Heather Curtis
WMAL.com

WASHINGTON (WMAL) – A new poll by Mason-Dixon Polling and Strategy shows Maryland Gov, Larry Hogan is popular, but he won’t be a shoe in for governor in 2018.

The poll found 61 percent of Maryland voters approve of the job Hogan is doing, but when pitted against potential Democratic challengers for governor he still can’t crack the 50 percent threshold. If the election were held today, 46 percent of respondents said they would vote for Hogan, while 39 percent would vote for Baker. Only 25 percent of Democrats would vote for Hogan.

“By most standards, popular incumbents should be able to get at least half the vote this early in a campaign, and the fact that Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker is only 7 points behind is certainly something they need to be concerned about,” said the polling firm’s managing director Brad Coker.

Coker said as the race continues, Baker will get more name recognition, which could close the gap between him and Hogan.

Hogan never endorsed President Donald Trump and has distanced himself from him, but that might not be enough to get moderate voters to support him.

“I have seen plenty of campaigns where Republicans have tried to distance themselves from controversial issues or controversial people within their own party, and sometimes that works, but if there’s a national dynamic coming into play, it’s really hard to separate it down at the loc al level,” said Coker.

If Hogan wants to win, he will need to find some political weak points from Baker’s time as county executive, and he will need to create a stark contrast between him and the Democrat according to Coker.
Copyright 2017 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: Mason-Dixon Polling Strategy)