National Party Rules Protect Iowa Caucus Status as Maryland Moves Primary

Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus status just got another layer of protection. Maryland lawmakers from both parties are backing a plan to push their presidential primary from February to April, bowing to pressure from national Republican and Democratic parties that want to preserve the traditional early-state calendar led by Iowa and New Hampshire.

Maryland Proposes April Presidential Primary

The measure, which has strong bipartisan support in the Maryland legislature, would move the state's presidential primary from the second Tuesday in February to the first Tuesday in April. It would also shift Maryland's state office primaries from mid-September to the last Tuesday in June.

The move comes after national parties cracked down on states trying to jump ahead of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina in the nominating process. Both the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee have implemented rules designed to keep the traditional early states in their leading positions.

RNC Draws a Hard Line on Early Contests

The Republican National Committee took the toughest stance, threatening states that hold contests before April 1 with a proportional allocation of delegates instead of the winner-take-all system. Winner-take-all primaries tend to draw more attention from presidential candidates because the victor claims all the state's delegates.

The DNC chose incentives over penalties, offering additional convention delegates to states that wait until after March 1 to hold their contests.

For Iowa voters, the message from both parties is clear. The traditional nominating calendar that gives Iowa its outsized influence in picking presidents remains firmly intact.

Military Voting Requirements Drive June Primary

The proposed June date for state office primaries isn't just about party politics. Maryland needs to comply with the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act, known as the MOVE Act, which requires states to send ballots to military members and overseas voters at least 45 days before a federal election.

Under Maryland's current September primary schedule, there simply isn't enough time to finalize results, print general election ballots, and get them to overseas voters by the 45-day deadline.

Stacy Mayer, a lobbyist for Governor Martin O'Malley, told the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee that the administration is flexible on specific dates as long as they don't trigger penalties from national parties or violate federal voting law.

Potomac Primary Experiment Fizzles

In 2007, Maryland tried to boost its national profile by moving its presidential primary to February and aligning with Virginia and Washington, D.C. in what became known as the