Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan will be going to New Hampshire next month, leading many to wonder whether the Republican governor is getting serious about taking on President Trump in 2020.
Hogan will be speaking at the Politics & Eggs event hosted by the New Hampshire Institute of Politics and the New England Council at Saint Anselm College in April, which “is a must-attend event for potential presidential candidates,” the Washington Post reports.
Hogan’s upcoming visit to New Hampshire, which is where the nation’s first primary is held, comes after reports that he hasn’t closed the door on mounting a primary challenge against Trump.
Last month he told multiple media outlets that he’s being courted by critics of the president to take on Trump.
"People are talking to me about it," Hogan, a moderate, told CNN in an interview this week. "I'm watching with great interest all of this talk. I'm flattered people are saying that and including me in those discussions. My focus, my plan right now is to stay here for four years and do the best job I can in Maryland, but I've said, 'You never say never.' Who knows what's going to happen."
Asked if he's thinking about running, Hogan replied, "I would say I'm listening. I'm not sure how much thinking we're doing, but I haven't closed the door." (CNN)
Hogan has also said President Trump’s chances of winning in 2020 are not very strong.
“I’m not saying he couldn’t win, but he’s pretty weak in the general election,” he said.
Still, GOP governor has acknowledged that any primary challenge would be a long-shot, given that “nobody has successfully challenged a sitting president in the same party in the primary since 1884.”
“At this point in time, I don’t see any path to winning a Republican primary against this president, or anybody doing it. But things have a way of changing,” he told Politico. “I don’t know what the lay of the land is going to look like this summer, or in the fall.”