Could a historically deep blue state give Republicans with a way to regaining the Senate majority in November’s elections?
A recent survey says the answer could be yes.
Former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland has double-digit advantages over both of his probable Democratic opponents in his home state’s Senate campaign, according to a Washington Post/University of Maryland survey released Wednesday.
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Hogan, whose surprise revelation last month that he would start a Senate candidacy shook the campaign world, leads Democratic Rep. David Trone 49%-37% if the general election were conducted today, according to the poll.
According to the poll, Hogan leads the other prominent Democrat seeking for the party’s Senate nomination, Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks, by a margin of 50% to 36%.
However, the study, which was conducted from March 5 to 12, shows that Maryland residents prefer that the Democrats retain control of the Senate by a 20-point majority.
Trone leads Alsobrooks 34%-27% in their party’s May 14 primary, with roughly 4 in 10 Democratic voters undecided.
Trone, who co-founded and co-owns the successful alcohol company Total Wine & More with his brother, has substantially outspent Alsobrooks in the Democratic Senate primary.
Hogan, a strong Republican critic of former President Donald Trump, was elected and re-elected governor of Maryland in 2014 and 2018, respectively, in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans almost 2-to-1.
Hogan, a successful business leader before joining politics, considered running for the Republican presidential candidacy in 2024 and traveled to New Hampshire several times in 2022, the state with the first primary on the GOP nominating calendar.
But in March of last year, Hogan declared that he would not seek his party’s presidential candidacy.
During Hogan’s final year as governor, Republican leaders in Washington and Maryland courted him to run for Senate against Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen in the 2022 midterm elections.
However, Hogan declined, saying in a February press conference that “as I have repeatedly said, I don’t aspire to be a United States senator.”
But two years later, Hogan is running for an open seat in a state where no Republican has been in the Senate in nearly four decades.
Hogan, who led Maryland in a nonpartisan manner, left office with high approval and positive ratings. According to the latest poll, he remains popular, with a favorable/unfavorable ratio of 64%-23%.
According to the report, Trone and Alsobrooks are not well-known to many Maryland voters.
Democrats presently govern the United States Senate with a 51-49 majority, but Republicans face a favorable Senate map this year, with Democrats defending 23 of the 34 seats up for grabs.
Three of those seats are in red states that Trump won in 2020: Ohio, Montana, and West Virginia, where Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin is not seeking reelection.