Larry Hogan keeps defying Newton’s third law of motion, which states, “what goes up must come down.” Statewide, 78% of voters approve of the job Hogan is doing as governor (48% “strongly approve”), while only 16% disapprove.

I don’t think political parties were around when that apple fell on Sir Isaac’s head in the 17th century, but he might have reconsidered his third law upon seeing that 72% of Democrats approve of the job GOP Hogan is doing; not to mention the 73% of African-Americans approving of a Republican governor. Eighty-five percent of Republican voters, and 85% of independents approve of the job the governor is doing.

Fifty-eight percent of Maryland voters say that things in Maryland are moving in the right direction, while 25% say that things in Maryland are on the wrong track.

Among Maryland voters, 60% favor the idea of a law requiring all employers in the state to pay their workers a minimum salary of $15 per hour (43% “strongly favor” and 17% “somewhat favor”), while 35% oppose a law requiring a $15 per hour minimum wage (27% “strongly oppose” and 8% “somewhat oppose”), with 5% offering no response.

Seventy-nine percent of Democrats favor the concept of a $15 minimum wage.

Politicians are laboring over Labor Day school openings. Among voters, 56% say that all public schools in Maryland should stay closed through Labor Day, while 40% believe that local school jurisdictions should decide when the school year begins. Voters between the ages of 35 and 54 are the only bloc in which a majority don’t think schools should be mandated to remain closed through the holiday that marks the end of summer.

In Maryland today, a bill is under consideration that would allow individuals to put an “X” on their driver’s license, to designate their gender as “unspecified.” Statewide, 37% of voters favor allowing individuals to designate their gender as “unspecified” on a driver’s license, while 51% oppose allowing individuals to put an “X” on their license, in lieu of selecting either male or female.

This poll was conducted by Gonzales Research & Media Services from February 22nd through March 1st, 2019. A total of 817 registered voters in Maryland, who indicated that they vote regularly in general elections, were queried by live telephone interviews, utilizing both landline and cell phone numbers. A cross-section of interviews was conducted throughout the state, reflecting general election voting patterns.

The margin of error (MOE), per accepted statistical standards, is a range of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. If the entire population was surveyed, there is a 95% probability that the true numbers would fall within this range.