Hogan says Trump announcement before November would cost GOP seats

by Olafimihan Oshin - 07/24/22 4:17 PM ET

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan speaks at a news conference on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022 in Annapolis, Md. where he said he plans to remain focused on being governor and does not have a “burning desire to serve in the U.S. Senate.” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other top Republicans are stepping up a personal campaign to persuade Hogan to run for Senate and help the party’s chances of regaining control of the chamber. (AP Photo/Brian Witte)

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said on Sunday that the GOP will lose seats in this year’s midterm elections if former President Trump announces another presidential run before November.

During an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” Hogan told moderator Johnathan Karl that Trump had already cost the GOP the White House, the Senate and the House, and could do further damage by entering the 2024 race before this year’s midterms.

“Well, we had discussions about that at the Republican Governors Association last week, and I think most people are very concerned about the damage it does to the party if he announces now,” Hogan told Karl.

“And, you know, it may help in very red states or very red districts. But in competitive places and purple battlefields, it’s going to cost us seats if he were to do that.”

Hogan said it was “50/50” whether Trump decides to run, adding: “his ego probably can’t take another loss — after all he lost to Joe Biden, which is hard to do — but he likes to be the center of attention.”

Hogan, a frequent critic of Trump, has cast himself as a leader of the anti-Trump faction of the Republican Party. He told Karl that the midterms were the latest chapter in a long fight to seize control of the party back from Trump.

Hogan’s comments come days after Trump-backed Dan Cox (R) defeated Hogan-backed Kelly Schulz (R) in Maryland’s GOP gubernatorial primary, setting up Cox to challenge Democratic candidate Wes Moore (D) in November’s election.

Karl asked Hogan whether the loss in his home-state primary made him more or less likely to run for president.

“It makes me more determined than ever to continue the battle to win — you know, to win over the Republican Party and take us back to a bigger tent, more Reaganesque party,” Hogan said. “We got a work cut out for us but I’m certainly not giving up.”