Bowie sets June 30 special election for vacant District 1 council seat

District 1 voters in Bowie will choose a new councilmember on June 30 to fill the seat opened when Michael Estève left the district seat after winning the mayor’s office on April 7. The special election will restore full representation for a district that, under Bowie’s council-manager form of government, is represented by the mayor, two at-large councilmembers and one district councilmember.

The winner will join the City of Bowie City Council at a moment when even a single district seat can shape how neighborhood priorities are carried into city decisions. Bowie’s charter sets the process for filling the vacancy, and the city is moving quickly to put a District 1 voice back in place.

Bowie has set one polling place for the election: the Kenhill Center, 2614 Kenhill Drive, Bowie, MD 20715. Only residents who permanently live within District 1 may vote in the special election.

The deadline to register is May 29, 2026. Residents already registered with the Prince George’s County Board of Elections do not need to register separately for the city election, since Bowie says those voters are automatically registered for the special election.

Candidates also have until May 29 to file for office. Filing must be done with the City Clerk’s office, and the filing fee is $25. The candidate filing period opened April 29 and runs through May 29.

The seat matters because Bowie’s council structure gives District 1 its own direct voice in city government, separate from the two at-large councilmembers who represent the whole city. In a lower-profile special election, turnout will be concentrated among a small pool of eligible District 1 voters, making each ballot especially important.

The city has also folded the election announcement into its latest Bowie Brief, alongside other community notices such as garden events and summer camps. But for District 1, the immediate issue is simpler: by June 30, voters will decide who speaks for the district at City Hall and who helps steer the city’s next round of local choices.