Pre-filed ahead of the 2026 legislative session by Del. Gary Simmons, an Anne Arundel County Democrat, House Bill 101 says broadcasters must “invite all candidates who are certified to the ballot in the general election” for statewide office. The bill, which will receive its first reading in the House’s Government, Labor and Elections Committee, would penalize broadcasters who hold debates without doing so by making them ineligible to receive or use state funds.

Simmons sees his bill as a way to improve civics education for Maryland voters, whom he says often vote based on party loyalty rather than by considering the quality of their individual candidates. And while he has not yet discussed the bill with the Government, Labor and Elections Committee’s 18 members, Simmons believes it could receive support from both Democrats and Republicans.

“We have to give the voter the proper information, and we have to give them an accurate choice. We can’t just shove stuff down people’s throats and kind of give them [only] the ability to take it,” Simmons told The Baltimore Sun Monday, adding that barring third-party candidates from debates is akin to “muting” the will of voters.

To be eligible for debate participation under current Maryland Public Television standards, third-party candidates “must demonstrate significant voter interest and support” in the polls. For primary debates, a candidate must be polling at 3%, which rises to 10% for general elections — a threshold that no third-party gubernatorial challenger has ever reached in Maryland.

Tom Williams, Maryland Public Television’s senior managing director of communications, told The Sun Monday evening that “MPT was informed about this proposed bill about 24 hours ago.” Williams vowed his organization would “review the bill language relative to our existing editorial policies.”

Williams did not immediately respond to The Sun’s follow-up question asking if Maryland Public Television would consider changing its editorial policies without state action.

Green Party’s Ellis backs bill

Simmons’ bill has a strong supporter in gubernatorial candidate Andy Ellis, who is running for governor on the Green Party ticket this year.

“They’re one of the only times voters see candidates side by side, comparing values and priorities in real time,” Ellis said about televised debates, in a news release Monday. “When publicly funded broadcasters exclude legally qualified candidates, they deny voters the information they need to make informed choices.”

During his campaign, Ellis has been realistic about his very slim chance of winning the governor’s mansion as a Green Party candidate. Still, he believes a chance to get on the stage and his experience with winning arguments — he coached the Towson University debate team to its first national championship in 2008 — could fundamentally reshape any debate between Moore and the eventual Republican nominee.

“If you think about [slavery] reparations, for example, John Myrick, or whoever the Republican is going to be, is going to stand up and say, ‘We oppose this entirely.’ Wes Moore is going to say, ‘I support it,’ but they have a different approach to it,” Ellis told The Sun. “And if we’re on that stage, it changes entirely how Governor Moore and John Myrick have to answer it.”

Ellis added that, on the flip side, it could be harder for a Republican nominee to portray Moore as a “radical leftist” if he becomes the primary defender of progressive policy positions on a debate stage.

The Sun asked Moore’s office Monday how the potential inclusion of a third-party candidate in a gubernatorial debate could change their approach, to which communications director David Turner responded: “I love that you think we are thinking about debate strategy on January 12.”

Other support

Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle, a Baltimore-based grassroots organization that advocates for Black communities, included the push for third-party candidates among its 2026 legislative priorities. The group is led by Dayvon Love, who won a debate national championship under Ellis as a student at Towson University.

“The two-party system has created a dynamic where Black people are a captured electorate of the Democratic Party and has empowered a centrist core of the party to block policies that would empower our community. This has made progressive policies that should be easy to move through the legislature extremely difficult to pass,” the group’s website reads, pointing to areas such as police accountability and youth justice reform.

Mike Scott, Maryland’s Libertarian candidate for U.S. Senate in 2024, also raised the issue of third-party candidates in public debates during his campaign. At the time, Scott told Maryland Matters that he was “studiously ignored” and “pissed” upon being excluded from a Senate debate between Democrat Angela Alsobrooks and Republican Larry Hogan.

The Sun also reached out to the 18 members of the House’s Government, Labor and Elections Committee for their position on Simmons’ bill; none of the 13 Democrats and five Republicans responded by deadline.

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