As the 2014 Maryland gubernatorial race quickly takes shape, ABC7 interviewed UMBC political science professor Thomas F. Schaller on what the state can expect moving forward. Schaller’s comments focused on the strength of the Democratic party in the state. He noted, “The Republican party just has such a very short bench in Maryland.”
Schaller walked the reporter through the past several gubernatorial elections and the tactics candidates found successful. He suggested, “for a long time, Democrats maximized their votes in Baltimore City, Montgomery County and Prince George’s County.” For example, Parris Glendening (1995-2003) won those three areas and was elected, despite losing the state’s other 21 jurisdictions.
The metric gradually shifted to the point where Ehrlich won by doing sufficiently well (but not winning) in Montgomery and Prince George’s and garnering significant votes elsewhere. The Democrats learned from that experience, leading to an O’Malley victory. As for the Maryland GOP, Schaller remarked, “I’m not saying they can’t win – it depends on who they nominate, but I think the Democrats are favored.”
Tags: CAHSS, PoliticalScience
