Is ‘Tell Me Lies’ over? How many episodes are in ‘Tell Me Lies’ Season 3?


Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 promises a Baird College scandal in 2009 and shocking truths and consequences in the two major timelines. But when the end credits roll on “Are You Happy Now, That I’m on My Knees?” is that how the story ends?! Is Tell Me Lies over? Or are there more episodes still to come — either in Season 3 or a potential Season 4? If you’re looking for answers, you’ve come to the right place!

Though Tell Me Lies Season 2 consisted of eight episodes, fans of Meaghan Oppenheimer’s hit Hulu drama may recall that Tell Me Lies Season 1 consisted of 10 episodes. So it’s understandable that viewers are wondering what the deal is with Season 3 — especially when it feels like there are so many questions still in need of answering after Season 3, Episode 7.

So is Tell Me Lies over after Season 3, Episode 8? How many episodes are in Tell Me Lies Season 3? When is the Tell Me Lies Season 3 finale? And will there be a Tell Me Lies Season 4? Read on for all the details, including comments from Oppenheimer herself.

How Many Episodes Are In Tell Me Lies Season 3?

Like Season 2 before it, Tell Me Lies Season 3 consists of eight episodes total.

When Is The Tell Me Lies Season 3 Finale? Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 Premiere Date:

Curious when Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 comes out? You can stream Episode 8 starting Tuesday, February 17. But depending on which timezone you’re in you may be able to watch sooner…

What Time Does Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 Come Out?

New episodes of Tell Me Lies Season 3 premiere on Hulu Tuesdays at 12:00 a.m. ET, which means they’ll be available to stream on Mondays at 9:00 p.m. PT. So Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 will stream on Tuesday, Feb. 17 at 12:00 a.m. ET / Monday, Feb. 16 at 9:00 p.m. PT.

Stephen and Lucy on 'Tell Me Lies'
Photo: Disney/Ian Watson

Is Tell Me Lies Over? Or Will There Be A Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 9?

Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 may leave viewers with a number of burning questions, but it also serves as the Season 3 finale. So is Tell Me Lies over forever?

Will There Be A Tell Me Lies Season 4? Creator Meaghan Oppenheimer Sets The Record Straight

Before Tell Me Lies Season 3, Episode 8 premiered Oppenheimer announced on social media that the Season 3 finale would also serve as the series finale — in other words, Tell Me Lies Season 4 is a no.

“After three amazing seasons of Tell Me Lies, tonight’s episode will be the series finale. This was always the ending my writing team and I had in mind, and we are insanely proud of it,” Oppenheimer wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of the cast.

“Your incredible response to this season inspired us to explore whether there was another organic way to continue the story, but ultimately we felt it had reached its natural conclusion,” the showrunner continued. “My main goal has always been to protect the quality of the show and give you the best experience I can give you. And so, while it is bittersweet to leave something that has been such a happy experience, I am very grateful that we are able to tell a complete story with an intentional ending – a privilege very few shows get. Thank you for loving our show. We are excited to bring you more stories in the near future.”

When Decider asked Oppenheimer if she had a set arc in mind after Season 1, she said, “I think it really just depends. I think most shows nowadays do well with three seasons. I think that’s a very clean, good number to me — especially when it’s something that’s a smaller story, not a big procedural thing. I would rather have something end when it’s good than just drag it out too long.” Ahead of Season 3, the Tell Me Lies creator also told Decider that the finale showed “the ending [she] had mind from the beginning.”

During Decider’s Season 3 finale interview with Oppenheimer, she shared additional insight into the future of the series. The full post-mortem interview (with finale spoilers) will publish on Tuesday, Feb. 17. So stay tuned!

How To Watch Tell Me Lies: Hulu Streaming Info

Want to watch the Tell Me Lies Season 3 finale or rewatch seasons past? Head to Hulu, where the series is exclusively streaming.

If you’re new to Hulu, you can get started with a 30-day free trial on the streamer’s basic (with ads) plan. After the trial period, you’ll pay $10.99/month. If you want to upgrade to Hulu ad-free, it costs $18.99/month.

If you want to stream even more and save a few bucks a month while you’re at it, we recommend subscribing to one of the Disney+ Bundles, all of which include Hulu. These bundles start at $12.99/month for ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu and goes up to $32.99/month for Disney+, Hulu, and Max, all ad-free.

