Corcoran Austbarr
Maryland is beginning to develop its opinions on the two state Senate candidates: Prince George’s County (PGC) Executive, Angela D. Alsobrooks (Democrat) and former Governor Larry Hogan (Republican).
Alsobrooks has been the county executive of PGC since 2018 after serving as the county state’s attorney for two terms. She is both a lawyer and politician. Currently, Alsobrooks has a 5% lead over Hogan and roughly 70% of Democrats support her with 31% of independents favoring her. However, many undecided voters fail to recognize her name, according to a Washington Post poll conducted between Aug. 24 and Aug. 30.
Alsobrooks considers herself to be a close ally of Kamala Harris, the current vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, as professed during the Democratic National Convention. They share views in common such as supporting access to and protection of abortion, reducing healthcare costs, tightening up regulations on gun ownership and addressing the climate crisis. In addition to these values, Alsobrooks desires to ensure farmers and fishers have access to the resources they need to sustain their businesses, supports nutrition assistance programs for those in need of high-quality food, advocates for more rights for immigrants and emphasizes the importance of children’s education.
In PGC, Alsobrooks spearheaded the construction of 10 schools. Hogan remains one of the most popular Maryland state governors, elected for two terms, and is now aiming to become the first Maryland Republican elected to Senate since 1980. Some of Hogan and Alsobrook’s values overlap, such as their desires to reduce healthcare costs and the emphasis they put on children’s education. Hogan also makes claims to be pro-choice, but many voters—and Alsobrooks herself—doubt this claim. Hogan plans, if he gains the Senate seat, to re-fund the police, increase criminal penalties for violent offenders (which includes universal background checks for gun ownership, another shared policy between him and Alsobrooks), secure the borders and put more effort into properly honoring and supporting veterans.
Some republicans view Hogan critically for his relationship with former President Donald Trump. Hogan told Americans to respect Trump’s guilty verdict in Trump’s New York hush money case, where he was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and a series of hush money payments. On top of this, Hogan also “didn’t want” Trump’s endorsement, a response to receiving it earlier this year. He is dubbed by many to be an “Anti-Trump Republican.”
Due to Alsobrooks being generally unheard of by many, these last two months until the elections are crucial for her to make herself known and favored. Hogan has the advantage over Alsobrooks among independent voters but would need a significant increase in Democratic voters’ support to win, which is currently held by Alsobrooks.
Both candidates take head-on some of Maryland’s—as well as the country’s—most pressing issues. Among voters aged 50 and up, Hogan takes the lead while Alsobrooks does not have such a strong voter base even among black Maryland voters. However, both candidates see disproportionate numbers from voters aged 18-49 across most demographics, this age range being the range that votes the least despite needing to arguably be the demographic that votes the most. Maryland is watching the polls closely in anticipation for this November.
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