Baltimore is sticking with a familiar face to help run its 2026 elections, signing a $1.6 million, no-bid deal with McAfee Election Services that officials insist will be the last contract of its kind. The agreement covers supervisory staff at the Board of Elections warehouse in the weeks before the June primary and again after the November general, as the city scrambles to lock in ballots, scanners, and storage ahead of early voting this summer.
Meeting minutes from the Baltimore City Board of Elections show contractor Sam McAfee sitting down with board members and noting that his contract had been approved by the board of estimates for both primary and general elections, according to the Baltimore City Board of Elections. The city’s procurement roster lists McAfee Election Services among active municipal vendors on a list kept by the Baltimore City Department of Finance. Board staff told members that McAfee’s team has already been on site at the Franklintown Road warehouse, getting ballot scanners and storage systems ready.
As reported by The Baltimore Banner, the Board of Estimates signed off on the $1.6 million contract, which pays for supervisory personnel for 60 days before each election and 14 days afterward. In the public meeting, Mayor Brandon Scott greeted the contractor’s arrival with a loud “welcome, sir, and amen, hallelujah,” while City Council President Zeke Cohen thanked McAfee for stepping in, according to The Baltimore Banner. Board of Elections executive director Clifford Tatum told the panel he hopes to have a permanent warehouse director hired before the June primary and said that position is being advertised now.
The hire follows a run of election headaches laid out in prior The Baltimore Banner reporting, including preliminary results wiped out in the 2020 primary, misplaced flash drives that slowed down results reporting in 2022, and an audit that found a 590-vote overcount in the 2024 primary. State regulators also took a hard look at the Franklintown Road warehouse: Maryland Occupational Safety and Health cited the site for 19 violations, two labeled “serious,” and the Department of Homeland Security conducted its own inspection this year. City officials say those findings helped drive the decision to move the warehouse and bring on a permanent director in 2027.
What's next and when
The state’s election calendar has early voting for the 2026 gubernatorial primary opening June 11, with Primary Day set for June 23, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections. That makes the weeks just before mid-June a crucial staffing window for Baltimore’s elections office. Under the new contract, McAfee’s supervisory crews are expected to be busiest in the 60 days leading up to those dates, when ballots are prepared, scanners tested, and storage space staged. City officials say the deal is meant as a temporary patch while plans for a new warehouse and a permanent director move ahead.
City's reasoning and procurement outlook
Officials framed the no-bid extension as a practical call, arguing that McAfee’s teams already know Baltimore’s election routines and can be deployed quickly at the warehouse while the city completes its move and hires a full-time director. At the same time, board members signaled they want to tighten up purchasing practices and steer away from future reliance on emergency, no-bid contracts, a familiar sore spot in city government.
What voters should know
For voters, the basics remain the same: those looking for exact dates, drop-box locations, and mail-ballot instructions should keep an eye on the 2026 calendar from the Maryland State Board of Elections and the Baltimore City Board of Elections website for the most current local details. City officials say they expect to have staffing plans and storage logistics nailed down well before early voting kicks off in June.