Stay tuned for more Tell Me Lies Season 3 coverage from Decider.




Calgarians celebrate Family Day by getting in touch with history – Calgary | Globalnews.ca


When Family Day was first introduced 36 years ago, most Albertans saw it as a well-deserved statutory day off between New Year’s Day and Good Friday. It bridged the gap between holidays.

Calgarians celebrate Family Day by getting in touch with history – Calgary | Globalnews.ca

However, decades later, it’s much more.

At the Military Museums in Calgary, ration-tasting and armoury demos were among the activities on offer for visiting families. Its curated exhibits were aimed at offering history as a way to connect with families.

While some children said their favourite part of Family Day is getting off from school, David Petrovich, a veteran and volunteer at the museum, says, “Seeing history and talking about concepts that have happened before that affects today’s lives, it’s great for kids to experience that. But also for the parents.”

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A lot of places in the city chose to host free events for Family Day, creating more accessible ways for people to get out of the house.

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There was free family skating at the Ernie Starr, Frank McCool and Murray Copt arenas. Canyon Meadows, Bob Bahan and Thornhill pools also had free swimming for the day. On-street parking in Parkplus zones joined in the free fun too.

Alberta’s government waived the fees for nine of its historical sites this Family Day. Among them, Lougheed House, a historical fixture in the city of Calgary, opened its doors at no cost to visitors.

Steven Kellier, the director of programs and visitor experiences at Lougheed House, says welcoming visitors to the house is part of its fabric.


“It’s an opportunity for us to welcome lots of people in and host people like Lady Lougheed would have done historically,” he said of the free day.

Families got to experience guided tours and learned Métis beading designs from volunteers in the main foyer of the house.

Esau Buenrostro visited the house with his family, including his infant Bella, who took great interest in the wall sconces. He said that using Family Day to get in touch with history was a day well spent.

“Getting the baby out of the house, she’s so intrigued by all the stuff that’s on the wall, there’s so much to look at. It’s definitely keeping the baby preoccupied,” he said.

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One person injured, dog dead after suspected arson at Windsor, Ont., home – London | Globalnews.ca


One person is injured after police say he jumped out of a second-floor window to escape a fire in Windsor, Ont., that left a dog dead and two other pets missing.

Calgarians celebrate Family Day by getting in touch with history – Calgary | Globalnews.ca

Windsor police say they are investigating the Sunday night fire as a suspected arson.

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They say emergency crews were called shortly before 10 p.m. to a house fire on Byng Road.

Police say a male occupant who jumped out of the building was taken to hospital to be treated for injuries that are not considered life-threatening.

They say a dog died and a cat was rescued, but the whereabouts of two other pets are unknown.

Investigators are asking nearby residents to check surveillance and dashcam footage for suspicious activity.


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Canadian Red Cross to assist in Nunavik’s fight against tuberculosis | CBC News


Canadian Red Cross to assist in Nunavik’s fight against tuberculosis | CBC News

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The Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services (NRBHSS) has struck a two-year deal with the Canadian Red Cross to assist in the fight against tuberculosis, with health officials saying support from the Quebec government is inadequate. 

As of Feb. 16, the region has recorded 13 active cases this year. In 2025, there were 117 active cases in the region of roughly 14,000 people – a record high in recent history. NRBHSS says that’s equivalent to the region having one of the highest rates of tuberculosis in the world. 

Dr. Yassen Tcholakov, NRBHSS’ infectious diseases lead, says local health centres are still struggling with capacity issues such as limited housing, clinical space and staff – challenges he says other parts of Quebec may not have to contend with. 

“The support that we were sometimes able to leverage from other provincial partners was not covering the full breadth of needs for the region,” he said.

For now, Tcholakov says the partnership is more of a monitoring exercise to see what gaps the Red Cross can fill. That could involve the Red Cross helping with the logistics of organizing clinical space when a new outbreak emerges. Last year, the Red Cross launched a pilot project alongside the Nunavut government to support the territory’s tuberculosis response.

The Red Cross support will initially start with communities along the Hudson Bay coast, where NRBHSS says the situation is most dire.

Tcholakov says they’ve made good progress on bringing care closer to communities, with more portable X-ray machines and Inuit health workers. 

