Larry Hogan, Angela Alsobrooks deliver closing pitches in high-stakes US Senate race

Baltimore Sun Staff

The Baltimore Sun

November 4, 2024

Republican Larry Hogan and Democrat Angela Alsobrooks, in a pair of get-out-the-vote rallies Monday night, made their closing pitches to voters in what’s become one of the most heated and nationally watched Maryland election races ever.

The U.S. Senate candidates’ last-minute attempts to motivate their bases and persuade any remaining undecided voters might have sounded — to nearly 2 million people who already voted and others who’ve paid close attention — pretty familiar.

Alsobrooks, at a rally in Riverdale Park in Prince George’s County, talked briefly about the future of gun control, climate change and health care while her prominent supporters warned that a Hogan win could give Republicans control of a narrowly divided U.S. Senate.

Hogan, in Parkville at a Baltimore County Fraternal Order of Police lodge, said he got into the race because he’s concerned about the direction of the country and that he would be someone who would stand up to the extremes of either party.

Both campaigns were projecting confidence about 12 hours before polls were set to open at 7 a.m. on Election Day, with Alsobrooks telling about 300 roaring people that they’d “send a resounding message” Tuesday.

“I feel so well prepared to go into tomorrow, because I know who Marylanders are,” she said after dancing onto the stage and before dancing off it 10 minutes later to “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”

Her star-studded event — at least by Maryland political standards — featured Gov. Wes Moore, U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, U.S. Reps. Steny Hoyer, Jamie Raskin and Glenn Ivey, and former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.

Hogan, at his event and speaking in front of a banner reading “People Over Politics,” struck an optimistic tone, likening this year’s race to his surprise victories in the governor’s races in 2014 and 2018.

“Sometimes, lightning can strike three times,” he said to about 50 supporters.

Hogan gave $500,000 of his own money to his campaign Thursday and has in recent days called the race a “toss-up.” He said in an interview that he made the donation in part because he feels confident, and wanted to “put my money where my mouth is.”

“I’m all in,” Hogan said. “I think it’s so important that I get down there to try to make a difference.”

Polls have shown a steady lead for Alsobrooks, including one from The Washington Post and the University of Maryland that had her ahead, 52% to 40%, just before a week of early in-person voting began Oct. 24.

By the end of early voting, about 521,000 registered Democrats, 304,000 registered Republicans and 170,000 unaffiliated or third-party voters had cast a ballot either in person or by mail. With about 1.2 million more Democrats and Republicans registered in Maryland, Hogan would need at least 25% to 30% of Democrats to vote for him, observers have said.

Both candidates have spent the final weeks of the race courting Democrats in the most populous and Democrat-packed areas — Baltimore city and Baltimore, Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.

Monday night’s rallies underscored those efforts.

Hogan highlighted his support from police organizations around the state, including from Baltimore County’s Lodge No. 4, where he spoke Monday night.

“Nothing makes me prouder than to have the support of the police,” Hogan said.

Former state Sen. Bobby Zirkin, co-chair of Democrats for Hogan, likened Hogan to the late U.S. Sen. John McCain, and U.S. Sens. Mitt Romney and John Fetterman during his remarks, praising Hogan’s ability to work across the aisle during his time in the governor’s office.

“It wasn’t about Democrats and Republicans. It wasn’t about scoring a political point. It was just about the work. It was about the policy. And that’s what Larry Hogan is,” Zirkin said.

Alsobrooks was on her home turf in Prince George’s County — home to the largest number of registered Democrats in the state. With hundreds of enthusiastic people waving “Defend our Majority” and “All in for Angela” signs, she and her allies laid out the stakes as they see them.

Raskin, a key figure in the Trump impeachment case after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, said democracy is on the line. Moore spoke of reproductive rights and immigration reform. Holder, who was the nation’s top prosecutor under then-President Barack Obama, celebrated Alsobrooks’ record of reducing crime as a state’s attorney and said Hogan’s win would seal Democrats’ fate in the Senate.

“Are we going to let the Senate race in Maryland come down to a coin toss? Hell no,” Van Hollen said emphatically. “The future of the country is counting on all of you to grab that last voter, make that last phone call, so that we have a big victory.”

Eighteen months after the three-term Cardin announced his retirement and kickstarted what became one of the most expensive and competitive races ever in Maryland, this election will mark history either way.

Alsobrooks, in her second term as Prince George’s County executive, would be the third Black woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate, though she would likely join another, U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware, who is also expected to win this week. Alsobrooks would be only the second woman to hold that office from Maryland.

Hogan, meanwhile, would become the first Maryland Republican elected to the chamber since 1980. After two successful gubernatorial races in the past decade, he would both extend his political life as the most successful modern-day Maryland Republican and potentially emerge as the country’s most vocal anti-Donald Trump Republican in Washington, D.C.

Hogan’s pitch has been that he would avoid partisanship almost altogether. Though he said he would join the Republican caucus that could return to the majority, he’s repeatedly said he would be a moderating, bipartisan voice in the party’s ranks.

Alsobrooks’ top message has been to combat that thought. She and her allies have talked endlessly about Hogan being a reliable vote for Republicans and that his election would guarantee the GOP takes control of the narrowly divided chamber.

After months of ad wars and policy discussions, stump speeches and fundraisers, both sides were still largely relying on those ideas to stick in voters’ minds during Tuesday’s final, nerve-wracking test.

“Y’all, listen,” Moore said in a rousing speech at Alsobrooks’ rally. “Tonight feels like a celebration. But let’s be clear. We got work to do. Tomorrow morning, we got work to do.”