Tuesday’s primary election in deeply Democratic Maryland determined the next officeholder in several contests, including one of the country’s most expensive House races and another flooded by special-interest money.
U.S. House
Maryland had two highly contested Democratic primary races in districts near the D.C. suburbs, both defined by an unusual onslaught of cash.
To the east, Rep. Steny H. Hoyer’s (D-Maryland) retirement in January touched off a six-month campaign sprint that drew 24 Democrats to the race, including some former federal workers, multiple current and former local officials, some state lawmakers and business leaders.
Del. Adrian Boafo (D-Prince George’s), a former Hoyer campaign manager, was the incumbent’s preferred successor and decisively won the primary shortly after polls closed, according to the Associated Press.
Boafo had collected endorsements from Maryland’s top political power brokers, but he was also the beneficiary of $11 million in outside spending from super PACs aligned with the cryptocurrency industry and AIPAC, the pro-Israel group Hoyer has championed for decades.
A crypto-industry group took credit for Boafo’s win.
“We went big and we went early. We did our part to move Adrian Boafo from fifth place to the halls of Congress. He is poised to be a leader in the largest pro-crypto Congress in history,” Fairshake spokesman Geoff Vetter said.
Boafo’s top competitors included Harry Dunn, a former Capitol Police officer who served during the Jan. 6 riots, and business executive Quincy Bareebe, who put $5.7 million of her own fortune into the race. The candidates held similar views on many issues and are best distinguished from each other by identity or biography, though U.S. support for Israel has been a flash point.
In the district that stretches from the D.C. suburbs to West Virginia border, Rep. April McClain Delaney (D) fended off a comeback bid by her predecessor, former congressman David Trone (D). Trone, owner of national liquor retailer Total Wine & More, smashed self-funding records in an acrimonious fight to win back the seat he gave up two years ago. McClain Delaney also has sunk millions from her personal fortune into defending herself and piled up endorsements from the state’s political establishment.
She won the seat Trone had vacated during his failed 2024 Senate bid, and the two Potomac-area multimillionaires have collectively spent more than $33 million fighting each other. A super PAC aligned with the cryptocurrency industry put $500,000 behind boosting her.
Governor
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) faced a primary challenge from a little-known liberal running to his left on nominal resources.
The first-term governor and a rising star in the national party easily beat Eric Felber, who raised less than $1,000 since February, and pitched increasing the state’s minimum wage to $30 an hour and providing free universal child care.
Moore, who amassed a $13.8 million reelection fund during his first term, will face a rematch against MAGA-aligned Republican Dan Cox, his 2022 opponent who won the GOP nomination again on Tuesday.
The Maryland Democratic Party sent mailers that boosted Cox in the primary against businessman Ed Hale, who until recently was a Democrat. A banker who also owns Baltimore’s indoor soccer team, Hale weighed a primary challenge against Moore before switching parties and running as a Republican instead.
Full primary results from June 23
The races we’re watching:
New York 12th Congressional District primary results
All New York House and governor primary results
Other elections:
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