Montgomery County

Former Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan is preparing a run for his old job in 2014, potentially setting up a high-stakes political battle in Maryland's largest county. Duncan, who led Montgomery County from 1994 until he ran for governor in 2006, has discussed his plans with several Democratic supporters, but has made no official announcement. Duncan, who is 57, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. Citing clinical depression, Duncan dropped out of the 2006 Democratic primary against then-Mayor Martin O'Malley.

Damascus is about to get wet. The Montgomery County town, which had banned the sale of alcoholic beverages for as long as anyone can remember, voted Tuesday to permit local restaurants to sell wine and beer. Four times in the previous 35 years, residents of the unincorporated town of just over 15,000 had voted to keep the place dry. In 1996, the ban was upheld by a few hundred votes. But this year, the vote wasn't close, as 66 percent said yes to alcohol. Retail sales of alcohol will not be permitted.

As an octogenarian, I hoped to avoid the problem of getting to the polls on Election Day by requesting an absentee ballot. But guess what? I spent hours in the effort but all to no avail. My recent attempt to obtain an absentee ballot for the general election shows that this is a futile effort. After calling to get an absentee ballot on Oct. 16, I instead got a form in the mail to fill out so I could apply for one. I got the form Oct. 20 and mailed it back two days later. By as Oct. 31, the last day for submitting absentee ballots, I still hadn't received mine in the mail.

Some voters in Montgomery and Prince George's counties have received absentee ballots that are missing a page containing referendum questions, state officials said Wednesday. The state Board of Elections has found that fewer than 20 absentee voters received ballots missing a second page, Gov. Martin O'Malley said in a statement. "Residents who have requested an absentee ballot should check to make certain they have a complete ballot with a second page that includes Questions 4-7, as well as any of the local county-related questions," O'Malley said.

Whenever proponents of Maryland's new congressional districts make their pitch, there is something missing: the map itself. The gerrymandered map of Maryland's congressional districts produced by Gov. Martin O'Malley and a majority of the General Assembly is so outrageous that proponents of the new map are embarrassed to show it in public. That's because when most people see the map and its bizarrely shaped districts, they cannot believe that anyone in their right mind would have voted for it. Maryland's new Third Congressional District, represented by Congressman John Sarbanes, a Baltimore County Democrat, is so disjointed it looks like blood spatter from a crime scene (www.planning.maryland.gov/PDF/Redistricting/2010maps/Cong/Dist_3.pdf)

Even as he campaigns for re-election to Congress, Rep. Chris Van Hollen has been tapped by the Obama campaign to help lead the Democratic rebuttal to Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan — a role that is taking him to battleground states around the nation. When Ryan hit the campaign trail last month with presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney, Van Hollen was giving national interviews criticizing the Wisconsin lawmaker's budget proposals. The Montgomery County Democrat has traveled to the swing states of New Hampshire and North Carolina to speak against Ryan's plans to cut taxes, slash spending and overhaul entitlement programs — turning Medicare, for example, into a voucher program.

A flash flood warning has been issued for west central Howard County and north central Montgomery County, according to the National Weather Service. Up to three inches of rain had fallen on the area as of about 8:30 p.m., and up to two additional inches of rain were expected, the service said. The warning is in effect until 11:45 p.m., the service said. krector@baltsun.com twitter.com/rectorsun

When Lisa Moore searched outside her house in Jacksonville on Thursday for her 4-year-old daughter, she instead found a 2-year-old black bear. "I looked for her, turned the corner… I see this bear on its hind legs and it was trying to eat bird seed from a bird feeder" hanging in the tree, Moore said. After about 10 seconds watching the bear in awe, she said, "it hit me, where is my daughter?" Luckily, she was inside and, together, mother and daughter watched the bear hanging around a swing set, occasionally making his way to the bird feeder.

Gov. Martin O'Malley named an 11-member work group Monday night to study a possible expansion of gambling in Maryland and announced that if the group can reach consensus he would call a special session July 9 to vote on casino legislation. O'Malley selected John Morton III, chairman of the Maryland Stadium Authority and prominent business executive, to chair the panel. Representing the administration will be Budget Secretary T. Eloise Foster, chief of staff Matthew Gallagher, appointments secretary Jeanne Hitchcock and chief legislative aide Joseph Bryce.

Dr. George G. Hansen, a retired dentist and master woodworker, died April 11 of pneumonia at Oak Crest Village retirement community. He was 89. The son of educators, Dr. Hansen was born in Baltimore and raised in Towson. He spent his boyhood summers at a camp his parents owned and operated in Oakland, where he learned to ride horses, shoot, canoe, camp and do woodworking. After graduating in 1941 from Polytechnic Institute, where his father taught physical education, he earned his degree in an accelerated class in 1946 from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry.