Full Opinion

Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County IN THE SUPREME COURT Case No. C-02-CV-26-002261 OF MARYLAND Argued: October 2, 2026 No. 27 September Term, 2026 SPENCER RHODA v. MARYLAND STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS Fader, C.J., Watts, Booth, Biran, Gould, Eaves, Killough, JJ. PER CURIAM ORDER Filed: October 7, 2026 Pursuant to the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (§§ 10-1601 et seq. of the State Government Article) this document is authentic. 2026.10.07 '00'04- 10:48:21 Gregory Hilton, Clerk * IN THE * SPENCER RHODA SUPREME COURT * v. OF MARYLAND * MARYLAND STATE BOARD OF No. 27 ELECTIONS * September Term, 2026 * (Cir. Ct. No. C-02-CV-26-002261) PER CURIAM ORDER Section 5-703(b) of the Election Law Article allows independent candidates for public office to access the general election ballot by petition. A candidate must file a petition signed “by the lesser of 10,000 registered voters or 1% of the total number of registered voters who are eligible to vote for the office” with “the appropriate board.” Md. Code Ann., Elec. Law §§ 5-703(e)(1). Once a candidate submits a petition, an election official must determine whether the petition meets all applicable legal requirements. Elec. Law §§ 6206(b)-(c), 6-208(a). A person “aggrieved” by that determination may seek judicial review by the earlier of the 10th day after the determination or the 69th day before the election. Elec. Law §§ 6-209(a)(1)(ii), 6-210(e)(1), (2)(i). Dr. Saif Rehman and Spencer Rhoda are candidates running to represent Legislative District 9A in the Maryland House of Delegates. Dr. Rehman is an independent candidate who filed a candidate nomination petition to access the 2026 general election ballot. On August 18, 2026, the State Board of Elections notified Dr. Rehman that his petition satisfied all applicable legal requirements and that it would place his name on the ballot. On September 4, 2026, Mr. Rhoda sought judicial review of the State Board’s determination in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County.1 The State Board moved to dismiss the petition as untimely. After a hearing, the court found that Mr. Rhoda’s petition was untimely because he filed his petition after August 26, 2026, the 69th day preceding the general election. Accordingly, the court dismissed Mr. Rhoda’s petition with prejudice. Mr. Rhoda noted a direct appeal to this Court. We issued an expedited briefing schedule and held oral argument on October 2, 2026. For reasons to be set forth in an opinion to be filed later, it is this 7th day of October 2026, by the Supreme Court of Maryland, ORDERED that the judgment of the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County is affirmed; and it is further ORDERED that costs are to be paid by the appellant. The mandate shall issue forthwith. /s/ Matthew J. Fader Chief Justice 1 Mr. Rhoda attempted to file his petition for judicial review on September 3, 2026 but the filing was rejected. Our decision does not turn on the delay in filing from September 3 to September 4. 2