Trump-Backed Dan Cox Wins Maryland GOP Gubernatorial Nomination

State Del. Dan Cox, who had the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, has won the GOP nomination for governor of Maryland.

The Associated Press called the race on Tuesday night. Cox will face the winner of the Democratic primary in November and will be a substantial underdog.

Author and executive Wes Moore was leading the Democratic primary on Tuesday night, pulling 37% of the vote to former Labor Secretary Tom Perez’s 27%. The race was unlikely to be called on Tuesday night, since Maryland counties will not begin counting mail ballots until Thursday morning.

The victory for Cox, who has wholeheartedly embraced Trump’s lies about the 2020 presidential election and espouses hard-line conservative views on most major issues, is also a stinging defeat for Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, the popular moderate who has repeatedly clashed with the former president and is eyeing a presidential bid in 2024.