2025 General Assembly Session Spurs Intense Pre-Session Fundraising in Maryland
TL/DR –
The 2025 General Assembly session in Maryland has opened on the earliest possible date, leading to an intense pre-session scramble for fundraising. State officials, including the governor, lieutenant governor, state comptroller, and attorney general, are prohibited from soliciting campaign funds during the 90-day session, creating a fast-paced flurry of fundraising events. This year, at least 72 fundraisers were scheduled to occur over a week, with the total cost of the cheapest ticket for each event totaling over $24,000.
Due to the 2025 calendar alignment, this year’s General Assembly session opens on Jan. 8, triggering a frenzied pre-session fundraising scramble by Maryland lawmakers and statewide officials. This rush to raise campaign funds before a three-month fundraising ban is more intensified this year.
State officials and politicians organize a multitude of fundraising events in Annapolis prior to the start of the General Assembly session. In this period, a significant amount of money is exchanged as politicians aim to fill their campaign coffers.
This year, at least 72 fundraisers were scheduled for officials and lawmakers between Thursday and Jan. 7, according to information obtained by Maryland Matters. The cheapest ticket for each event would cost a donor a total of $24,015.69 during this week.
Post the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, donors in Maryland are no longer bound by a collective $10,000 limit to candidates during an election cycle.
New campaign finance reports show last-minute spending on Md. elections
Gov. Wes Moore (D) and Del. Kent Roberson (D-Prince George’s) are among the many raising funds. Roberson invites constituents to his event in Annapolis on Monday via a holiday greeting.
Many political leaders and committees have fundraisers lined up, including Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) and House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County). Fundraisers are also scheduled by Senate committee chairs, as well as House committee chairs such as Vanessa Atterbeary (D-Howard) and Marc Korman (D-Montgomery).
The most intensive fundraising day will be Monday, with at least 31 events taking place. Lawmakers will be collecting money at various events throughout the day.
Tuesday traditionally features a significant event for the Maryland Democratic Party in Annapolis, with Moore, Ferguson, Jones, and other party leaders giving pep talks. The last event of the pre-session scramble is for Del. Dana Stein (D-Baltimore County), the House speaker pro tem.
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