Since November, the Inuulitsivik Health Centre (IHC), which provides services to Nunavimmiut on the Hudson Bay coast, has been holding mobile screening clinics, though Tcholakov says they haven’t been able to reach and test everybody – or 90 per cent of the population in each community. 

“We’re kind of using the same amount of resources to a large extent that we had four or five years ago to manage an outbreak that’s now quadrupled or five times in size,” he said.

NRBHSS has yet to secure additional funding from the Quebec government to execute a tuberculosis action plan presented last year. 

In an email to CBC News, Quebec’s Health Minister Sonia Bélanger says public health officials are continuing to monitor the situation in collaboration with Santé Québec and regional partners  “to ensure [there are] appropriate resources, screening and vaccination efforts”.


Halifax Thunderbirds’ Maki Jenner becomes first woman to do play-by-play for NLL | CBC News


Canadian Red Cross to assist in Nunavik’s fight against tuberculosis | CBC News

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Maki Jenner admits it was hard for her to fall asleep after Saturday’s game between the Halifax Thunderbirds and the Buffalo Bandits.

She was still coming down to earth after making her play-by-play debut for the Thunderbirds.

“It was crazy. I mean, my phone was blowing up with so many kind messages from people in the industry, in the lacrosse world, my family, my friends, people from home, you know, just everyone showing their support, which is so incredible for me,” said Jenner.

She became the first woman to ever call a National Lacrosse League game on Saturday.

It wasn’t her first historic feat for the league though. In 2024, she was the first woman to do colour commentary for the NLL.

Play-by-play announcers provide real-time narration of the game’s action, while colour commentators offer analysis and background information.

Saturday’s historic moment wasn’t lost on the 24-year old, who has spent her whole life around the sport.

Despite her experience as a player and broadcaster, she said she was nervous heading into the game.

Jenner credits colour commentator and longtime lacrosse analyst Pat Gregoire for helping her stay calm.

“He’s able to kind of lighten moods sometimes and so I think he was really able to help bring me into that and I think we played off each other really well,” she said.

Gregoire has nothing but praise for his young colleague.

“Maki is no longer a rising star in lacrosse media; she’s already risen to incredible heights and continues on a trajectory with no limits,” he said in a news release.

“Young girls and women around the world can now hear a voice and see a face they can identify with and know that they too can one day sit in broadcast booths,” he said.

Lacrosse ‘led me to who I am’

Both of Jenner’s parents played lacrosse. Her father and uncle were in the NLL when she was a child.

In a way, she’s been spending her whole life getting ready for a job in professional lacrosse.

“It’s actually really full circle for me,” Jenner said. “I had a stick in my hand as young as I could.”

The Victoria native has been around the sport ever since.

She played for the varsity team at Concordia University, St. Paul in Minnesota and graduated with a major in sports communication and minor in journalism.

In 2022, she became the first woman to be a play-by-play announcer in the Western Lacrosse Association in British Columbia.

Jenner joined the Halifax Thunderbirds that same year as the director of communications. She quickly became the team’s sideline reporter before becoming TSN’s Halifax lacrosse reporter, a job she maintains alongside her work for the Thunderbirds.

Experiencing the ups and down as a player and a broadcaster has taught Jenner a lot about herself, she said.

“I think looking back, [lacrosse has] led me to become who I am,” she said.

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‘They gave me a chance’: Charlottetown Islander reflects on playing home game in front of family | CBC News


Canadian Red Cross to assist in Nunavik’s fight against tuberculosis | CBC News

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When Émile-Alexandro Lemieux-Goupil of the Charlottetown Islanders suited up for Monday’s home game against the Cape Breton Eagles, it was a long way from home for him and his family.

Émile-Alexandro was just a baby when he came to Canada on a humanitarian flight from Haiti. The 20-month-old weighed just 16 pounds, a far cry from the 6-1, 196-pound defenceman that the Islanders bill him as today.

He was the first child adopted by François Goupil and Annie Lemieux. They now have 15 children through foster care and adoption, many of whom have disabilities.

“You know, they gave me a chance, and I love my life,” said Émile-Alexandro, a defenceman in his second season with the team.

Goupil, Lemieux and nine of their children travelled from Quebec’s Gaspésie region to watch Monday’s game.

“It’s important to see the game because we love Alexandro,” said Goupil.

