{"id":2477331,"date":"2025-08-21T17:12:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T21:12:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wes-moores-primary-rival-switches-to-gop-hoping-to-boost-chances-of-beating-maryland-machine\/"},"modified":"2025-08-21T17:14:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T21:14:12","slug":"wes-moores-primary-rival-switches-to-gop-hoping-to-boost-chances-of-beating-maryland-machine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wes-moores-primary-rival-switches-to-gop-hoping-to-boost-chances-of-beating-maryland-machine\/","title":{"rendered":"Wes Moore\u2019s primary rival switches to GOP, hoping to boost chances of beating Maryland &#8216;machine\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwes-moores-primary-rival-switches-to-gop-hoping-to-boost-chances-of-beating-maryland-machine%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2477331&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Ed Hale, a longtime Democrat and former bank CEO, announced he is switching to the Republican Party to challenge Maryland Governor Wes Moore in the 2026 gubernatorial race. Hale cited Moore&#8217;s strong political machine and incumbency advantage as reasons he couldn&#8217;t win a Democratic primary against him and hopes that running as a moderate Republican will broaden his appeal. Although not a supporter of former President Donald Trump, Hale expressed willingness to work wiht him, believing this bipartisan approach could attract voters frustrated with Democratic opposition to Trump.<\/p>\n<p>Hale criticized Moore&#8217;s alleged hostility towards Trump, linking it to Maryland losing potential economic opportunities, such as a relocated FBI headquarters. both Republicans and Democrats questioned Hale&#8217;s sincerity in switching parties, with GOP leaders skeptical about his alignment with core Republican values and Democrats dismissing his campaign as out of touch.<\/p>\n<p>Hale focuses his campaign on buisness-friendly policies, support for law enforcement, and crime reduction, while also distancing himself from Moore&#8217;s possible 2028 presidential ambitions. Despite Moore&#8217;s popularity within the Democratic Party, recent polling shows his approval rating has declined, tightening the race against his challengers, including Hale. <br \/> <!DOCTYPE html><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Wes Moore&rsquo;s primary rival switches to GOP, hoping to boost chances of beating Maryland &lsquo;machine&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1757047\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Ed Hale, who is challenging Gov. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/wes-moore\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wes Moore<\/a> (D-MD) in the state&rsquo;s 2026 gubernatorial primary, announced on Wednesday that he will switch parties to run against the Maryland governor as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/republican\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Republican<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>A longtime Democrat known as the former chairman and CEO of 1st Mariner Bank, Hale was initially set to mount a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/don-jr-issues-warning-to-gop-reps-unsupportive-of-president-trump\/\" title=\"Don Jr. issues warning to GOP reps. unsupportive of ... ...\">primary challenge<\/a> against Moore, a fairly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.multistate.us\/insider\/2025\/4\/22\/heres-what-america-thinks-of-its-governors\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">popular<\/a> governor viewed as one of the Left&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3220326\/five-democrats-prime-position-face-party-2028\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rising stars<\/a>, as a member of his native Democratic Party.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3776722\/campaign-adviser-suspended-after-giving-reporter-bag-filled-with-cash\/\">Eric Adams campaign adviser suspended after <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >giving reporter potato chip bag filled<\/a> with cash<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3776633\/chip-roy-announces-run-to-replace-ken-paxton-as-texas-attorney-general\/\">Chip Roy announces run to replace Ken Paxton as Texas attorney general<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/3763508\/david-hogg-endorsement-power-2025-elections\/\">David Hogg endorsement power tested with 2025 Democratic primaries<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>As he launched his campaign this week, Hale revealed he believed Moore holds too much power in the state to leave challengers any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-very-seriously-considering-running-in-2024-misses-helping-people-the-most\/\" title=\"... \u2018Very Seriously\u2019 Considering Running In 2024, Misses \u2018Helping People\u2019 The Most\">real chance<\/a> at winning the primary. Running as a Republican and striking a centrist tone could broaden his base, Hale hopes, giving him leverage needed to keep Moore from easily clinching a second term as Maryland governor by wielding the commanding strappings of incumbency.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way I could win against Wes Moore with that machine he&rsquo;s got,&rdquo; Hale said during a press conference at the Canton Waterfront Park on Wednesday morning. &ldquo;He takes all the money and oxygen out of a room, and I can&rsquo;t do it. I&rsquo;m a pragmatist, and I&rsquo;m a moderate person. That&rsquo;s just the way I am.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe I have a chance, based on the polling that was done, to beat him,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;I had a chance, but it was not as good as I think I would have running as a Republican.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Hale said during a WBAL Newsradio <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=jP3-hIKq2Yo&amp;t=837s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">interview<\/a> Thursday that although he is no fan of President Donald Trump, he is willing to work with him, a bipartisan stance he hopes could help him with voters frustrated with Democrats&rsquo; antagonistic Trump resistance agenda.