Wes Moore easily wins Democratic primary

This story will be updated.

A lifelong Democrat turned Republican and the failed 2022 GOP nominee for governor were leading a field of nine candidates vying Tuesday for the dubious privilege of challenging a well-funded, popular incumbent Democrat for governor this fall,

Ed Hale Sr., a Baltimore-area businessman and sports franchise owner, had 37.2% of the Republican primary vote in early returns Tuesday, while Dan Cox, who lost the last governor’s race by a 2-to-1 margin, was leading with 43.1% of the vote.

The winner of the Republican primary will face Gov. Wes Moore (D), who was winning easily over Montgomery County physician Eric Felber, his only Democratic challenger for reelection. Moore had 88.2% of the vote in early Democratic primary results.

Moore has seen a steady decline in his popularity rating in the last two years, dipping below 50% in a March poll, and he was booed by some fans who attended opening day at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. 

But the rating does not appear to have hurt his popularity among Democratic voters.

It also does not appear to have hurt his ability to raise money: His campaign committee, Wes Moore for Maryland, reported raising almost $13.8 million, close to the total of the next nine largest committees in the state combined, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections. The committee reported having $6.5 million in the bank as of earlier this month.

Trio of GOP candidates for governor — out of nine total — meet in debate

Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, Moore’s running mate, raised an additional $1.7 million, according the the Board of Elections.

By comparison, Hale reported raising $274,500 and having $53,722 on hand, while Cox’s campaign had raised $74,699 and had $30,345 in the bank.

Cox is a former one-term Republican delegate who organized transportation for supporters of President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021, and called Vice President Mike Pence “a traitor” in the midst of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. 

Moore defeated Cox by 32 points in the 2022 election. 

Even so, Moore took to the airwaves during the primary, running ads on Fox News declaring Cox “too conservative” for Maryland. It was an ad some Republicans saw as Moore attempting to push the Republican base toward Cox for a 2026 rematch. 

Hale, the Baltimore businessman and owner of the Baltimore Blast indoor soccer team, was a lifelong Democrat and long a reliable deep-pocketed donor to Democrats in the state. Disenchanted with Moore, he decided to run for governor — but decided to switch parties, acknowledging that he did not think it was possible to beat Moore in a Democratic primary.

His conversion brought skepticism from Republicans and even a brief flirtation with a bid by Senate Minority Leader Stephen Hershey (R-Upper Shore), who called Hale a political opportunist.

Hershey dropped that bid in the spring, however, and in recent months Hale has made point of collecting endorsement from mainstream Republicans as well as members of the hard-right Maryland Freedom Caucus. Baltimore County Republican Dels. Kathy Szeliga and Ryan Nawrocki, members of the caucus, praised Hale’s business background and his status as a political outsider, at least in GOP circles.

Neither Cox nor Hale opted to participate in the one debate held for Republican candidates for governor. That panel ultimately included only John Myrick, the first to enter the Republican primary, Douglas Larcomb and Shannon Wright. 

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: editor@marylandmatters.org.