Wes Moore, an author who received support from Oprah Winfrey, has been chosen as the Democratic candidate for governor of Maryland.
This victory is a step toward the party’s goal of regaining control of the governor’s palace in the Old Line State.
Moore was declared the winner of the race on Friday, three days after the Maryland Democratic gubernatorial primary. The call was made by CNN, NBC, and other news sites.
BREAKING: Wes Moore is the winner of Maryland’s Democratic primary for governor, NBC News projects. https://t.co/rfEie7NPZZ
— NBC4 Washington (@nbcwashington) July 22, 2022
Regaining Control?
The general election battle will become one of the best possibilities for Democrats to switch control of a governorship seat since the state’s Republican Gov. Larry Hogan is term-limited.
Hogan is one of a triad of prominent Republican leaders from blue states.
Despite the fact that Democrats exceed Republicans in Maryland by a ratio of two to one, the Republican Party has been victorious in three of the state’s previous five elections for governor.
In 2018, Hogan was successful in reelection, making him only the second GOP governor in the state’s history to accomplish this.
A packed field of Democratic candidates included, in addition to Roy Moore, ex-Labor Secretary Tom Perez, ex-Secretary of Education John King, Treasurer Peter Franchot, erstwhile Obama White House staffer Ashwani Jain, and ex-state Attorney General Doug Gansler.
The most recent polls reveal the campaign is close, with no one standing out as the clear frontrunner.
The Republican Contender
Moore shot to prominence in recent years as the writer of two books that became huge hits on The New York Times’ bestseller list.
These books were The Other Wes Moore and The Work. Moore was also the host of Beyond Belief on the Oprah Winfrey Channel. He was even the executive producer of the PBS show Coming Back with Wes Moore.
Moore was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship after completing his studies at Johns Hopkins University. He went on to become a captain in the 82nd Airborne of the United States Army and served as a paratrooper.
During his time there, he led other troops in action in Afghanistan.
After that, he found work on Wall Street and eventually led the Robin Hood Foundation for a period of four years, during which time the organization donated over $600 million dollars to help pull people out of poverty.
Wes Moore is the decisive favorite to win the nomination. Here's how the race changes depending on the GOP nominee:
1. Wes Moore v. Kelly Schulz:
Chance to Win:
Moore: 86%
Schulz: 14%2. Wes Moore v. Dan Cox:
Chance to Win:
Moore: 95%
Cox: 5%— Logan Phillips (@LoganR2WH) July 20, 2022
Moore will now find himself running against state Del. Dan Cox in the general election.
Cox emerged victorious from a Republican primary that served as a proxy fight between Hogan and erstwhile President Donald Trump.
In Tuesday’s primary election, former President Trump backed contender Dan Cox, who went on to defeat Hogan’s preferred choice. In the very liberal state, on the other hand, it will be hard for the extremely conservative lawmaker to beat Moore in the general election.
This article appeared in The Political Globe and has been published here with permission.
