Cardin, O'Malley Win in Md. Races

"You have worked too hard . . . for us to slow this train down now just because some TV station wants to make a projection with one percent of the vote in. I just wanted to come down and let you know that I still have a lot of fight in me. They don't call me Steele for nothing."

The governor's race pitted incumbent Ehrlich, who became the state's first Republican governor in a generation, against O'Malley, the charismatic Baltimore mayor who spent the past seven years trying to revitalize the state's Maryland's largest city.

In the Senate race Ehrlich's lieutenant governor, Steele, relied on unconventional ads and his affable personality in his contest against Cardin, a Baltimore area congressman. Cardin tried to harness the widespread dissatisfaction over President Bush and the Iraq war as a way to power his campaign.

The election was marked by a large turnout and voting progressed relatively well compared with the chaotic September primary, in which electronic voting machine glitches and other problems infuriated many voters. A record high number of Marylanders requested absentee ballots for the general election.

The Associated Press reported that Maryland voters had chosen Peter V.R. Franchot (D), a state delegate from Takoma Park, for state comptroller over Anne M. McCarthy (R), the first woman dean of the University of Baltimore's business school. Franchot took an early lead over McCarthy, 56.9 percent to 43.0 percent, with three-quarters of precincts reporting.

In the attorney general race, the AP declared Douglas F. Gansler (D), the Montgomery County State's Attorney, the winner over Frederick County State's Attorney Scott L. Rolle (R). Gansler held an early lead 58.8 percent to Rolle's 41.2 percent, with three-quarters of precinct results.

Montgomery County voters also elected their first African American county executive, Isiah "Ike" Leggett (D), while in Prince George's the Republican Party did not field candidates for several top positions, ensuring county executive Jack B. Johnson another term.

The last days of the campaign were tense and raw as Democratic party leaders criticized Ehrlich and Steele for fliers that were apparently intended to trick voters into believing the two Republicans had been endorsed by three of the state's most respected African American leaders. On Election day Democrats found out that the Republican campaigns had bussed in poll workers from Philadelphia to pass out the misleading fliers at voting precincts in Prince George's County and Baltimore.

From the beginning of the governor's race, Ehrlich, the former congressmen, attempted to defend his base in the Baltimore area while attracting new voters from the Democratic-leaning Washington suburbs. O'Malley, meanwhile, tried to capitalize on his popularity beyond the borders of his city while courting the loyalty of Democratic voters in the populous Washington area.

Ehrlich tried to define the race as a referendum on the candidates' records, saying he had been an agent of change in Annapolis while Baltimore had languished under O'Malley's leadership. The governor used television advertisements highlighting crime and low-performing schools in Baltimore.

O'Malley, who consistently led in the polls until recent days, defended what he called a record of progress tackling urban woes and portrayed Ehrlich as out of touch with working-class families. He also emphasized Ehrlich's ties to Bush at a time when the Republican president's popularity is flagging.

The state's other premier race was the senate contest between Steele and Cardin to replace retiring Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D), who was first elected to public office 40 years ago.