Maryland’s primary elections were held Tuesday. My wife and I were in line at 7 a.m. to cast our votes as residents of Maryland’s 6th Congressional district. The majority of votes cast were symbolic. Maryland won’t elect a Republican senator. There are very slim chances of a Republican becoming governor. Many will point out Larry Hogan to say that it is possible. I believe Maryland’s GOP would be better off with an openly Democrat governor, than a crypto-Democrat such as Hogan. We voted for county commissioners and sheriff.
That said, I think there was a useful takeaway from yesterday’s voting. The lesson from yesterday’s voting is that Maryland’s GOP has changed. It is more combative and less interested in the go-along-get-along happy-loser philosophy that has characterized it for the nearly two decades I’ve lived here.
The headline bout was between Dan Cox (you may have trouble using his name in the comments because Disqus thinks you’re trying to spell something else) and Kelly Schultz. Larry Hogan and the GOP establishment gave extensive endorsements to Schultz, as did a number of state legislators. I know some of the folks who endorsed Schultz and a lot more of the people who pimped her as “more electable” and derided Cox as a “Trumpist loon” and understand where they are coming from.
Dan Cox was endorsed by various county sheriffs and Maryland Right-to-Live (full disclosure: I’m a member and protest in front of abortion clinics). He was also endorsed by the shooting range where I’m a member. His biggest endorsement came from Donald Trump.
Working on the theory that Dan Cox was easier to beat than the female version of Larry Hogan, the Democrat Governor’s Association ran saturation play of this ad that endorses and attacks Cox.
When I first heard the ad, I thought, “what a refreshing change from the Vichy governorship of Larry Hogan.” I laughed out loud when it got to the punchline.
In the end, it wasn’t close (see Trump-Endorsed Candidate Dan Cox Defeats Hogan Pick in Maryland GOP Gubernatorial Primary).
Photo credit to New York Times
While the Governor’s race got all the attention, the race for attorney general’s race shows that the Trump endorsement is a red herring.
Jim Shalleck was defeated by Mike Peroutka, an ex-Anne Arundel County Councilman. Shalleck, a former federal prosecutor was supported by the editorial boards at the Washington Post and Baltimore Sun. He also hosted a fundraiser that Jim Gilmore hosted (how a Virginia governor could be so influential in the Maryland attorney general race is beyond me). While Shalleck has all kinds of establishment cred, Peroutka used to be a member of the Constitution Party before changing his registration to Republican, and he has zero f***s left to give. The ultra-liberal Vice.com has this profile headlined GOP May Name a Prosecession Christian Nationalist as Maryland Attorney General.
Photo credit to New York Times
Peroutka defeated the establishment favourite by almost the same margins that Cox won in the demolition of GOPe champion Schultz.
Other races of importance were those that represented the GOP in MD06. Maryland’s Sixth was a GOP stronghold where Roscoe Bartlett held sway for nearly 20 years until the 2010 redistricting. By bringing in Montgomery County, the Democrats transformed a secure Republican seat into an unconstitutional D+16 monster. In 2019, a challenge to this map was brought to the Supreme Court. The Court ruled that the Federal courts can decide on political gerrymanders. The state law provided a legal challenge and the new map created MD-06 became R+1.
Six candidates were on the ballot. The front-runner was long-time state delegate Neil Parrott (full disclosure, I know Neil, I was a soccer coach for his daughters some years ago, and I voted for him), who lost the race to the incumbent Democrat, liquor store magnate and absentee Congressman David Trone, in 2018. Neil is well-known, and respected in the district. He’s also conservative and prolife. Matthew Foldi, a former Washington Free Beacon journalist, was the main challenger.
Foldi ran as a “conservative outsider” and racked up “outsider” endorsements from Donald Trump, Jr., Larry Hogan, and Kevin McCarthy (Dems Desperate Over Endangered Seat in Maryland—With Young Republican Giving Them Fits) but never created any interest in the district. I was on board with Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins when he said, “He does not impress me one bit. He comes across to me as a wealthy elitist.”
Parrott scored 64% in a field of six candidates. Foldi finished second with 15%. District GOP Primary.
Donald Trump Jr., and Kevin McCarthy did not endorse this race. Foldi’s endorsement was not a sign of self-beclowning. I don’t think this race falls into the same category as Cox and Peroutka, but I wanted to address it because of the establishment endorsements Foldi received.
The lesson to be drawn from yesterday’s primary was that rank-and-file GOP voters in Maryland are tired of electability. Schultz, Shalleck and others are more electable candidates that the winners if anyone would vote for them. Running Larry Hogan in Maryland, New Jersey, and Massachusetts is not worth the cost. Mitt Romney would be too expensive. It is important that candidates stand up for something. Candidates must care more about America than wooing moderates and pleading with Democrats.
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