Baltimore rapper praises Larry Hogan for ‘great PR’ in community

Baltimore-area rapper DDm praised Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) on Friday, saying that Hogan has done a better job reaching the community’s voters than his Democratic opponent, Ben Jealous.

“He did great PR — the free [community] college … that spoke to parents,” DDm, who was born Emmanuel Williams, told Hill.TV’s Jamal Simmons on “Rising.” 

But Williams, a self-identified Democrat, stopped short of saying he would vote for the Republican in November.

“If I’m going to be honest, it’s not going to be what I think, it’s about knowing what’s going on and see change — that’s how you win,” the rapper said. 

“While I am a Democrat, I understand how other people win. The reality is Ben Jealous did not do enough footwork in the community to galvanize the people — enough for them to come out and vote for him,” he continued. 

In 2014, Hogan became the second Republican governor to be elected in Maryland in nearly 50 years. He is running a reelection campaign in a state that swung heavily in Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s favor in the 2016 election.

But polling data puts the election in Hogan’s favor. Hogan leads Jealous, the former president of the NAACP, by more than 14 points, according to the latest poll from RealClearPolitics. A poll released earlier this month by by Gonzales Research and Media Services found that Jealous trails Hogan by double digits.

— Tess Bonn