Larry Hogan is not planning to run for the US presidency on behalf of the Republicans. The former governor of the state of Maryland is a fierce opponent of Donald Trump. In his own words, he does not want to unintentionally help the ex-president to profit from the nomination for 2024.
A large list of Republican candidates for the White House will, according to Logan, cause even greater division within the Grand Old Party. The risk could be that Trump will benefit from this in the vote.
“There are several capable Republican leaders who have the potential to step up and take the lead,” Hogan wrote in a guest essay in the The New York Times. “But for me, the stakes are too great to risk Trump taking off with the nomination by getting involved in yet another car crash myself.” He reiterated that “the tide is finally turning” and that Republican voters are fed up with the hassle and want change.
The popular Hogan stepped down as governor of Maryland in January. His second term was over. He did some preliminary work for a run for president, but quickly came to the conclusion that if his candidacy would give Trump any wind in his sails, he would have to drop it.
“The more opponents, the better”
Trump himself made no secret of how he feels about opposing candidates: “The more opponents, the better.” In 2016, seventeen Republican candidates ran for the highest office in the US and Trump received the most votes.
So far, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley and businessmen Vivek Ramaswamy and Terry Johnson have expressed interest in running for president. Ron DeSantis is seen as Trump’s most promising competitor. Other names circulating include Mike Pence, Michael Pompeo, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Kristi Noem, Chris Sununu, and Glenn Youngkin.
