Republican Larry Hogan Doesn’t Rule Out a 2024 Presidential Run
Republican Larry Hogan Doesn’t Rule Out a 2024 Presidential Run
(Bloomberg) -- Maryland’s Republican governor, Larry Hogan, said he wouldn’t rule out a run for president in 2024, and that he intends to play a role in the future of the party.
“I do want to be a part of the discussion about where we go as a party and where we go as a country so I’m going to try and continue to be involved and speak up and let people know what I think we should do,” Hogan said in a response to a question about a possible presidential bid during a taped interview on “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer-to-Peer Conversations,” which appears on Bloomberg TV.
But Hogan, a rare Republican critic of President Donald Trump, said he wasn’t “ready to launch any campaigns” and that he remained focused on his current role until his term ends in January 2023. “I’m flattered by the people suggesting that” he become a candidate, said Hogan, a former chairman of the National Governors Association.
Hogan, 64, who easily won re-election in 2018 to a second term in a state that usually elects Democrats, has been particularly outspoken over Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. That position drew the ire of the president, who has not discouraged talk that he might run again in 2024.
Hogan was among the few Republican governors to acknowledge Biden’s victory after the Nov. 3 election and said last month he was “embarrassed” the majority of the party had not followed suit.
During the “Peer-to-Peer” interview, Hogan praised the efforts of Vice President Mike Pence, the leader of Trump’s coronavirus task force, and Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious disease doctor. He also said that he had been in touch with President-elect Joe Biden on the issue, while casting a dire warning about what lies ahead.
“The honest truth is that some of our darkest days are still ahead of us,” Hogan said. “The virus is spiking out of control all across the country.”
Still, he expressed optimism about the progress of Operation Warp Speed, the multi-agency effort to accelerate access to vaccines and treatments.
“It’s like the cavalry is coming to the rescue, it’s just not going to happen as fast as we’d like,” Hogan said. “We will start to get our first doses of the vaccine out to all the states.”
Hogan shot down speculation that he might serve in the Biden administration, though he said he had a good relationship and “a lot of respect” for the incoming president.
“I made a commitment to the people of Maryland to serve out my term,” Hogan said.
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