2018 Md. Primary Guide: Crowded field of candidates seek Democratic nomination for governor

WASHINGTON — The leader of Maryland’s second most populous county and a former civil rights activist. A statehouse veteran and the former chairman of one of the state’s most prominent law firms. A former State Department official in the Obama administration and a former aide to Michelle Obama.

Those are some of the candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for Maryland governor in one of the most crowded field of contenders in decades.

Fierce opposition to President Donald Trump has fueled predictions of a “blue wave” of Democratic victories in the fall, but it’s uncertain whether that will translate into an enthusiastic embrace of any one of the eight Democrats running to take on Maryland’s Republican Gov. Larry Hogan.

A string of recent polls indicate many voters still haven’t made up their minds about who they will vote for and some haven’t been paying much attention to the race at all.

The crowded field and the fact that only in the last week or so have true front-runners emerged have made the race unusual.

“You actually have to go back several decades to have a field this crowded and a race this unsettled,” said Todd Eberly, associate professor of political science at St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

Front-runners pull ahead?

Nearly a week before Democrats head to the voting booth, two candidates appear to have drawn ahead of the pack.

Former president and CEO of the NAACP Ben Jealous and Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker have both established at least modest leads, according to recent polls.

A June 10 Baltimore Sun/University of Baltimore poll showed Baker and Jealous in the lead, both polling at 16 percent of the vote — more than three times the support of any of the other contenders.

But half the respondents in that poll said they might still change their minds and about 44 percent of voters said they’re still undecided.

Learn more about the Democratic candidates

Meanwhile, more than half of respondents in the Baltimore Sun poll — 57 percent — said they had only been paying only a “a little bit” of attention to the race.

Looming large in the Democratic race is the winner’s eventual opponent: Larry Hogan.

The Republican governor remains overwhelmingly popular in the state, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans 2 to 1.

Overall, 71 percent of Marylanders approve of the job Hogan is doing as governor, according to a June Washington Post/University of Maryland poll.

Also contributing to the low-key nature of the campaign is that, by and large, the Democrats running for governor agree on the big issues.

Education emerges as key issue

In recent weeks, though, education has emerged as a potential area of contrast, both among the candidates themselves and against Hogan.

While voters approve of Hogan’s handling of the economy and taxes, they look more skeptically at his record on education.

Just 43 percent of Maryland voters approve of the way Hogan is handling education, compared to 40 percent who disapprove, according to The Washington Post poll.

Among the Democratic field of candidates, most say they will increase education funding in the state and there is universal agreement on the need to expand pre-K and increase college affordability — even if paths diverge on how to pay for those programs.

Baker has released a 10-point education plan that proposes millions of more dollars per year to upgrade school infrastructure, a new Cabinet-level position in the governor’s office to track student performance and boosting teacher salaries.

At a debate last month, candidate Jim Shea, a Baltimore lawyer who ran the state’s university system for several years, attacked Baker’s handling of Prince George’s County schools, which have been plagued by a series of scandals, including inflated graduation rates.

Shea said the missteps in Prince George’s County would make Baker an easy target for Hogan in a potential head-to-head matchup in the fall.

Baker has vigorously defended his record on schools, saying dropout and truancy rates turned around under his administration.

For his part, Shea has promoted a six-part plan that includes strengthening the career track for teachers and increasing funding for K-12 education, which he says is not keeping pace with growth in other parts of the state’s budget.

Jealous, who has been endorsed by the Maryland State Education Association, has pledged to boost teacher salaries by 29 percent and has proposed paying for all-day universal pre-K by legalizing and taxing the adult use of marijuana.

Rich Madaleno, a veteran Maryland state senator who’s known as a policy wonk, sits on the Kirwan Commission, a landmark effort aimed at increasing spending on public education in the state. The commission called for boosting spending in high-poverty areas and securing financing for universal pre-K.

Madaleno has pledged to use the commission’s recommendations as a template for his education priorities.

Krish Vignarajah, a former policy aide to Michelle Obama, has proposed shuffling funding from other parts of the state budget to boost funding for education and has also proposed a comprehensive school safety plan.

Alec Ross, a former State Department staffer in the Obama administration turned tech entrepreneur, has proposed expanding universal pre-K. His platform proposes requiring that all Maryland schools offer computer science courses at every grade level by 2022.

2018 Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidates

Rushern Baker

Running mate: Elizabeth Embry

Residence: Cheverly, Maryland

Baker is the two-term executive of Prince George’s County, first elected in 2010.

He served as a delegate in the Maryland state house for nearly a decade from 1994 to 2003.

Endorsements: The Washington Post, former Govs. Martin O’Malley and Parris Glendening; Sen. Chris Van Hollen; Rep. Steny Hoyer; Montgomery County Executive Isiah “Ike” Leggett

Ralph Jaffe

Running mate: Freda Jaffe

Residence: Baltimore

Jaffe is a public high school political science teacher who says he is running in part to teach his students about corruption in politics.

In 2016, Jaffe unsuccessfully ran in the Democratic Senate primary for the Senate seat now held by Sen. Chris Van Hollen. He also ran for governor in 2014.

Ben Jealous

Running mate: Susan Turnbull

Residence: Pasadena

Jealous is the former national president and CEO of the NAACP, a post he held for five years.

Since 2015, Jealous has worked as a partner a partner at Kapor Capital in Baltimore and is also a professor of criminal justice at Princeton University.

Endorsements: The Baltimore Sun; the Maryland State Education Association; California Sen. California Sen. Kamala Harris; Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders; New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker; UNITE HERE!, which represents workers in the hospitality industry

James Hugh Jones

Running mate: Charles S. Waters

Residence: Baltimore

Jones is a business owner.

Rich Madaleno

Running mate: Luwanda Jenkins

Residence: Kensington

A three-term Maryland state senator and former delegate, Madaleno serves as the vice chair of the Senate’s Budget and Taxation Committee.

Madaleno was the first openly gay person to be elected to Maryland’s General Assembly and the first openly gay state senator in Maryland.

Endorsements: Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin; former Maryland Attorney Gen. Doug Gansler

Alec Ross

Running mate: Julie C. Verratti

Residence: Baltimore

Ross is a former Obama administration staffer who served in the State Department as senior adviser for innovation to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He is the author of the book, “The Industries of the Future.”

Jim Shea

Running mate: Brandon M. Scott

Residence: Owings Mills

Shea is a Baltimore lawyer, previously the chairman of the Venable law firm, one of the state’s largest and most prominent law firms. Shea also served as chair of Maryland’s university system of Maryland for four years.

Krish Vignarajah

Running mate: Sharon Y. Blake

Residence: Gaithersburg

Vignarajah is a former policy director for Michelle Obama where she spearheaded the “Let Girls Learn” initiative. She also served in the U.S. State Department under Hillary Clinton and John Kerry.