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>On priorities such as carrying out the Key Bridge rebuild, which is being planned after the major piece of regional infrastructure<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3467162\/remaining-maryland-key-bridge-demolition-begins-16-months-after-collapse\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> was toppled in a shocking incident <\/a>last year, Hale believes Trump would be more willing to help him than Moore if the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/humiliated-in-virginia-the-lincoln-project-faces-bleak-future-in-2022\/\" title=\"Humiliated in Virginia, the Lincoln Project Faces Bleak Future in 2022\">project faces<\/a> a funding shortfall.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If the Key Bridge project comes up short $100 million, and I call Trump, I think he&rsquo;d be more likely to help me than to help Moore,&rdquo; Hale said.<\/p>\n<p>Hale also suggested that the governor&rsquo;s unfriendly stance toward Trump might have cost Maryland 50,000 jobs when the president <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3349126\/wes-moore-trump-fbi-headquarters-maryland\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">decided to pull <\/a>a FBI headquarters relocation project in the state earlier this year.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Baltimore businessman Ed Hale Sr. announced his candidacy for Maryland governor as a Republican, distancing himself from President Donald Trump and focusing on crime reduction. The latest: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kbVpaw14aB\">https:\/\/t.co\/kbVpaw14aB<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/6rFpN4d3fq\">pic.twitter.com\/6rFpN4d3fq<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; WBAL NewsRadio 1090 and FM 101.5 (@wbalradio) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/wbalradio\/status\/1958295575792603408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 20, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Both sides of the aisle attacked Hale after changing his party affiliation to Republican this week.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Maryland State Senate Minority Leader Steve Hershey, a Republican, said he had &ldquo;concerns about the sincerity of his conversion to the Republican fold.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Just because he may no longer feel comfortable associating with the progressive wing of the Democratic Party doesn&rsquo;t mean he now embraces the Republican Party&rsquo;s long-standing principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility, individual liberty and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/san-francisco-courts-ai-retailers-in-effort-to-revitalize-city\/\" title=\"San Francisco courts AI, retailers in effort to revitalize city\">strong public safety<\/a>,&rdquo; Hershey said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Democratic Governors Association Communications Director Sam Newton released a statement denouncing Hale&rsquo;s deflection.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;After quickly realizing running in a Democratic primary was nothing more than a bizarre fantasy, Ed Hale Sr. is showing his true colors as an out-of-touch Republican candidate,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;No matter who jumps into this race, Marylanders across party lines will want to keep moving forward with Gov. Moore&rsquo;s strong and popular leadership, which includes cutting taxes for the middle class, turning a $3 billion budget deficit into a surplus, and bringing homicides in Baltimore to a 50-year low.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Hale has appeared unfazed despite the opposition, arguing he&rsquo;s never viewed himself as a party loyalist and pointing to his record of voting for Republican governors and fundraising for Democrats. The gubernatorial hopeful has expressed optimism that he can win over voters to his campaign, which focuses on a business-friendly, pro-police, and anti-crime message.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Hale has attacked Moore on the basis of widespread speculation that the incumbent governor plans to run for president in 2028.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m running for governor of the state of Maryland. I&rsquo;m not running for president of the United States like Wes Moore is,&rdquo; Hale said Wednesday.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Members of the press are reflected in safety glasses worn by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) during a press conference after a tour of the demolition work zone for the remaining portions of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo\/Stephanie Scarbrough)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3464666\/where-2028-presidential-contenders-visit-early-primary-states\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>HERE&rsquo;S WHERE POSSIBLE 2028 PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDERS ARE GOING<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Although Moore continues to enjoy widespread backing from Democrats, a recent poll by&nbsp; Blended Public Affairs and Perry Jacobson lobbying firm indicated his reelection campaign faces real vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n<p>Of those surveyed, 50% said they approved of Moore&rsquo;s job performance. However, the gap between those who approve and disapprove of the governor&rsquo;s performance narrowed to 8%, marking a drop of 13% in six months.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ed Hale switches to GOP to challenge Gov. Wes Moore<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3142,"featured_media":2477332,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/wes-moore-md.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[47543,52689,36457,38909],"class_list":["post-2477331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-gop-switch","tag-maryland-politics","tag-political-rivalry","tag-wes-moore"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/wes-moore-md.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2477331"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477331\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2477335,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477331\/revisions\/2477335"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2477332"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2477331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2477331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2477331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}