Silver Spring, Maryland
CNN
—
The farmers’ market in this Washington, D.C., suburb was a packed crowd for Angela Alsobrooks, who faces an increasingly contentious Senate Democratic primary on Tuesday.
“I really want to see a Black woman in the Senate. It’s about time,” said Kathy Pruitt, 68, of Takoma Park, while waiting in line for pickles last Saturday.
If elected in November, Allsbrooks, the Prince George’s County executive, could become the third Black woman ever elected to the Senate. (The only Black woman currently serving is California’s LaFonza Butler, who was appointed but will not remain in office beyond this year.) Allbrooks also said that Maryland’s all-male One woman will be added to the 10-member parliamentary group.
But first she must defeat one of them, Democratic Rep. David Tron, who co-owns Total Wine and More and has spent about $60 million of his own money on his campaign so far.
“I think it’s going to be a close race, and I think both have a path to victory,” said Miria Kromer, who oversees the Goucher College poll, adding support for Alsobrooks and the Prince George’s County home vs. Throne County. mentioned the potential power of the base. Huge spending benefits.
The race has divided Congress, with nearly the entire Maryland delegation supporting Mr. Allbrooks and key members of the House Democratic leadership backing Mr. Tron. The final nominee will likely face former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, whose popularity in the state could jeopardize Democrats’ chances of holding the seat and, along with them, the Senate majority.
The potentially history-making aspects of Alsobrooks’ candidacy were not central to her pitch to voters, and many of her female supporters stressed that this was not about identity politics.
“Even if you don’t like everything else about her, that’s not enough,” Pruitt said.
Still, in a race where there are few clear policy differences between candidates on big federal issues, especially one in which protection of abortion rights is a key part of the debate over retaining the seat, Mr. Alsobrooks feels that Mr. Tron’s lived experience serves as a point of contrast with Mr. Tron’s. In the hands of the Democratic Party. Tron also addressed the stakes in November, making the case for a possible election as to whether he has the resources to defeat Hogan.
Brian Snyder/Reuters/File
This October 2022 photo shows then-Maryland Governor Larry Hogan speaking at the Politics and Eggs forum at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire.
But here in Maryland, where Cromer estimates about 40 to 45 percent of Democratic primary voters are black, primaries are not simply about coalition politics versus money. For example, Tron himself has received support from black women, including prominent local leaders in Oldsbrooks’ backyard who have appeared in his attack ads.
On Monday night, one Prince George’s County voter from Bowie’s target was blunt when asked if electing a Black woman to the Senate was important to her.
“At this point, that’s not the case. Well, the job needs to get done. There was a time when that was the case. At this point, I’m going to vote for the person that I think will do the best job,” the 49-year-old said. The French teacher spoke, noting that Mr. Alsobrooks is not the candidate because he is disappointed in his record as county executive.
“We’ve seen a lot of buildings go up without doing anything,” said the teacher, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution, saying the school system “has collapsed.”
But alluding to the challenges that lie ahead for Democrats, she paused after saying she was leaning toward Tron and said she was “very happy with Hogan as pandemic governor,” before adding: . Long term. ”
Last Saturday, the women walked with Alsobrooks through the drizzle from the elections office in downtown Silver Spring to a nearby local early voting site, where a marching band greeted farmers’ market foragers along the way. He walked with caution – casually claiming the candidate’s accomplishments on behalf of the school and local residents. Before she talked about being a woman, she talked about the economy.
But it was an unmistakable part of Ms. Alsobrooks’ case — for example, when she talked about her experience as a domestic violence prosecutor, or when she accused her and others of donating to Republican governors who signed abortion regulations. Such as when an ally attacks a businessman’s adversary. (He chalks these donations up to business expenses and touts the millions of yen he has donated to the Democratic Party.)
“Electing women is not only good for Maryland,” Allsbrooks told supporters gathered outside his campaign office. “It’s good for America to make sure women’s voices are included at these tables when making important decisions.”
“We are making history again,” Emily’s List founder Ellen Malcolm, whose super PAC recently invested $2.5 million in the race, told the audience. “I intend to create one,” he said, pointing out how influential Democratic groups have risen to prominence by contributing to the advancement of society. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland became a senator in 1986.
The former senator has endorsed Alsobrooks, as have The Washington Post, Gov. Wes Moore and other Democrats in the current state’s congressional delegation, but are neutral with one House member who supported Trone. The exception is retired Sen. Ben Cardin, who holds the position. in the race to replace him.