Hockey player in yellow jersey holds purple stick out towards the puck.
Émile-Alexandro Lemieux-Goupil, 17, is a defenceman in his second season with the Charlottetown Islanders. (Submitted by Charlottetown Islanders)

And while the family saw Émile-Alexandro at Christmastime, he said the children were thrilled to be in Charlottetown.

“It’s long for them,” said Goupil. “They are so happy to be here and see him.” 

Émile-Alexandro felt the same.

“I think it’s the first time all the kids get to watch me away from home, so it’s very nice,” he said. 

“They don’t come that often, and when they come, I make sure to spend time with them.”

Because of his budding hockey career and the fact he trained in Ottawa last off-season, he estimated he sees his family three to four times a year.

A woman stands with two children wearing Charlottetown Islanders hats.
Annie Lemieux and two of her children watch the game, which turned out to be a 7-0 win for the Islanders over the Cape Breton Eagles. (Laura Meader/CBC)

To see Émile-Alexandro play is a special feeling for the family, said his mother.

“We miss our son,” said Lemieux. “We are very proud of him. He’s the big brother of our family.”

Guy Girouard, the associate coach and assistant general manager of the Islanders, said Émile-Alexandro brings a smile to the rink every day and always makes an honest, solid effort to get better.

‘A special family,’ says coach

He said his player’s backstory is unique.

“It’s a special family … The family with a big heart that opened up their house to a lot of different kids,” said Girouard.

“They do everything that they can for these kids to provide a really good life, and they do a really good job at it.”

Émile-Alexandro said his parents are patient and have big hearts.

Growing up around others with disabilities, Émile-Alexandro said it hasn’t changed his views on life.

“You live with them every day,” he said. “They’re just normal people, too.”


‘Who cares what the past was?’: Canada’s women look for redemption against U.S. in women’s hockey final | CBC Sports


‘Who cares what the past was?’: Canada’s women look for redemption against U.S. in women’s hockey final | CBC Sports

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Chris Jones reports from Milan.

There are two kinds of inevitabilities: The ones that give you comfort, and the ones that give you dread.

For Canada’s women’s hockey team, the fact that they were going to face the U.S. in the gold-medal game was the right kind of foregone conclusion.

For all the progress that’s been made in the women’s game, there remain levels to it. When Canada beat Switzerland 2-1 in Monday’s semifinal, it felt more like a formality than a victory, as close as the score was. The Canadians, winners of five gold medals and two silvers in seven previous Olympics, did what they had to do.

That was even truer for the fearsome, heavily favoured Americans, who easily dispatched the Swedes 5-0 earlier in the afternoon on the same ice.

Now comes the sort of inevitability that requires conquering.

WATCH | Canada squeaks by Switzerland in semifinal:

Canada to play the U.S. for Olympic women’s hockey gold after squeaking by Swiss in the semis

Marie-Philip Poulin scored twice as Canada defeated Switzerland 2-1 on Monday, in the Olympic semifinal at Milano Cortina 2026.

Canada, which was worse than the U.S. in every possible way in a 5-0 loss in the preliminary round, has 72 hours to find the belief that Thursday’s final will have a different result — that they can somehow beat an American team that’s younger, faster, meaner, stronger.

“It’s a 60-minute game,” captain Marie-Philip Poulin said, imagining what she will tell her teammates before they take the ice. “For us, as a group, it’s going to be all about us, all about our heart.”

Poulin missed the ugly preliminary loss with a knee injury. She will play in the final, and her presence will no doubt change the balance at least a little: She scored both goals against the Swiss, breaking Hayley Wickenheiser’s record for the most at the Olympics with her first.

“So clutch,” Renata Fast said. “She shines in moments like this, but it’s the work she puts in every single day that allows her to do it.”

She won’t be able to do it alone against the Americans.

They are a scarifying team, the monster under this tournament’s bed. They have scored at least five goals in every game in Milan and allowed exactly one, in their opening game against Czechia. They’ve since gone more than 331 minutes without giving up a goal while scoring whenever they’ve decided they probably should.

WATCH | U.S. dominates Sweden:

Americans advance to Olympic women’s hockey final with shutout win over Sweden

The United States advanced to a fifth-straight Olympic women’s hockey final, with a 5-0 semifinal win over Sweden at Milano Cortina 2026.

