What Maryland Democrats plan to do with their new congressional power

By Bella DeCrescenzo and Ashna Balroop

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th) is poised to become the next chair of the House Judiciary Committee, where he says he will lead investigations into President Donald Trump’s pardons, government contracting and collection of foreign government payments.

“That just sketches the surface of it because they have contaminated every aspect of the federal government, and we are going to shine a light on it,” Raskin said in an interview with Capital News Service on Oct. 21, a couple of weeks before Election Day. “We are going to expose it, counter it and try to stop it as quickly as possible.”

With the blue tsunami at the polls Tuesday that appears to have secured Democratic majorities in both the House and Senate, Maryland Democrats who were reelected to Congress will have more power to pursue their agendas.

Raskin, currently the ranking member on the Judiciary Committee, said that with control of both chambers, Democrats will also focus on restoring healthcare and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for Americans impacted by Trump and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

With Trump’s approval rating decreasing amid voter concerns over affordability and the economy, Democrats who will take over committee leadership in both chambers of the next Congress say they are prepared to combat the administration’s agenda moving forward.

After winning reelection Tuesday, Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-4th) said that Democrats have the opportunity to produce real results.

“As we take the gavels and assume leadership of key committees, we intend to focus on affordability, accountability, opportunity and responsible government,” Ivey said in a statement Wednesday to CNS.

Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-3rd) won reelection after campaigning on affordability issues in Maryland and against Trump’s impacts on the economy.

“With the House and Senate majorities, we now have the tools to lower costs, expand access to healthcare, deliver for families back home AND have the gavels and subpoena powers to place a meaningful check on the reckless abuses of this Administration,” Elfreth wrote in an X post Wednesday morning.

Tuesday’s election results could also expand the power of Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), who serves as ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies. The subcommittee has authority over the funding for several federal agencies, including the Department of Justice.

“The time is now for Democrats to show voters not just what we are against, but what we stand for,” Van Hollen wrote in a statement Wednesday to CNS.

At Raskin’s election watch party Tuesday night, Malcolm Guy, 29, said Raskin is the best person to serve as House Judiciary Committee chair.

“Being the constitutional scholar that he is, he understands what needs to be done to rid this country of its horrible corruption that we’ve seen under this Trump administration,” Guy said. “Ultimately, he’s going to bring these people to account.”

— CNS reporters Isabella González and Faith Harris contributed to this article. Capital News Service is a student-staffed reporting service operated by the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism. Stories are available at the CNS site and may be reprinted as long as credit is given to Capital News Service and, most importantly, to the students who produced the work.