Hogan, Jealous make push for votes during Maryland gubernatorial campaign’s final weekend
Meanwhile, Democratic challenger
In the state's most important races, including a hotly contested campaign for
More than 660,000 Marylanders cast ballots during the state's eight-day early voting period that ended Thursday. But elections officials expect twice that number to show up Tuesday on
"The polls look really good, I'm sure you heard about them," Hogan told about 500 people gathered at Patriot Fire, a company that makes fire trucks, in
Hogan began his day of campaigning at a tug-of-war competition in
Three days until the general election, there was little doubt Hogan's multimillion-dollar television advertising blitz had reached an audience. As voters stopped him to pose for photos, they referenced his ads.
"Your commercial with the kid in the hospital, that was a phenomenal commercial,"
"I didn't want to use it," Hogan said of the ad. "I told the story and I started to choke up and cry. I said, 'I don't want to put that on TV.'"
"No, it's awesome," Wooden's wife, Kristin, 47, interjected. "I'm a Democrat, but I'm voting for you. ... I like the one with the riots and then the guy says, 'When you needed help, we were there for you.'" The ad talks about Hogan's actions during unrest in
"That's a good one," the governor, who has spent nearly
He then put his arms around the couple and smiled for the camera.
Hogan said he wasn't worried that about 270,000 more
Still, the turnout thus far has been heartening to
"The enthusiasm is on the Democratic side," said
Events for Jealous Saturday included visits to vote-rich
Jealous, working to fire up volunteer canvassers, continued to express optimism that he can pull off an upset.
"We've always known Hogan has the polls," he said. "We have the numbers."
His volunteers were keeping the faith as well.
"I think we got it," said
The high-profile event of the Democrat's morning was a rally for the Latino community at Los Chorros, a Salvadorean/Mexican restaurant in heavily Hispanic Wheaton, featuring Dawson and Chappelle. They were joined by a contingent of down-ballot
Jealous spoke to the crowd of Hogan's opposition to proposed legislation that would have restricted police departments' cooperation with the federal government on immigration enforcement.
"This is
Dawson, a political activist who has appeared in dozens of movies including Men in Black II, told the group that she can't vote in
"This is a man who's willing to stand up and fight for us," said Dawson, who like Jealous was a prominent supporter off
Dawson, a
Dawson has spoken of her experiences with sexual assault, and said she was particularly motivated to support Jealous because of his support of ensuring that all rape kits are tested. She said she also likes Jealous' support for the abolition of cash bail as the prime determinant of pretrial release.
After the
A couple hundred Jealous supporters walked the short distance to the park chanting such slogans as "no need to tell us, we're all voting Jealous" and "Ben, Ben, Ben can win, we know why 'cause we're women."
Meanwhile, in
Olszewski, a Democrat, and Redmer, a Republican, both professed confidence heading into the final days. They're vying to succeed County Executive
Both candidates are experienced, having served in the
Redmer began his morning rolling into the Hunt Valley Towne Centre on an antique fire truck driven by a former county fire chief,
He was trailed by his son,
Redmer had a full slate of campaign activities planned after the car show: encouraging volunteers at his
At each stop, his plan was to stress his experience as a state delegate and two stints as state insurance commissioner, as well as his private-sector experience in the insurance business. He promised to bring financial acumen and strong leadership to county government.
"The message is: I think I'm the right guy for the job and it's critical to get out and vote -- not just for me, but for
The Republican governor has been increasingly visible in
Olszewski, likewise, had a packed schedule that included knocking on doors, a meet-and-greet with voters and teaming up with state Sen.
Early Saturday afternoon, Olszewski fired up more than 100 volunteers who gathered at the campaign's
"Are you ready for a better
Olszewski and his volunteers were planning to find voters who didn't cast ballots during early voting and encourage them to vote Tuesday. His pitch was focused on his plans for improving public schools, and highlighting that he's supported by the county teachers' union.
"When you win an election by 17 votes, you don't take anything for granted," Olszewski said, referring to his margin of victory in the Democratic primary. "So, we're pushing hard through the end here."
The success or failure of get-out-the-vote efforts can make or break political campaigns.
"For Jealous, you don't want your supporters to be dispirited and not come out" because of polling showing a Hogan lead, Eberly said. "For Hogan, you don't want your supporters to think you're up in the polls and they don't need to come out."
Eberly said Jealous would be wise to focus turnout efforts in
"The math says it all depends on how many
"He's got to keep Hogan from getting 20 or 30 percent of the
For Hogan, Kromer said, "it's about staying the course and not committing any unfortunate gaffes in the final days.They're well ahead in fundraising and they've been able to dominate on TV. He's run a really disciplined campaign."
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