Meet the candidates vying to become Baltimore City State's Attorney
BALTIMORE -- A defense attorney who went up against a corrupt police task force, a former deputy attorney general of Maryland, and an incumbent vying for her third term are competing for Baltimore City State's Attorney. Here's what you need to know about the candidates.
Ivan Bates
Ivan Bates, a former prosecutor and defense attorney, is running for Baltimore City State's Attorney in a race against incumbent Marilyn Mosby and Thiru Vignarajah.
Bates finished second in the last race against the came candidates in 2018.
On Tuesday, Bates showed up at Hazelwood Elementary. It was his last scheduled stop at a polling place.
Bates said the 2022 race is different from the one he ran in 2018.
"It's the same candidates but a different race," he said. "Crime is absolutely out of control and when I talk to the voters, and the voters they want change."
Bates has 25 years of experience as a prosecutor and defense attorney, running his own law firm and defending victims of the Baltimore Police Department's corrupt Gun Trace Task Force.
He says he has a clear message for the voters.
"In Baltimore City, crime is out of control and illegal handguns are an epidemic," he said. "If you have an illegal handgun, you will go to jail with Ivan Bates. Citizens have to make a decision: do they want that? The certainty of consequences."
There are no candidates running for Baltimore City State's Attorney on the Republican side, so whoever wins the primary is on the path to be the city's next state's attorney.
Marilyn Mosby
Marilyn Mosby stopped by three polling places on Tuesday. She is seeking a second re-election to Baltimore City State's Attorney.
She started at the Forest Park Senior Citizen Center in West Baltimore and stopped at Fort Worthington Elementary in East Baltimore before heading to Northwood Elementary in Northeast Baltimore.
Mosby intends to host a watch party when the polls close at 8 p.m.
She is squaring off against the same opponents she beat in 2018. That year, she won by a wide margin, collecting just below 50% of the vote.
This year, she has the cloud of a federal case hanging over her.
Earlier this year, federal authorities charged Mosby with perjury and falsifying information on a mortgage application.
She has pleaded not guilty to those federal charges.
Mosby has spent her campaign touting her record of freeing those falsely accused and how her office is no longer prosecuting certain low-level, nonviolent offenses.
She has been the target of criticism from the city's police union after she brought charges against the officers involved in the arrest of Freddie Gray.
Gray died after he was arrested.
Her office was unable to secure convictions, Mosby says the case has brought about reforms.
"My record speaks for itself," she said. "We have to continue to change lives and make America live up to its ideals of justice and equality for everybody. That's what this election is all about. Whether you're going to continue to move forward or move backwards."
Win or lose the primary, Mosby is set to face a jury in September.
Thiru Vignarajah
WJZ caught up with Thiru Vignarajah, who is running for Baltimore City State's Attorney, and his parents at Digital Harbor High School on Tuesday.
The former federal and state prosecutor is no stranger to the race to become Baltimore's next state's attorney.
He ran for the office in 2018.
That year, he had the same political competitors: current Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby and local attorney Ivan Bates.
More recently, he ran for the office of mayor in 2020.
Vignarajah lost both bids for office but has continued to dabble in the world of politics.
"Vote for change," he told voters on Tuesday.
Vignarajah believes that he is in a different place than he was in previous races and that more people recognize his name.
"Four years ago, I was a complete rookie with no name recognition, that nobody had ever heard of before," he said.
Vignarajah is campaigning on a platform pledge to reduce Baltimore's homicide rate.
He promises to achieve that goal quickly.
"We had murders below 200. It didn't require mass incarceration or zero tolerance," he said. "It required smart strategies, common sense policing and prosecution strategies," he said.
Part of Vignarajah's plan to reduce crime hinges on hiring additional homicide detectives.
"People tell you that it takes five years, 10 years, it's not true . . . Things seem out of control. Things seem impossible to fix," he said. "I promise you, it's not."
Vignarajah was endorsed by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan who crossed party lines to support the democratic candidate.