Coming up on MHP, Martin O’Malley throws his hat in the ring. A former governor of Maryland and former mayor of Baltimore, O’Malley is expected to announce his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination Saturday morning. Lesser-known than Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, O’Malley is fashioning himself as the populist, liberal alternative. On paper, he has the progressive chops to back it up – as governor he abolished the death penalty and supported same-sex marriage. But critics familiar with his mayoral tenure argue otherwise.
As mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007, O’Malley implemented a zero-tolerance policy on crime. In 2005, Baltimore made more than 100,000 arrests in a city of with a population of 640,000. The arrest rate prompted lawsuits from the ACLU and the NAACP. One Baltimore-based group, Baltimore Bloc, plans to protest his announcement, claiming he is partly responsible for the unrest in the city over Freddie Gray’s death. We’ll take a look at his record, and whether it could threaten his candidacy.
And, The Supreme Court will hear a case that could change how states define their voting districts. Currently, voting districts are divvied up based on Census data, which accounts for every person in the country. But conservative group Project on Fair Representation is seeking to redefine the “one person, one vote” principle, arguing that districts should actually be based on the number of people eligible to vote – excluding minors and undocumented immigrants from consideration of the area’s total population. The court’s ruling could drastically change the electoral landscape and could particularly affect Latino communities.
Joining Melissa Harris-Perry for all things election are:









