Rematch In Maryland's First Congressional District

By Matt Bush

This year's election for Maryland's first district congressional seat will likely be a rematch of two years ago.

Republican State Senator Andrew Harris made it official that he will run again for his party's nomination for the seat. In 2008, he lost by less than 1 percent of the vote to Frank Kratovil, who became the first Democrat to win the district in 18 years. Because of that, many analysts believe the seat is one of the most vulnerable nationwide for Democrats in the upcoming election.

The first district includes all of the state's eastern shore, and parts of Anne Arundel, Baltimore, and Harford counties. While the district has slightly more registered Democratic voters, moderate Republican Wayne Gilchrest prevailed for nearly two decades before he lost the GOP primary in 2008 to Harris. Kratovil went on to pull out the narrow victory in the general election with Gilchrest's endorsement.