U.S. forward Taylor Heise was asked, before she knew that the Americans would in fact meet the Canadians once again, whether beating a team in the preliminary round gave her even more confidence than she might have otherwise.

“Nothing matters,” Heise said. “It’s the gold-medal game. Everyone’s going to show up, and if they don’t, they’re not meant to be there.”

The Canadians, publicly, are saying something similar.

“Every gold-medal game is a fight, it’s a bloodbath,” Fast said. “You’re competing for Olympic gold. Who cares what the past was?”

But if Canada holds a single advantage over the U.S., it’s history, it’s experience. Poulin has played in five Olympics. The U.S. has seven players still in college, including Abbey Murphy, the breakout star of the tournament and one of its principal villains, with a knack for the game’s darker arts.

Canadian head coach Troy Ryan has said that he doesn’t want his players to try to match Murphy’s rat streak unless they can beat her with it.

They can’t. Nor can Ryan hope to close the speed gap that exists between the two teams by Thursday. It might take years to make those corrections. Canada’s women outshot the Swiss 46-8 but made things nervier than they should have been, suffering long stretches when they were slow, shaky, and imprecise.

If they try to beat the Americans at their own game, they will lose. That is a certainty.

But maybe, especially with Poulin back in the lineup, they can find their counter.

They were timid in their first game. Not that. They should be brave without being open or reckless. They should be calm, and they should be patient. Mostly, they should be wise in their management of time, space, the puck, and their temper.

“The gold medal is going to be a battle,” Laura Stacey said. “Today, giving it our all, battling, finding a gritty win — that’s what the next game’s going to be like. I think this can give us some confidence that we’re going to be able to do that.”

If they can, they’ll have a chance to perform a kind of magic trick: Minute by minute, shift by shift, they can take the pressure they’re feeling and put it in American chests. They can slow down the game and make younger minds race.

They can exchange dread for comfort.

They can trade one inevitability for another.


Province setting up temporary classrooms for Tumbler Ridge students in wake of mass shooting | CBC News


Canadian Red Cross to assist in Nunavik’s fight against tuberculosis | CBC News

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The B.C. government is setting up temporary classroom space in trailers for the students of Tumbler Ridge, B.C., in the wake of the mass shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School last week.

Five students, aged 12 to 13, were killed in the mass shooting last week. A 39-year-old education assistant, Shannda Aviugana-Durand, was also killed at the school.

In the wake of the tragedy, which is one of Canada’s worst-ever mass shootings, B.C. Premier David Eby pledged that none of the students in the district of Tumbler Ridge would be forced to return to the school.

Now, the province has announced that trailers and temporary facilities are being set up on the grounds of Tumbler Ridge Elementary School, just under a kilometre north of the secondary school, though an exact return-to-school date hasn’t been confirmed.

WATCH | All victims of Tumbler Ridge shooting identified:

RCMP identify all 8 victims of shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C.

RCMP on Thursday identified the six children and two adults shot and killed in Tumbler Ridge, B.C. Six of the victims — Zoey Benoit, Ticaria Lampert, Abel Mwansa, Ezekiel Schofield, Kylie Smith and Shannda Aviugana-Durand — were found inside a high school, and two — Emmett Jacobs and Jennifer Strang, identified by police using her legal name, Jennifer Jacobs — were found inside a home. (CORRECTION: Feb. 13, 2026 | Emmett Jacobs is described in this video as Jesse Van Rootselaar’s stepbrother. In fact, Emmett’s father has since confirmed he was Van Rootselaar’s half-brother.)

The first of 14 temporary units arrived Monday, according to a provincial statement, and the structures are set to serve secondary school students “until community input, expert advice and future plans can be confirmed.”

Officials told CBC News that the future of the secondary school site — including potential demolition — has not yet been determined.

“We are continuing to use a compassionate, trauma-informed approach that includes providing updates to the school community, families and the public about a planned return to school in the coming days,” said Chad Anderson, the chair of the Peace River South School District, in the province’s statement.

A police officer holding onto the edge of a blue tarp
An RCMP officer is pictured at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School the day after the mass shooting. (Ben Nelms/CBC)

Tumbler Ridge Secondary School had an enrolment size of around 160 students, according to the school district’s website.

The B.C. government says that counsellors would support students and staff as they transition to the new buildings, and they would continue to be available once classes resume too.

