Maryland's 8th congressional district is concentrated almost entirely in Montgomery County, with a small portion in

Prince George's County Prince George's County (often shortened to PG County or PG) is located in the U.S. state of Maryland bordering the eastern portion of Washington, D.C. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 967,201, making it the second-most populous ...

. Adjacent to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, the 8th district takes in many of the city’s wealthiest inner-ring suburbs, including Bethesda,

Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became the breakout cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1976), where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment b ...

, and Potomac. It also includes several more economically and racially diverse communities, the most populous of which are Rockville and Silver Spring. With a median household income of $120,948, it is the ninth-wealthiest congressional district in the nation. The 8th district also has the eighth-highest share of residents with at least a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

, at 63.9%. Those above-average numbers are largely due to the substantial presence of the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

in nearby Washington, where thousands of the 8th district’s residents commute to work on a daily basis. Several federal agencies are likewise located within the 8th district, including the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...

, the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

, the

Nuclear Regulatory Commission The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with protecting public health and safety related to nuclear energy. Established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, the ...

, and the

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC; formerly known as the National Naval Medical Center and colloquially referred to as Bethesda Naval Hospital, Walter Reed, or Navy Med) is a United States military medical center located in B ...

. Two ''Fortune'' 500 companies are headquartered in the district:

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

and

Marriott International Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging brands that include hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. Marriott International owns over 37 ho ...

. Almost 40% of the district's residents are immigrants, with the largest numbers coming from

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

, and

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. The district includes the

Little Ethiopia Little Ethiopia may refer to: * Little Ethiopia, Los Angeles Little Ethiopia is a neighborhood in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles. It is known for its collection of Ethiopian cuisine, Ethiopian restaurants, coffee shops, ...

area of Silver Spring and Takoma Park, and has the largest

Ethiopian American Ethiopian Americans are Americans of People of Ethiopia, Ethiopian descent, as well as individuals of American and Ethiopian ancestry. The largest Ethiopian American community is in the Ethiopians in Washington, D.C., Washington, D.C. metropolita ...

population of any congressional district. Politically, the district is heavily liberal. It has consistently sent Democratic representatives to Congress by wide margins since 2002. In 2020,

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

won nearly 80% of its vote.

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Jamie Raskin Jamin Ben Raskin (born December 13, 1962) is an American attorney, law professor, and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th congressional district since 2017. A member of the Demo ...

has represented the seat since 2017.

History

The district was created after the

1790 census The 1790 United States census was the first United States census. It recorded the population of the whole United States as of Census Day, August 2, 1790, as mandated by Article 1, Section 2, of the Constitution and applicable laws. In the first ...

in time for the 1792 election, was abolished after the 1830 census, and was reinstated after the 1960 census. During

redistricting Redistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each ten-year census. The U.S. Constitution in Art ...

after the 2000 census, the Democratic-dominated Maryland legislature sought to unseat then-incumbent Republican Connie Morella. One proposal went so far as to divide the district in two, effectively giving one to state Senator Christopher Van Hollen, Jr. and forcing Morella to run against popular Maryland State Delegate and

Kennedy political family The Kennedy family () is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P ...

member

Mark Kennedy Shriver Mark Kennedy Shriver (born February 17, 1964) is an American Democratic politician who served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates for two consecutive terms, from 1995 to 2003. Since 2014, he has served as President of Save the Childr ...

. The final redistricting plan was less ambitious, restoring an eastern, heavily Democratic spur of Montgomery County removed in the 1990 redistricting to the 8th District (encompassing nearly all of the area "inside the Beltway"), as well as adding an adjacent portion from heavily Democratic

. Although it forced Van Hollen and Shriver to run against each other in an expensive primary, the shift still made the district even more Democratic than its predecessor, and Van Hollen defeated Morella in

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

. From 2003 to 2013 the district, in addition to the larger part of Montgomery County and the small portion of Prince George's County, included most of Frederick County (but not the City of Frederick), and southern Carroll County. The redrawn district was slightly less Democratic than its predecessor. While the Carroll and Frederick portions of the district tilted strongly Republican, the Montgomery County portion had twice as many people as the rest of the district combined, and Montgomery's Democratic tilt was enough to keep the district in the Democratic column. Since Morella left office, no Republican has crossed the 40 percent mark in the 8th District.

Composition

For the 118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2020 census), the district contains all or portions of the following counties and communities:https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/cong_dist/cd118/cd_based/ST24/CD118_MD08.pdf
/ref> Montgomery County (51) : Ashton-Sandy Spring (part; also

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

), Aspen Hill, Bethesda, Brookville, Brookmont, Burnt Mills, Cabin John, Calverton (part; also

; shared with Prince George's County), Chevy Chase (CDP), Chevy Chase (town), Chevy Chase Section Five, Chevy Chase Section Three, Chevy Chase View, Chevy Chase Village, Cloverly (part; also

), Colesville,

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

(part; also 6th), Darnestown (part; also 6th), Derwood, Fairland (part; also

), Flower Hill, Forest Glen,

Four Corners Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. Most of the Four Corners regio ...

, Friendship Heights Village, Garrett Park, Glen Echo, Glenmont, Hillandale (part; also 6th; shared with Prince George's County), Kemp Mill,

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

, Layhill, Laytonsville, Leisure World, Martin's Additions, Montgomery Village (part; also 6th), North Bethesda, North Chevy Chase,

North Kensington North Kensington is an area of west and northwest London. It is north of Notting Hill and south of Kensal Green predominately in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and partly in the London Borough of Brent and City of Westminster. The ...

, Olney, Potomac, Redland, Rockville, Silver Spring,

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

South Kensington South Kensington is a district at the West End of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with the advent of the ra ...

, Spencerville (part; also

Takoma Park Takoma Park is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a suburb of Washington, and part of the Washington metropolitan area. Founded in 1883 and incorporated in 1890, Takoma Park, informally called "Azalea City", is a Tree ...

(part; also

), Travilah, Washington Grove, Wheaton,

White Oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...

Prince George's County (1) : Hillandale (part; also 6th; shared with Montgomery County)

Recent election results from statewide races

Recent elections

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

List of members representing the district

Notes

External links

* FairVote.org
Maryland's Redistricting News March 16, 2001 – October 18, 2001

Sources

Maryland State Archives * *
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present
{{Coord, 39.1, N, 77.25, W, region:US-MD_type:adm2nd, display=title 08 Montgomery County, Maryland Prince George's County, Maryland 1793 establishments in Maryland Constituencies established in 1793