All-Brooks’ allies see the seat as an opportunity to not only maintain the status quo of only one Black woman in the Senate, but also potentially improve her ranking. After California Rep. Barbara Lee failed to advance to the November election, attention turned to Delaware, where Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester is running for a vacant Senate seat, and now Maryland.
Pamela Luckett, 67, of Silver Spring, said Maryland should do its part to diversify the chamber.
“As a national democratic leader, it is very important that we do it with qualified people,” she added. “It’s not just an identity issue. She’s qualified, and she’s the most qualified candidate in the race.”
But the experience, and more importantly, also became a flashpoint that brought the discussion back to the race.
Trone, who was first elected to Congress in 2018, has focused on his voting record and claims he can get 10 Republicans to sign the bill in the Senate to overcome the filibuster.
“What’s really important is getting things done and not getting caught up in special interests,” he said.
But his campaign has intensified with an attack ad in which a local lawmaker said the Senate is “no place for training wheels.” More than 750 Black women leaders sent a letter saying Tron’s ads reflected “a tone of misogyny and racism.”
“This attempt to undermine Ms. Allbrooks’ candidacy is deeply problematic and emblematic of the obstacles Black women face in politics,” they wrote.
This comment was edited from the ad, but Tron himself told a local NBC affiliate that “this job is not for people with training wheels.”
Albrooks didn’t hesitate to call him out and try to contrast their tones. “That kind of derogatory language is something we’ve seen too much in Washington. People are tired of it,” she told CNN last weekend. “And it also shows what’s in his heart, which is that he has a very low opinion of women.”
Asked Tuesday night about CNN’s “training wheels” remark, Tron pushed the word on a local lawmaker and denied it, saying, “Frankly, she has no experience at the federal level.” added.
And he has an influential local black woman representing him as well.
“You don’t learn this overnight, and we learned this at the Capitol,” state Sen. Joanne Benson told the crowd at a Women for Tron event in Bowie on Monday. told. “Do you understand that the people who go to the Capitol have to fight people like Donald Trump?”
At a rally in Mr. Allsbrooks’ home county, speaker after speaker praised Mr. Trone’s employment of former inmates and support from teachers’ unions.
Many black women here said his record eclipses any history that Alsobrooks could make.
“It’s not that simple, because what you believe matters,” Prince George’s County Councilwoman Crystal Oriada said, adding that playing identity politics is a Republican tactic that her party needs to be wary of. He claimed that there was.
“They lift someone up because they think it’s because of identity politics. If you’re a woman, if you’re black, you forget about the issues and they’re actually doing what’s best for their community.” You won’t know if it’s consistent with what you said.”
Trone has also spent millions of dollars of his own money on his House campaigns, but his ability to self-fund is a big part of his pitch, although he doesn’t say much about how much he’s spent.
“We know that a lot of good things that should happen don’t happen because of special interests,” he told an audience at the AFI Silver Theater on Tuesday, insisting he could stand up to the NRA and the pharmaceutical industry. did.
“I don’t take money from PACs or special interests, so I save about 30% of my time to have time to build connections,” he added, promoting his work across the aisle. .
Tron’s supporters draw a distinction between his humble roots (he often says there were no indoor toilets when he was young) and the politician who inherited his wealth.
“Let’s be clear about this: He wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth,” Benson told attendees at the Women for Tron rally, describing her journey from penniless to rich. He praised the story and told how he cut him a check for $10,000. She wanted to establish a scholarship fund for her late sister.
In addition to giving him an advertising and operational advantage, Tron also believes his money will be a selling point for Democrats worried about holding the seat in November.
Mr. Allsbrooks is not short on money, having raised nearly $7.8 million by the end of the primary reporting period on April 24th. She rose to the challenge of fundraising, which often poses barriers for Black women in politics, said President Glynda Carr. She is the CEO of Higher Heights for America, whose PAC is dedicated to electing Black women and supports Alsobrooks.
“But if you follow the data, the new barrier is self-funding,” Kerr said.
But Alsobrooks’ supporters say that while Tron’s spending certainly gets his message across, it doesn’t mean he’s given up on the race.
And for some, his ability to raise money is itself off-putting.
Mr. Pruitt said as he returned to the pickle stand. “We don’t need another billionaire, another billionaire in the Senate. I feel strongly about that in some ways.”