Trump endorses Larry Hogan for Senate, former Maryland governor claps back

Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, on Thursday endorsed former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in his Senate race in the deep-blue state.

“I’d like to see him win. I think he has a good chance to win. … I know other people made some strong statements, but I can just say from my standpoint, I’m about the party and I’m about the country. And I would like to see him win,” Mr. Trump told Fox News.

“Well, nobody’s asked me that, but essentially, I would be endorsing him, yeah,” he said in the clip the outlet broadcasted.

Mr. Trump made the endorsement as he visited Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Mr. Hogan’s campaign responded to Mr. Trump’s comments, saying, “Governor Hogan has been clear he is not supporting Donald Trump, just as he didn’t in 2016 and 2020.”

Mr. Hogan is running against Democratic Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks to replace retiring Sen. Benjamin Cardin. He would become the first Republican senator from Maryland since Charles “Mac” Mathias, who retired from office in 1987.

Mr. Trump’s remarks were starkly different from those of his co-campaign manager, Chris LaCivita, and Republican National Committee co-chair, Lara Trump. 

“You just ended your campaign,” Mr. LaCivita wrote after Mr. Hogan posted on X that it was important to respect the verdict against Mr. Trump in his hush-money trial.

Meanwhile, Ms. Trump said the former Maryland governor “doesn’t deserve the respect” of Republicans and called his remarks “ridiculous.”

Mr. Hogan previously told CNN that he has no plans to vote for Mr. Trump or President Biden, stating that a face-off between the two is a “terrible choice.” 

“I know that sounds like a cop-out, but I just don’t think either one of them should be president,” he said.

“If Trump loses this election, I think that will be the end of the movement. And I think we’ll try to get the party steered back to a more Reaganesque, bigger-tent party.”