Mayor Brandon Scott is one step closer to leading Baltimore City for a second term after winning the Democratic primary election Tuesday.
The Associated Press called Scott’s victory around 11:30 p.m., with 293 of the city’s 295 precincts’ votes reported. Mail-in ballots still need to be counted. But Scott leads with 50.92% of the votes, while his opponent Sheila Dixon holds 41.31% of the recorded total.
Dixon has not conceded victory to Scott. “I’ll be waiting for the final outcome of the mail-in ballots before I make any further statements on the outcome of the mayoral primary," said the former mayor in a statement sent out to press on Wednesday afternoon.
There are around 14,000 ballots to be counted starting on Thursday.
Scott celebrated his victory in a packed room in South Baltimore, with his fiancee and newborn baby by his side on stage — as supporters chanted “four more years.
“Baltimore, we are going to finish the transformation that we started this past four years together,” Scott said to the crowd. “We're going to continue to reduce violence the right way, prioritizing our kids and not balancing our budget on their backs. We're going to keep making sure that Baltimore is a place for all people, not just the wealthy, well-connected few.”
Scott, the 40-year-old Democratic incumbent, started his mayoral career during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic after beating Dixon by only 3,145 votes. Now, he’s under national spotlight for his leadership through the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in late March — which killed six construction workers and left hundreds without jobs.
Scott’s four-year tenure has focused on community safety. In 2021, he re-launched the Group Violence Reduction Strategy – a program that aims to bring police and community partners together to tackle gang-related gun violence.
In February, researchers linked the program to a 25% decrease in gun violence in western Baltimore earlier this year.
“We achieved the law largest reduction in homicides Baltimore I've ever seen,” Scott said. “And together, we're gonna work this year to beat that number.”
MK Haber, a 49-year-old substance use disorder treatment provider, said Tuesday morning they voted for Scott because of his approach to gun violence.
“I'm really moved by the fact that he's taken the science and learned that gun violence is a public health issue and addressed it in a public health manner,” they said. “He also understands that substance use disorder is a chronic disease, and he understands the importance of destigmatization.”
The city saw an overall 20% drop in homicides in 2023. Scott originally promised to reduce the homicide rate by 15% each year in office in 2020.
Scott said the primary win “means that the work has just begun.”
“Winning is not just a triumph, but a challenge to go further, to be better, and do more for Baltimore,” he said.
A bit further north, the music was loud and the party started promptly at eight at Sheila Dixon's Remington campaign headquarters. As supporters and campaign workers scooped heaps of pasta Alfredo and salad onto their plates, many of them had the same feeling: The third time's the charm.
Dixon, who resigned from the mayor’s office in 2010 over a scandal that involved embezzled gift cards, has run to retake her old office in 2016 and in 2020.
The first batch of 2024 votes, including the first round of mail-in ballots, came out with the former mayor in the lead.
“I love how she engages with communities... She's always been engaging, and I get tired of some candidates that talk at you and say, ‘Hey, I'm in charge,’ ” said Scott Sommerer, a Bolton Hill resident who described going full throttle on the phone banks for Dixon’s campaign.
Thiru Vignarajah was one of the earliest guests at the festivities. Vignarajah, a former mayoral candidate, dropped out of the race on May 1st after mail-in ballots went out and just before the start of early voting. He backed Dixon and encouraged his loyal base of supporters to do so too.
“With each passing day it feels more righteous,” said Vignarajah of his decision to drop the race. “And part of that comes from seeing Sheila and her team of supporters in action.”
Dixon only dropped by the campaign headquarters briefly. At around 10:30 she entered to cheers and applause. By that time, Scott had a sizable lead with about 70% of precincts reporting.
“We are not throwing in the towel,” Dixon told her supporters, reminding them that precincts in Edmondson Village, a stronghold of hers, still weren’t counted yet.
Still, she offered thanks to all of her supporters.
“You cannot begin to know how deeply I feel for the love that you have shown me and the city of Baltimore and the changes that we know need to take place here,” she said.
As she left the stage, she was mobbed by hugs and within moments the crowd was singing a rousing hymn of support.
Dixon left around 11p.m., shortly before the race was called in Scott’s favor.
