Wafting cumin through the building, 15 slow cookers full of chili lined an L-shaped conference room at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research Advanced Technology Research Facility (ATRF), as voters strolled past “No electioneering” signs and the tasting began Feb. 29.

Chili No. 13 came out of the gate with a spicy authority. “My tongue’s still tingling,” said one taster. “Just looking at it, you can tell how spicy it is,” said another judge. Thick with ground beef, with a smoky, peppery aroma, it was layered with black beans and corn, and it had a back-of-the-throat burn no other contestant’s offering could match. A nearby box of tissues served as a must-have for anyone sampling the sinus-clearing concoction.