Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan won’t run for Senate despite recruitment effort by GOP leaders

By Michael Warren, CNN

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Tuesday that he will not be a candidate for US Senate, following a quiet campaign by Republican leaders to convince the term-limited governor to run.

Hogan made the announcement at the end of a press conference Tuesday, noting that he appreciates “the people who have been encouraging me to consider it.”

“But as I have repeatedly said, I don’t aspire to be a senator, and that fact has not changed,” Hogan said.

The moderate Republican was first elected governor of Maryland in 2014 and was reelected four years later by more than 10 points. Hogan’s success in the heavily Democratic state, plus the perceived weakness of the incumbent Democratic senator, Chris Van Hollen, prompted repeated overtures by GOP leaders to get the governor to run for Senate this year.

Hogan has been a critic of former President Donald Trump and his influence over the Republican Party. Most recently, he condemned the Republican National Committee for approving a censure of Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, who sit on the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

In his Tuesday press conference, Hogan hinted at larger ambitions than Capitol Hill.

“My current job as governor runs until January 2023, and then we’ll take a look and see what the future holds after that,” he said.

Also on Tuesday, Hogan’s political group, An America United, released an online video, titled “Better Way Forward,” featuring the governor delivering what sounded like a presidential campaign stump speech.

The-CNN-Wire
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