CalledUnofficial results
Maryland Legislative District 9
Maryland State Senate · Maryland
Katie Fry Hester won re-election by 34.3 points over Ben Hightower.
Katie Fry HesterDemocrat · winner · incumbent
67.1%35,867
Ben HightowerRepublican
32.8%17,530
NonpartisanNonpartisan
0.1%71
100% of the expected vote counted · 53,468 votes
Source: civicAPI unofficial results and race callsUpdated Nov 7, 2026, 11:01 PM ET
Where the race moved
Against the 2024 presidential vote
The seat's recent races
Source: Past results: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Katie Fry HesterBen Hightower
$388K
Raised by the campaign
$17.1K
$376.8K
Spent by the campaign
$5.8K
Campaign money: Maryland State Board of Elections, through Oct 18, 2026; Maryland State Board of Elections, through Jun 29, 2026.
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections campaign filingsUpdated Jun 29, 2026
Pre-election forecast (final, Nov 3)
Our model's last run before Election Day, Nov 3, 2026. It no longer updates.
- Katie Fry Hester
- >99%
- Ben Hightower
- <1%
- Projected margin
- D+34.5
The candidates
Katie Fry Hester (D)
Incumbent, Maryland State Senate, first elected 2018Ben Hightower (R)
Incumbent, Maryland State Senate, first elected 2018Ben Hightower (R)
Also on the ballot: Nonpartisan (Nonpartisan), 0.1%