Campaign Polls

Trump tops Hogan by 44 points in Maryland: poll

by Chris Mills Rodrigo

President Trump leads Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) by 44 points in a hypothetical primary match-up in the state, according to a poll released Thursday.

The Baltimore Sun reported that the Gonzales Research & Media Services poll found that Hogan would get the support of roughly 24 percent of the state’s Republican voters if he decides to challenge the president, compared to 68 percent who would vote for Trump.

{mosads}The survey also found that Hogan and Trump both have job approval ratings in the high 70 percent range, according to the newspaper.

“Republican primary voters in Maryland, and probably across the country, they like Donald Trump and they see no reason to replace him,” pollster Patrick Gonzales told the Sun. “Republican voters in Maryland also really like Larry Hogan, but it’s just not a compelling case for a primary challenge.”

Gonzales reportedly polled 203 Republican voters in Maryland from April 29 to May 4. The margin of error for the sample is 7 percentage points.

Hogan, one of the most popular governors in the country, easily won his reelection in November by double digits, despite being a Republican in a blue state.

That win has spurred critics of Trump within the GOP to seek him out as potential primary challenger.

Hogan is “strongly considering” mounting a presidential bid, but said last month he would not run without a “path to victory.”

Former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld is the only Republican candidate to formally announce a primary challenge to Trump so far in the 2020 presidential race.

Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2016, has also been floated as a potential challenger to the president.

Any primary challenger would likely face long odds. The Republican National Committee has already voted to express its “undivided support” for Trump as its 2020 nominee, and Trump’s reelection campaign has staffed up with party insiders to line up its delegate strategy well ahead of the party’s nominating convention.