Party identity callouts and falsehood accusations flew across the debate stage Thursday during the only debate in the election for Maryland’s open U.S. Senate seat.
The candidates — Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) and former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) — are running in a close race that could determine party control of the Senate. NBC News’ Chuck Todd moderated the pre-recorded debate, which aired Thursday night.
Party politics
While Alsobrooks repeatedly leaned into her party — including mentioning Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris in her opening and closing statements — Hogan made multiple attempts to side-step his Republican affiliation.
Alsobrooks called the Republican Party the “party of chaos and division,” and mentioned Hogan’s reported recruitment to the race by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Hogan criticized Alsobrooks’ hard party line.
“You’re going to hear nothing but red versus blue,” Hogan, the state’s governor from 2015 to 2023, said. “I care a lot more about the red, white and blue.”
Hogan said the country is being torn apart by extremists in both parties during his opening statement.
Alsobrooks said she supports the Democratic agenda but is willing to stand up to her party.
International conflicts
Alsobrooks said she supports Israel’s “right to defend itself” in its war in Gaza, as well as a two-state solution. She added that she has called for a ceasefire and for aid to help Palestinians in Gaza. She would have attended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress in July, she said.
Monday marked one year since Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took about 250 people hostage in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. The next day, Israel declared war on Hamas, and its military forces have since killed more than 42,000 Palestinians in Gaza, the Associated Press reported Thursday.
Hogan said there is no middle ground on the issue, and added he would be a “champion for Israel,” in Congress.
[Angela Alsobrooks allegedly saved thousands of dollars from improper tax exemptions]
Alsobrooks opposed sending over American soldiers if China invaded Taiwan, while Hogan was ambiguous about whether the decision would be worthwhile.
Both candidates said they support funding Ukraine’s military. Hogan said he supports the country joining NATO, while Alsobrooks said NATO membership for Ukraine “should be explored.”
Inflation
Alsobrooks blamed higher prices on corporations who don’t pay their “fair share” of taxes and a lack of competition. She proposes to raise social security tax caps for citizens who make more than $400,000 annually — the same cutoff the Biden administration promoted — to continue to fund Social Security past 2035.
Hogan blamed both parties for inflation, and touted cutting taxes and improving Maryland’s economic ranking as governor.
Abortion
Hogan said the first bill he would sponsor as a U.S. Senator would be to codify Roe v. Wade. Alsobrooks has promised to codify Roe v. Wade throughout her campaign.
As governor, Hogan vetoed legislation that would expand the medical professionals allowed to perform abortions. He then withheld funding to train non-physicians on the procedure after the state legislature overrode the veto, Maryland Matters reported.
“When [the] former governor had an opportunity to stand up for the women of Maryland, he didn’t,” Alsobrooks said.
[Angela Alsobrooks, Larry Hogan discuss higher education during Maryland US Senate race]
Alsobrooks said she would support removing the filibuster — a Senate procedure that effectively requires 60 votes to pass legislation — to codify Roe v. Wade while Hogan disagreed, saying that the filibuster encourages bipartisan cooperation.
Public safety
The two candidates agreed on some public safety issues, such as an assault weapons ban, but disagreed about each other’s record.
Hogan called himself the loudest critic of the “defund the police” movement and said he increased police funding as governor. He then accused Alsobrooks of cutting funding for Prince George’s Police.
Alsobrooks rebuked his accusation, claiming she has increased police funding and pointed to her past job experience as Prince George’s County state’s attorney.
Will the debate change the race?
The debate came less than a month before election day as about five percent of likely Maryland voters remain undecided, according to a University of Maryland, Baltimore County Institute of Politics poll.
The debate is unlikely to shift the race dramatically because of high political polarization in the contest, according to Matthew Crenson, a professor emeritus of political science at Johns Hopkins University who told The Diamondback he has donated to Alsobrooks’ campaign.
Wednesday’s poll showed Alsobrooks in the lead with 48 percent of likely voters and Hogan with 39 percent. This followed September poll trends by ABC News’ FiveThirtyEight that showed the county executive in the lead.
Nick Marks, a member of the Maryland Federation of College Republicans’ leadership, said the race may be more in Hogan’s favor than the polls suggest.
Marks, a senior education and government and politics major at the University of Maryland, argued that while Marylanders know Hogan, a two-term popular governor, they don’t know Alsobrooks, who he said will vote “lock-step” with her party.
Mace Viemeister, this university’s College Democrats’ co-president, said their takeaway after the debate was that Alsobrooks has a vision for both Maryland and the country.
“Larry Hogan, quite frankly, doesn’t,” Viemeister, a sophomore public policy and American studies major, said.
