Online resources for the upcoming election

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - To learn more about the candidates and issues in the upcoming election check out these websites.

The State Board of Elections has information on how and where to vote, along with offering links to campaign finance databases and election results.

For more specific information, the local boards offer basic information on county candidates: Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, Howard County.

The League of Women Voters of Maryland publishes a thorough election guide, including statewide candidates and links to local races. The League is a non-partisan group that traces its origins to 1920, when women were first given the right to vote.

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UMBC's Voter Information Clearinghose has searchable databases for campaign finance reports, candidate information and voter registration - though finance data is not always up-to-date. The site is run by the National Center for the Study of Elections, which helps the State Board of Elections through research.

The Maryland League of Conservation Voters evaluates legislators and candidates for their positions on environmental issues. The site includes their "scorecards", rating members of the General Assembly based on votes the group considered key environmental issues.

The Maryland Taxpayers Association and its sister organization, the Maryland Tax Education Foundation, proclaim themselves the watchdogs of state spending and taxation. While not endorsing any candidates, the sites include Op-Eds and General Assembly testimony by members.

Maryland NOW - the state's chapter of the National Organization for Women - offers legislative scorecards and vote breakdowns on issues that not only include the availability of emergency contraception, but also harsher penalties for child abuse and easier criteria for protective orders against abusers.

Maryland Right to Life has its own scorecards on 'pro-life' issues like stem cell research, extending certain laws relating to homicide and physical injury to a fetus and prohibitions on human cloning.

The Maryland State Teachers Association is the state's branch of the National Education Association, and weighs in on how candidates stand on education issues and benefits for teachers. The Web site¹s main page has a county-by-county listing of candidate endorsements, while its legislation page has the union¹s score card for the latest legislative session.

The Association of Federal, State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) rates candidates and makes endorsements for each state based on union issues. The Maryland Congressional Scorecard is available by clicking here.

The Maryland Chamber of Commerce and its advocacy Web site, MDvoteforbusiness.com, look at votes, bills and candidates based on their pro- or anti-business stands.

The Maryland Public Policy Institute does research and advocacy to promote free enterprise, limited government and civil society. A Policy Blog spells out the Institute's stand on various issues, and a voter's guide is available for order in book form for $14.95.

Harford Technical High School outside of Bel Air has created a local voter's guide as a project of its student government association. Its sub-pages for county, state and federal candidates have a mix of profiles and links to candidates' own Web sites, so it may not have the most comprehensive offerings.

Part of the Baltimore Examiner's 2006 Election Coverage

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