A new poll released Tuesday shows that Gov. Larry Hogan is as popular as ever. With the election a little more than six months away, 70 percent of the Maryland residents polled by Goucher College approve of the way he is doing his job.
But the poll also shows that Hogan’s re-election is far from a sure thing. Less than half of likely voters said they would pick Hogan over one of seven Democrats vying to unseat him, and about a quarter said they were undecided.
Many voters haven’t heard of the Democratic candidates at this point, said Mileah Kromer director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher College and of the Goucher Poll.
But after the June primary, more money will pour into the race and change the dynamics, she predicted.
“There will be television ads, there will be radio advertisements, and name recognition of that winner will certainly get boosted up,” she said, “and then you’ll see this race likely tighten.”
Although the poll shows that few Maryland residents have favorable views of President Donald Trump, it also indicates that those opinions are unlikely to have much effect on how they vote in November. That could be good news for Hogan.
