Former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan entering the Maryland Senate race is being called "Chuck Schumer's nightmare" by CNN.
Hogan, who for years stood out for his popularity as a red governor in deep blue Maryland, announced Friday he was entering the Senate race hoping to fill the seat being left vacant by retiring Democrat Sen. Ben Cardin.
During a segment on "Inside Politics," anchor Dana Bash stressed how Hogan is "incredibly popular" and asked CNN political director David Chalian to "put this in perspective."
FORMER MARYLAND GOV LARRY HOGAN ANNOUNCES REPUBLICAN RUN FOR SENATE
"That is Chuck Schumer's nightmare," Chalian told Bash, referring to the Democratic Senate Majority Leader. "To take a bad map for Democrats and make it worse - and it is a very rough map for Democrats."
The Senate is currently split 51-49 in favor of Democrats, but Democrats are defending 23 of the 34 seats up for election this year.
Chalian explained that Democrats are battling to keep seats in "very red states" like in Montana and Ohio where Sens. Jon Tester and Sherrod Brown, respectively, are seeking re-election.
"Now you're taking a blue state and bringing a very popular former Republican governor onto this map," Chalian said. "Maryland was not on anybody in the Democratic universe's board of something that they would have to spend money on or be concerned about, and that's going to drain resources away from the fights in Montana and Ohio."
He later continued, "This is a presidential election year. So, if you're a Democrat like John Tester running in a deep red state that Joe Biden's gonna lose badly, it's already a rough scenario. And that may be the only thing that gives Democrats hopes in Maryland is that it is a presidential year, and that maybe even with Larry Hogan's popularity, maybe Maryland is too blue to even help get him over the line. We'll see."
Hogan announced in a video released Friday that he was running "not to serve one party -- but to stand up to both parties, fight for Maryland, and fix our nation's broken politics."
"It’s what I did as Maryland’s governor, and it’s exactly how I'll serve Maryland in the Senate. Let’s get back to work," Hogan said.
Hogan, an outspoken critic of former President Trump, previously mulled a run in the 2024 Republican presidential primary and was floated as a potential candidate for the No Labels ticket but recently stepped down from leadership of the third party movement. Hogan offered his 2024 endorsement to GOP hopeful Nikki Haley.
He served two terms as governor from 2015-2023 and was previously a successful business leader before entering politics.
Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said in a statement, "Governor Hogan is a great leader for Maryland, and that's why he remains overwhelmingly popular in the state. We look forward to welcoming him to the United States Senate."
