The Republican candidate, whose party is led by former President Donald Trump, has stressed that he “never gave in” to Trump and has touted his deployment of the National Guard to protect lawmakers during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
But former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who is seeking to retake an overwhelmingly Democratic-held Maryland seat in a key election that could determine whether Republicans reclaim their House majority, is highlighting his anti-Trump credentials.
A new ad showcasing Hogan's bipartisan skills during his eight years as Maryland governor also highlights that he was “one of the few Republicans who was an early critic of Donald Trump and never backed down.”
New polls in heavily Democratic states suggest key Senate seats are in danger of flipping to Republicans
Former two-term Governor of Maryland Larry Hogan celebrates his victory in the 2024 Maryland Republican Senate Primary on May 14, 2024 in Annapolis, Maryland. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Hogan's campaign said the ad is part of an existing $8 million ad slot that will air across the state leading up to the November election and will then show news footage of Trump supporters storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 in an attempt to overturn the congressional certification of President Biden's 2020 election victory.
Senate Democratic Campaign Chairman Speaks One-on-One with Fox News
“On January 6th, as we watched in horror, Mr. Hogan not only spoke about defending our democracy, he took action by deploying the Maryland National Guard to guard the Capitol,” the narrator says in the ad.
According to a recent poll commissioned by AARP, Hogan is trailing the race's Democratic candidate, Prince George's County Mayor Angela Alsobrooks, with 46% support among voters.
The poll marks the first tie since Maryland's May primary. Previous surveys had suggested Alsobrooks had the lead. The winner of November's election will succeed Sen. Ben Cardin, a Democrat who is retiring this year after serving nearly two decades as a senator and nearly 60 as a state and federal representative.
If elected in November, Alsobrooks would make history as the first Black senator from Maryland, a state that is about 30 percent Black.
Top Republican senator goes wild campaigning at 'make-or-break' moment to reclaim majority
While Hogan and Alsobrooks finished tied, the poll showed Vice President Kamala Harris with a large lead over Trump in Maryland, where she beat Trump by 30 points in multicandidate races and 32 points in head-to-head contests, according to the poll.
From left to right, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Maryland Democratic Senate candidate and Prince George's County Mayor Angela Alsobrooks, and Vice President Kamala Harris stand onstage together after speaking at a Gun Violence Awareness Day campaign event at the Kentland Community Center on June 7, 2024 in Landover, Maryland. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
Democrats outnumber Republicans in the state by roughly 2-to-1, so Hogan will need a significant number of crossover voters, and he has emphasized his opposition to Trump and his independence from his party in running for the Senate.
“Republicans can't count on my vote,” Hogan said in a previous campaign ad.
Hogan, who considered but then dropped a 2024 presidential bid, distinguished himself from many other Republicans this spring when he publicly called for respecting Trump's criminal conviction.
Click here to get the FOX News app
But Alsobrooks and Democrats have repeatedly reminded voters that Hogan describes himself as a “lifelong Republican” and that Trump said in a Fox News interview earlier this year that he wanted Hogan to win.
Hogan said he would skip the Republican National Convention in July, where Trump was formally nominated, and would not vote for the former president. In response to the former president's remarks, Hogan's campaign emphasized in a statement, “Governor Hogan has been clear that he will not support President Trump, as he did in 2016 and 2020.”
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump speaks during a rally at First Summit Arena at the Cambria County War Memorial, Friday, Aug. 30, 2024, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Rebecca Droke)
“Our research shows that these voters will support the Governor if they are reminded of his campaign promises and track record of independent leadership,” wrote a recent strategy memo from Hogan adviser Russ Schriefer.
Democrats control the Senate by a slim 51-49 margin, giving Republicans an advantageous position this year, with Democrats set to defend 23 of the 34 seats at stake.
One of those seats is in heavily Republican West Virginia, a state that Trump won by nearly 40 points in 2020. Republicans are all but certain to retake the seat because moderate Democrat-turned-independent Sen. Joe Manchin (a former governor) is not seeking reelection.
Republicans are also aiming to retake Ohio and Montana, congressional seats that Trump handily won four years ago, and five more Democratic seats up for grabs this year are in key battleground states.
Hogan's late entry into the race in February has created an unexpected headache for Democrats as they try to protect their fragile Senate majority in a state previously considered a safe zone.
Get the latest 2024 campaign updates, exclusive interviews and more on Fox News Digital's Election Hub.
