Judge delays hearing on Corderman's petition alleging challenger lives outside district

A Washington County Circuit Court judge has postponed a hearing on a petition filed by a Republican state senator against a Democratic candidate running for the same Maryland state Senate seat in November.

County Circuit Court Judge Dana Moylan Wright set Thursday afternoon for Sen. Paul Corderman, R-Washington, to move forward with his case, giving Shawn Demetrious Perry time to present his case.

The petition alleges Perry doesn't live in District 2, which Corderman has represented since September 2020, and misled authorities in saying he did.

In court documents filed last week in Washington County Circuit Court, Corderman asked the court to disqualify Perry from the ballot in the upcoming gubernatorial election.

Perry told Wright in court Monday that he did not receive his court summons until Friday afternoon by email while he was at work. Wright said that Perry deserved an opportunity to prepare his case.

Background: Corderman court filing alleges Democratic challenger lives outside Senate district

More on election: Filing deadline over: Here are the candidates running in the 2022 Maryland primary

According to the suit, Perry filed to register as a candidate for the Senate seat on March 14, stating his address was on Garnette Avenue — which is in the Maugansville area. By the time the new Maryland legislative district map was enacted on Jan. 27, Perry's address was outside of District 2, court filing states.

Candidates running for a state Senate district seat must be a voter in that district, according to state law.

The court filing says that on May 5, Perry filed a voter registration application with the Maryland State Board of Elections saying his address was changed to a home on Wayne Avenue in Hagerstown, which is in District 2. Wayne Avenue is in a neighborhood off Pennsylvania Avenue near North Hagerstown High School.

In Corderman's petition, he claims that Perry gave "false and misleading" information, alleging that Perry was still living at his Garnette Avenue address when he changed his voter registration and remains living there.

Corderman is asking the court to nullify Perry's candidacy and for the Washington County Board of Elections remove his name from the ballot before the General Election on Nov. 8.

Corderman is running unopposed in the GOP primary on July 19; Perry is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination.

A representative from the Maryland attorney general's office said it was urgent the petition be ruled upon as ballots for the primary were certified last week and were being written.

Corderman is represented by Buckel Levasseur Pillai & Beeman LLC, a law firm where Del. Jason C. Buckel, R-Allegany, is one of the founders. Buckel, who is also the minority leader for the Maryland House chamber, is the lead attorney, according to Maryland Circuit Court website. Attorneys Lee T. Beeman and Ramani S. Pillai are also listed as Corderman's attorneys.

The Washington County Board of Elections is also listed as a defendant. Brian Kane of Kane, Wilburn & Stone P.A., is listed as the attorney for the elections board. The Maryland State Board of Elections is listed as a defendant as well, but it was unclear who was representing it.

Corderman was appointed to the seat after former Sen. Andrew Serafini retired in 2020. At that time, Corderman served in the House of Delegates from District 2B, which roughly includes the city limits of Hagerstown. He was appointed to that seat late in 2017 when former Del. Brett Wilson, R-Washington, was appointed as a judge in the Washington County Circuit Court.

Corderman, who had served on the Hagerstown City Council, was then elected to return to the House of Delegates in 2018.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Democratic candidate given time to prep case in residency challenge