Maryland's 3rd congressional district

Maryland's 3rd congressional district covers all of Howard county as well as parts of Anne Arundel and Carroll counties. The seat is currently represented by Sarah Elfreth, a Democrat.

Three people who represented Maryland in the United States Senate were also former representatives of the 3rd district, including Ben Cardin, Barbara Mikulski, and Paul Sarbanes.

The district's previously odd shape was attributed to gerrymandering to favor Democratic candidates, following the 2000 and 2010 censuses. In 2012, the district was found to be the third least compact congressional district in the United States, and in 2014, The Washington Post called it the nation's second-most gerrymandered district. John Sarbanes, the previous Democratic Representative for the district, put forth the For the People Act of 2019 to address electoral reform, voting rights, and gerrymandering in the United States. Following the 2020 redistricting cycle, it now includes Howard County, most of Anne Arundel County including Glen Burnie and Annapolis, and part of Carroll County, specifically the areas around Mount Airy. For the first time in decades, the district did not include Baltimore City or Baltimore County. It not only lost its connection to Mikulski, Cardin, and Paul Sarbanes, but left John Sarbanes' home outside the district.