In its statement, the province says it is expected to take several days to set up the new temporary units, depending on weather conditions and other factors.

WATCH | Students won’t return to Tumbler Ridge school:

Students won’t return to Tumbler Ridge high school

The premier and school officials say students in Tumbler Ridge, B.C., won’t be returning to class at the local high school after the mass shooting that left eight victims dead. A back-to-school plan and alternative locations are still being determined.

The first facilities that arrived Monday are bathroom trailers, according to the government, with classroom units to arrive on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The RCMP have said the examination of the scene at the secondary school is complete and the building has been turned over to the school district.

In addition to the six victims killed at the school, police say two other people were killed at the home of the perpetrator of the mass shooting, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar.

The mass shooting prompted an outpouring of grief for the residents of Tumbler Ridge from across Canada and the world.


How Maryland Democrats are thwarting Wes Moore’s political ambitions


Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s national political ambitions could be stymied by Democrats in his own backyard.

The governor’s power play to redraw the state’s congressional lines and snare Democrats a single House seat has earned him accolades from progressive activists and party leaders in Washington, raising his profile as he weighs a 2028 presidential run. But Moore also has been outmaneuvered at times by members of own party, particularly those in the Maryland Senate where his gerrymander blitz is facing an unceremonious death.

The redistricting gambit is one of the first big political tests Moore has faced that has national implications and could elevate him further within the party — or expose weaknesses as he positions himself as a counterweight to President Donald Trump.

Critics say Moore hasn’t been aggressive enough in using bare-knuckle tactics to push through his agenda. Supporters say the first-term governor is focused on redistricting because he sees it as vital to his future national ambitions. Some national Democrats question whether Moore can lead the nation if he fails to bend lawmakers in a solidly blue state with a Democratic-controlled Legislature to enact his policy priorities. POLITICO spoke to almost two dozen state and federal lawmakers and Democratic strategists for this story.

David Turner, Moore’s senior adviser and communications director, said the governor spearheading Maryland’s redistricting effort is not about furthering his political career.

“Anyone who thinks this is about national ambitions isn’t paying enough attention to the damage being done in 2026,” he said. “The Governor has been clear: at a time when other states are discussing mid-decade redistricting, Maryland needs to as well.”

Moore’s inability to convince enough Maryland Democratic senators to go along with redrawing maps has drawn unfavorable comparisons to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, another likely 2028 White House contender who successfully pushed through a major redistricting effort in his state. After California voters approved the state’s redistricting proposal, Newsom urged other states, including Maryland, to “contribute a verse” in the party’s gerrymandering push.

“If he did kind of match Gavin in terms of that effectiveness, being able to take this issue, win on it and kind of help build his image, I think that would [have been] a great opportunity for him,” said Paul Mitchell of Moore. Mitchell is a redistricting expert and architect of the newly adopted California congressional maps.

How Maryland Democrats are thwarting Wes Moore’s political ambitions

While Moore championed bills to raise the state’s minimum wage, worked to reduce Baltimore’s homicide rate to near 50-year lows and helped Marylanders cover soaring energy costs, in December, Maryland Democrats overrode at least 16 of the governor’s vetoes — tying his predecessor, GOP Gov. Larry Hogan, for the most he had in a single year during his two terms. That included one override veto over an issue that peeved many Black lawmakers months earlier: Moore’s blockage of the formation of a commission to study reparations in the state.

Weeks after his reparations veto, Moore traveled to an early presidential primary state to deliver the keynote remarks at the South Carolina Democrats Blue Palmetto Dinner, where he said: “Gone are the days when we are the party of bureaucracy, multi-year studies, panels and college debate club rules.”

It is a stark illustration of the criticism that’s followed Moore since he cruised to victory in his first-ever election four years ago: that he’s using the governor’s mansion as a springboard to Washington instead of doing the work of building relationships in Annapolis to get his bills across the finish line.

“Truly, Wes Moore is a great candidate…He has the pizzazz and the swagger that some folks wish they could have,” a Democratic strategist who has worked on state, local and presidential campaigns said and granted anonymity to offer an unvarnished assessment of Moore. “But the operations of his political tentacles are weak. His inside political network is weak.”

Moore addressed some of this criticism head on last week, where the tension was palpable during a joint address of the General Assembly.

