Democratic candidate testifies that he met residency deadlines when filing to run

A Washington County Circuit Court judge is expected rule soon after hearing arguments Thursday on a petition filed by a Republican state senator against his potential Democratic challenger in November.

In the court filing, Sen. Paul Corderman, R-Washington, alleges Shawn Demetrious Perry, who is running for the Democratic nomination for state Senate District 2, did not live in the district when the new legislative redistricting map was enacted on Jan 27.

Corderman is the lone Republican and Perry is the lone Democrat running for their parties' nominations in the primary, meaning they would both move on to challenge each other in the Nov. 8 general election, depending on the outcome of Corderman's petition.

Perry's attorney, Bernard W. Semler II of Semler Law LLC, argued that not only did Perry have a home within the district, he changed his residency before the deadline.

He added that when the Court of Appeals had upheld the legislative district map on April 13 after facing legal challenges, Maryland Court of Appeals Judge Joseph Getty had issued a ruling that a candidate running in the upcoming 2022 statewide election must take up residence in a new district by May 8, 2022.

Under the Maryland Constitution, "a person is eligible to serve as a Senator or Delegate, who on the date of his election, is a citizen of the State of Maryland, has resided therein for at least one year next preceding that date, and if the district which he has been chosen to represent has been established for at least six months prior to the date of his election, has resided in that district for six months next preceding that date."

Perry testified that he owned his previous home on Garnette Avenue since 2010. That home was within the District 2 borders according to the legislative map passed in 2012, but had changed due to the 2022 legislative map changes.

Perry filed a voter registration application with the Maryland State Board of Elections, stating his address was changed on May 5, three days before the deadline set by Getty, to a home on Wayne Avenue in Hagerstown — in the updated boundaries of District 2.

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Sharing spaces

State House Minority Whip Jason C. Buckel, who is the lead attorney for Corderman, argued that there was no evidence that Perry lived at the house on Wayne Avenue, as Perry had no intention of selling the house on Garnette Avenue.

A private investigator hired by Corderman's team, Matt Griffin, followed Perry for five days. Griffin testified that Perry spent more time at the house on Garnett Avenue.

However, Semler said that nowhere in Griffin's report did it show where Perry spent his night at.

Perry testified that the house on Wayne Avenue was his fiancée's house, stating that the pair had been together for several years. Both had shared their residence in the past two years.

The plan was always for them to move in together at the house on Wayne Avenue, according to Perry. He added that he still maintains the house on Garnett Avenue because he plans to give it to his son, who is currently in college.

Legislative district map complications

Regardless, Buckel argued that Perry should have known what district he was filing in, since the new legislative map was approved on Jan 27. After the approval, it had faced legal challenges from Republican lawmakers contending that it violated the state constitution by crossing county borders and diluting Republican votes.

Perry said the process was confusing due to the legal challenges causing deadline extensions, giving him uncertainty as to what was going to happen with the legislative map.

He added that he was still receiving mail from his delegate representatives in District 2A, which are Republicans Bill Wivell and Neil Parrott. That led him believe that he was still in District 2.

Buckel rebutted that Perry still did not change his residence until May 4, after the Court of Appeals upheld the legislative map on April 13.

Perry said that he wasn't notified until May 2 by the Maryland State Board of Elections that he would not be on the ballot for District 2. He then changed his residence a few days later.

'Rules are rules'

Perry had filed to run for District 2 in March. His address on the Maryland State Board of Elections website was a P.O. Box in Maugansville, which Corderman said during his testimony that most candidates do for privacy.

He added that he had no reason to question Perry's residence as Perry was placed as a candidate in District 1. It wasn't until he was then placed back in District 2 on May 10 that it became a concern, according to Corderman.

Which is why he filed the petition, he said.

Buckel argued that he respects Perry for wanting to serve the community, but that "rules are rules."

Washington County Circuit Court Judge Dana Moylan Wright said she could not give a ruling immediately, despite Attorney General representative James Lewis' recommendation.

Lewis said that a ruling could cause an appeal and urged the two parties to do so immediately to make sure there is less confusion for the upcoming election. Early voting starts July 7 and the primary election is July 19.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Maryland Senate District 2 candidate testifies at residency hearing