Edwards would make history as the second ever black woman in the highest chamber of Congress. And because Maryland is a solidly Democratic state, the victor of the tight primary is nearly assured to succeed retiring Maryland Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) mirrored numerous same political forces in the the Democratic presidential primary.
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Rep. Chris Van Hollen won a hard-fought Senate primary that exposed racial and gender divisions within the Maryland Democratic Party, defeating Rep. Donna F. Edwards for the nomination.
The Wall Street Journal reports that President Obama has endorsed McGinty, while Vice President Joe Biden has campaigned with her. She has also picked up the approval of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Emily’s List, a group that helps elect Democratic women to office.
“The choice in this election is very clear”, said Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly of neighboring Virginia.
JOHN YANG: Van Hollen has responded by emphasizing his own progressive roots.
Tuesday’s Maryland Democratic Senate primary between Reps.
REP. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: My argument is that there is a big difference between simply voting a certain way on issues and actually doing the hard work to get results. But they’ve differed greatly in style. Yvette Lewis, Van Hollen’s state co-chair and the former head of the Maryland Democratic Party, told NPR that her endorsement decision was based on experience alone. “It was incredibly helpful to me”, said Edwards, recalling the meeting in a recent interview with BuzzFeed News.Lamone said she was aware of 14 late openings, most by about 30 minutes.
Clinton, who won Maryland and three other states, fired back with a response voters are certain to hear again as the race turns to the general election. Kathy Szeliga, who represents parts of Baltimore and Harford counties, emerged the victor in a crowded and largely unknown GOP field. “Job No. 1 in politics isn’t about passing the most bills, appearing on the local TV stations, carving out and advancing an ideology, or even voting the right way (though all of these things matter)”, she wrote for the Baltimore Sun. So if she wants to show real gratitude, instead of saying “Thank you”, she should find qualified black women who want to run for office, and adopt them-politically speaking.
In the other closely watched Senate primary, Pennsylvania Democrats picked Katie McGinty, a former Clinton administration official and top aide to Gov. Tom Wolf, to challenge first-term Republican incumbent Sen.
Herman Flora, of Hyattsville, said Tuesday morning he voted for Edwards because he feels black voters need greater representation.
Van Hollen ultimately won a third of the black electorate, which, combined with his strength among white, wealthier, older and more-educated voters catapulted him to the lead.
Van Hollen’s campaign put out its own list last week of 100 African-American women leaders in the state who are backing his candidacy over Edwards.
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Earlier this month, Politico reported that one Van Hollen supporter, Baltimore City Council President Bernard “Jack” Young, a Democrat, “called Edwards” emphasis on “identity politics” misplaced. Her campaign has said that’s not surprising though, given she got to Congress in 2008 by knocking off CBC member Albert Wynn in a primary. Jawando, 33, is the youngest of those candidates and is one of many emerging millennial candidates appearing on ballots across the US this election cycle. Edwards argued her perspective as an African-American single mother was badly needed in the Senate, especially at a time where race relations and tensions with law enforcement are strained across the country. The system largely replaces touch-screen terminals, which were subject to glitches and security concerns since they were introduced in the state in 2002.
