A rematch between U.S. Rep. David Trone and Republican Neil Parrott for the congressional district in western Maryland appears to be the state’s most competitive congressional battle playing out Tuesday.
Trone, a Democrat, is seeking a third term with a big fundraising advantage: the owner of the Total Wine & More liquor chain has put more than $12 million of his own money into his campaign.
Trone beat Parrott by about 20 percentage points in 2020. However, Parrott, who is a conservative state legislator from Washington County, is expected to benefit from a redrawn 6th Congressional District that has made the district more competitive.
That’s after the General Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats, had to redraw the state’s congressional map after a judge struck down the one that was initially drawn due to partisan gerrymandering.
The lines of the district have long been criticized by the GOP after Democrat John Delaney ousted 20-year incumbent Republican Roscoe Bartlett in 2012 after redistricting a year earlier brought the district into Montgomery County, where there are more Democrats.
This time, though, the district looks more favorable to Republicans than it used to, making the race competitive.
In a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-1, Democrats hold a 7-1 advantage in Maryland’s U.S. House delegation.
The state’s lone House Republican, Rep. Andy Harris, is facing former state legislator Heather Mizeur in the 1st Congressional District, which includes the Eastern Shore. Harris is running for a seventh term.
