Ben Jealous expected to announce gov run for Maryland this week

[Hindsight was 2020]

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/local/md-politics/former-naacp-president-benjamin-jealous-expected-to-announce-run-for-maryland-governor-this-week/2017/05/29/a50dc73e-44a1-11e7-98cd-af64b4fe2dfc_story.html

[History505]

The Democratic Field for Maryland Governor looks like it could be a decent size.

[NeverAgain]

Heard some talk of this throughout my trip to Maryland. I do not expect him to get far, but I don't know. I think Hogan will easily win re-election against him.

[TheSaint250]

Heard some talk of this throughout my trip to Maryland. I do not expect him to get far, but I don't know. I think Hogan will easily win re-election against him.

This. There are other Democrats who seem to have been positioning for this for awhile now, and I kinda get the sense that it will be a current MD government official who will be nominated.

I also think that Jealous, let alone the other Democrats, will be defeated by Hogan.

[NeverAgain]

Heard some talk of this throughout my trip to Maryland. I do not expect him to get far, but I don't know. I think Hogan will easily win re-election against him.

This. There are other Democrats who seem to have been positioning for this for awhile now, and I kinda get the sense that it will be a current MD government official who will be nominated.

I also think that Jealous, let alone the other Democrats, will be defeated by Hogan.

Hogan is kind of a Trumpesque character in Maryland, on the "cutting the fat" of the MD politics, along with besting the political machine there. I am not a fan, but I see his appeal.

[Gass3268]

Hogan just vetoed a Paid Family Leave bill. He'll be extreamly vulnerable once the campaign starts and Democrats can start going after him by tying him to Trump and exposing his vetoes of popular legislation.

[Maxwell]

stop pretending a 58% approval rating over a year out from election day makes the guy invincible. totally ridiculous, especially in a potentially strong democratic year.

Btw, Jealous sounds a lot better than other potential candidates and I'd vote for him for sure if I was in Maryland.

[MAINEiac4434]

Yes. Jealous 2018.

[swf541]

Endorsed

[Shadows]

It is another tough race, not impossible but perhaps a long shot! Again if Jealous loses, another loss piles up in the column of so-called Bernie wing. But anyways, MD is an overwhelmingly Democratic state & Jealous & Democrats should try to do their best to wrest the seat from Hogan!

Good luck !

[LabourJersey]

I don't really get how people think Hogan isn't vulnerable. Any republican governor in a democratic non-New England state would be vulnerable even with his approvals.

Most people forget that before Sandy everyone expected Christie's re-election to be a close race. He was certainly favored slightly, but in October 2012 it seemed a Democrat could have certainly won. I think that's the case right now in Maryland.

[KingSweden]

I think Jealous would make an interesting candidate. Probably second best behind Delaney

[Co-Chair Bagel23]

It is another tough race, not impossible but perhaps a long shot! Again if Jealous loses, another loss piles up in the column of so-called Bernie wing. But anyways, MD is an overwhelmingly Democratic state & Jealous & Democrats should try to do their best to wrest the seat from Hogan!

Good luck !

PVI's are not the best indicators of how governor elections occur in states, especially among the off year. Lean R.

[GoTfan]

Endorsed

[Gass3268]

Endorsed

[FairBol]

"Ben Jealous"? Is that a real name? LOL

[The Arizonan]

"Ben Jealous"? Is that a real name? LOL

Don't forget about Butch Otter, the Governor of Idaho.

[PragmaticPopulist]

Personally, I don't think Jealous would be a strong candidate, considering Maryland typically prefers experience, but who knows. Before Hogan was governor, he was just Secretary of Appointments in Ehrlich's administration.

And Hogan is by no means safe. Ehrlich had a positive approval rating when he was defeated by O'Malley in 2006. And Trump is even more toxic in Maryland then Bush was then. Leans R, giving Hogan the benefit of the doubt.

[Gass3268]

Hogan won't be too hard to attack once the ad campaign starts. There are many different ways to go after him. Many of his vetoes have led him to be very exposed on different fronts.

[Beet]

Maryland has not elected an African-American statewide as far back as I can remember. Jealous certainly has a chance since Trump is president, but I wouldn't count on anything.

[Mr. Reactionary]

Hilarious thread.

[Horus]

Endorsed, but something about him seems low energy. Still, this is Maryland, so I'm calling it a tossup for now.

[Rookie Yinzer]

Endorsed, but something about him seems low energy. Still, this is Maryland, so I'm calling it a tossup for now.

[Suburbia]

Still Lean R.

Jealous could do well, but outside of the Baltimore area, is he going to overperform O'Malley and Brown? Is he going to be popular in the suburban Maryland areas, especially where there is some white areas? He'll do well in white liberal areas but what about swing areas?

[PragmaticPopulist]

Still Lean R.

Jealous could do well, but outside of the Baltimore area, is he going to overperform O'Malley and Brown? Is he going to be popular in the suburban Maryland areas, especially where there is some white areas? He'll do well in white liberal areas but what about swing areas?

This is why I don't think he's the best candidate out there. I even have doubts he'll have much traction in the white liberal areas in the Baltimore and Washington suburbs. Besides, I'd prefer a Democrat that doesn't just rely on central Maryland to win. The last few years have been devastating to the state party on the eastern shore and western Maryland, and I doubt a guy who's main background is being NAACP president is very appealing to rural whites, let alone white professional suburbanites.