Republicans swept through Harford County’s 2026 general election Tuesday, holding the county executive’s office, the County Council presidency, the sheriff’s office and most other countywide positions. Democrats, meanwhile, successfully defended the two County Council seats they already held, leaving the council’s partisan balance exactly where it started.
County Executive and Council President
County Executive Bob Cassilly won another term, defeating Democrat Barbara Osborn Kreamer with 57.70% of the vote — 54,808 votes to Kreamer’s 39,811.
On the same countywide ballot, Republican Billy Boniface won the County Council presidency over Democrat Mike Ciufo, 54,062 votes to 41,278, a margin of about 56.58% to 43.20%.
Together, the two victories extended Republican control of Harford County’s executive branch and the council’s top seat.
County Council Districts
The council’s six district seats produced no change in partisan composition. Republicans held four, Democrats held two — and that is exactly how it ended.
Democrat Nolanda Robert, who had held the District A seat by appointment since January 2025, won election to the seat outright, defeating Republican Jeff Beck 7,315 votes to 4,702, a margin of about 61% to 39%.
In District F, Democrat Tamie Wainwright succeeded fellow Democrat Jacob Bennett, defeating Republican Glen Glass 9,057 votes to 7,468, or about 55% to 45%.
Republicans held their four districts without serious challenge in most cases. Stephanie Flasch won District B over Democrat Isabela Dela Cruz, 10,658 to 5,588. Paula Etting won District C over Democrat Jessica Ryley Hammond, 9,777 to 6,910. John Carl Jr. won District D over Democrat Jean Salvatore by the widest margin of any district race — 13,902 to 4,485, or about 76% to 24%.
The closest race of the night came in District E, where Republican Douglas Phillips defeated Democrat Hunter Baker by 352 votes — 7,778 to 7,426, a margin of about 51% to 49%.
Sheriff and Other Countywide Offices
Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler won another term, defeating Democrat Terrence Rogers 56,265 votes to 38,617, or about 59% to 41%.
State’s Attorney Alison Healey ran without a major-party opponent and received 72,378 votes, or 94.49% of ballots cast in that race. Write-in candidates accounted for the remainder.
Michelle Karczeski won the clerk of the Circuit Court race over Democrat Matthew Brown, 55,272 to 39,189. Derek Hopkins won the register of wills race over Democrat Jo Wanda Strickland-Lucas, 55,903 to 38,010.
Board of Education
All six Board of Education races are nonpartisan. Five produced comfortable margins. The sixth did not.
In District E, Robert Wagner defeated Aaron Boyle by 329 votes — 6,510 to 6,181, or about 51% to 48%.
The other five races were less competitive. Donna Blasdell won District A over Shernice Shermaine Mundell, 5,605 to 4,502. Keri Geibler won District B over Dominic Heath, 7,844 to 4,178. Cathy Kowalewski won District C over Joe Fleckenstein, 8,010 to 6,624. Melissa Hahn won District D over Rachelle Johnson, 9,279 to 5,825. Joseph Alton Jr. won District F over Kawaniee Flowe, 7,736 to 5,906.
State Legislative Races
The following results cover entire legislative districts, which in several cases extend beyond Harford County.
In Senate District 7, Republican J.B. Jennings defeated Democrat Bill Geibler, 23,641 votes to 15,556 districtwide, or about 60% to 40%. In Senate District 35, Republican Jason Gallion defeated Democrat Neil Jennings, 32,508 to 14,013, or about 70% to 30%.
Senate District 34 went the other way. Democrat Mary-Dulany James defeated Republican Raj Goel, 25,914 votes to 18,623 districtwide, or about 58% to 42%.
In the House of Delegates, Republican Lauren Arikan won District 7B over Democrat Candace Hart, 11,358 to 6,186 districtwide. Republican Jake Taylor won District 34B over Democrat Anthony Lyon, 8,933 to 7,644.
District 34A elects two delegates. Democrats Andre Johnson Jr. and Steve Johnson won both seats. Andre Johnson received 16,787 votes, or about 42% of candidate votes cast. Steve Johnson received 13,005 votes, or about 32%. Republican Elliott Herneker received 10,172 votes, or about 25%.
District 35A also elects two delegates, and Republicans swept both. Mike Griffith received 22,565 districtwide votes, or about 37% of candidate votes cast. Teresa Reilly received 20,415 votes, or about 33%. Democrats Gregory Anderson and Michael Eckels Jr. received about 16% and 15%, respectively.
Congress
Republican Andy Harris won another term representing Maryland’s 1st Congressional District, defeating Democrat Dan Schwartz 128,424 votes to 105,349 districtwide, or about 55% to 45%. Those figures are from a snapshot that included 242 of 309 Election Day precincts and should be confirmed against the final count before publication.
Statewide Races — Where Harford Differed
Harford County’s results diverged from the rest of Maryland in several statewide contests.
Democratic Gov. Wes Moore won reelection over Republican Dan Cox by a wide statewide margin — about 62% to 34% — but Harford County voters favored Cox. Democrat Brooke Lierman won reelection as comptroller over Republican Sonya Dunn statewide, but Harford County favored Dunn. Democrat Anthony Brown won reelection as attorney general over Republican James Rutledge III statewide, but Harford County favored Rutledge.
Constitutional Amendments
Maryland voters statewide approved all three constitutional amendments on the ballot. Harford County agreed on two of them but broke with the state on the third.
Question 1, which concerned arbitration rights for state employees, passed statewide with about 74% in favor. Harford County supported it.
Question 2, which concerned temporary appointments to the Commission on Judicial Disabilities — the body that reviews complaints against judges — passed statewide with about 67% in favor. Harford County supported it as well.
Question 3 is where Harford County parted ways with the rest of Maryland. The amendment, which concerned the General Assembly’s authority over congressional redistricting, passed statewide with about 60% in favor. Harford County rejected it, with about 59% of county voters voting against it.