“I will not stand here and tell you that I have gotten it all right,” Moore said in his State of the State address Wednesday. “It’s taken time to build relationships. It’s taken time to learn Annapolis. I am an outsider at heart, and I don’t see that changing,” he said before ramping up to a central theme of his remarks – and pressuring Senate Democrats to take up a congressional redistricting bill.

He characterized his months-long public tussle with Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson as “a very principled disagreement.”

Though the Maryland House of Delegates approved legislation Moore backed to redraw the seat of the state’s lone Republican, House Freedom Caucus chair Rep. Andy Harris, Maryland’s gerrymandering effort is still being blocked in the state Senate.

Ferguson has maintained he will not bring the bill up for a vote, saying there is not enough support for it in his chamber, it’s legally risky and adopting the new maps would jeopardize Maryland’s current 7-1 advantage.

Maryland State Senate President Bill Ferguson addresses the senate chamber during the opening session of the Maryland General Assembly, at the State Capitol in Annapolis, Maryland, Jan. 10, 2024.

Many national Democrats have pressured Ferguson and other holdouts, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who in an interview with CNN on Sunday suggested he would travel to Annapolis to meet with Ferguson.

Two Moore aides, granted anonymity to discuss internal strategy, also point out that top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who previously served in the Maryland Senate, penned a letter to state lawmakers this week calling it a “clear and present danger” not to act. Raskin also sought to undercut Ferguson’s legal justification for not acting, pointing to recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court allowing both Texas and California to use their redrawn maps ahead of the midterms. But the Senate leader appears unswayed.

“I think the miscalculation is that a lot of people are being led to believe that it’s only Bill who doesn’t want the map,” said one Maryland Legislative Black Caucus member granted anonymity to discuss internal party dynamics.

Maryland’s Feb. 24 candidate filing deadline is quickly approaching — the date Ferguson and supporters say any changes beyond that date will be too late and overly disruptive to the state elections calendar.

The two Moore aides argued that it is an arbitrary deadline and pointed to legislation working its way through the Maryland House pushing the filing deadline to late March.

A December poll by University of Maryland, Baltimore County found just 27 percent of Maryland residents said redrawing maps was a top issue, signaling affordability and quality education were top of mind.

Maryland-based Democratic strategist Len Foxwell said Moore’s attempts so far to win over voters in the state have been too focused on cable television and podcast appearances, adding the governor’s redistricting push never gained steam because he and his team “botched the rollout so badly.”

Instead of engaging in the kind of aggressive public relations campaign that Newsom launched to sell voters on the need to gerrymander, Moore created an advisory commission to solicit public input. Its meetings were held virtually and typically at odd hours, with most proceedings taking place late on Friday afternoons. The outcome of whether the commission was going to recommend new maps was never in doubt.

“The work of the commission was a rather dreary exercise in muscle-flexing,” Foxwell said. “The clear message was that we are doing this because we can do it. And I don’t think that was a message that was satisfying.”

Moore hasn’t deployed scorched-earth tactics against Ferguson, unlike the kind Trump encouraged where he threatened to primary Indiana Republicanswho wouldn’t support his attempt to gerrymander in the Hoosier state. Indiana Senate Republicans ultimately blocked Trump’s push.

Jeffries, who could become the nation’s first Black speaker should Democrats take back the U.S. House this fall, said during a hastily arranged press conference in the U.S. Capitol in late January that Marylanders “deserve an up or down vote.” Moore, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Jeffries, looked on as the Democratic congressional leader directed his disdain toward Ferguson, though he never named him.

Behind the scenes, Jeffries and other top Democrats backing Moore are working around Ferguson by leaning on the Black Caucus to force a rarely-used state Senate procedure to discharge the redistricting bill out of the chamber’s Rules Committee. If it’s successful it will force a floor vote on the House-passed bill. But just one member of the Black Caucus is openly supporting that tactic and the prevailing thought is the legislation will sit in purgatory until the General Assembly session ends in April.

The Maryland Legislative Black Caucus member added that while Moore is seen as a rising Democratic star on the national stage, there is work to be done by the governor in Annapolis.

“I think it’s that his folks are trying to insulate him from some things,” the lawmaker continued. “Because if he starts to have those relationships, then he’s going to start to hear that some of these ideas that he has are not necessarily the best, and that becomes a problem for some of his national aspirations.”