Seeking to end persistent rumors that he will attempt to unseat Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D), Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) declared firmly on Tuesday that he will not run for the U.S. Senate this year.
Hogan’s statement followed months of wooing by national party leaders. They saw Hogan as the only Maryland Republican capable of running a competitive race against the state’s first-term junior senator. At a minimum, a Hogan campaign would have forced Democrats to spend resources defending a seat normally regarded as safe.
Speaking to reporters at a State House news conference, the governor said he intended to spend his last 12 months in office focused squarely on running state government, without the distractions of a campaign.
“When I pledged to the people of Maryland that I was going to give this job as governor everything I’ve got, every single day that I have been given, I meant it.” he said. “That commitment is far more important to me than any political campaign.”
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