for the Worcester County Board of Education are nonpartisan and therefore unaffected after the Feb. 24 filing deadline for individual candidates.

The next milestone in the 2026 election cycle is the April 21 due date for spring campaign finance reports.