The Republican candidate for Maryland governor has been decided, with NBC News projecting state Del. Dan Cox as the winner, but on the Democratic side, the race is still too close to call.
Wes Moore has maintained a lead with Tom Perez in second place. Tuesday night, Perez predicted that gap will close when mail-in ballots are counted.
“I know that we don't rest until every eligible vote gets cast and counted,” he said.
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Peter Franchot, who led in polls, is third so far. He said he expected to win based on exit polling.
“Hundreds of thousands of votes are still sitting there uncounted,” he said.
Moore gave what sounded like a victory speech Tuesday night but stopped short of claiming a win.
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“We're excited for all those votes to be counted, because when those votes are counted, we feel very good about where we are going to be,” he said.
“On the Republican side, oh my God, it's extraordinary,” University of Maryland-Baltimore County political professor I Hate Politics podcast host Sunil Dasgupta said.
While Cox, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, is the projected Republican nominee, Kelly Shultz, who was endorsed by Gov. Larry Hogan, has not conceded.
“The policies that President Trump has advanced are the police we bring to Maryland, because the Biden policies are hurting us,” Cox told News4.
“That she lost shows that, on the Republican side, the right-wing section of the party is energized, and the moderates are either staying at home or gonna vote Democratic,” Dasgupta said.
The National Democratic Party poured money into Cox's campaign, betting a Democrat can beat a far-right Republican in what's historically a moderate state.
“The fall campaigns are going to be a referendum on, you guessed it, Trump,” Dasgupta said.
The mail-in ballot count begins at 10 a.m. Thursday, and for some tight races, it could take days or weeks for results.
In 2020, Larry Hogan allowed mail-in ballot counting to begin before the election. He vetoed a bill that would have done the same for this primary.
