Democrat Wes Moore was elected Maryland’s first Black governor Tuesday, Nov. 8, defeating Republican Dan Cox in a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-1.
Moore’s victory flips a governor’s office from Republican to Democratic. Of the 36 governor’s races this year, Maryland and Massachusetts represented the best chances for Democrats to regain a governor’s office at a time when the GOP holds a 28-22 edge in governor’s seats. Republican Gov. Larry Hogan is term limited.
Only two other Black politicians have ever been elected governor in the United States — Virginia’s Douglas Wilder in 1989, and Deval Patrick of Massachusetts in 2006. Democrat Stacey Abrams would have become the nation’s first Black female governor if she had won her Georgia rematch against Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, but she conceded the race.
With the slogan “leave no one behind,” the former combat veteran and former CEO of one of the nation’s largest anti-poverty organizations campaigned on creating equal opportunity for Maryland residents.
“When I was an Army captain and led soldiers into combat in Afghanistan, we lived by a simple principle: Leave no one behind … Real patriotism means bringing people together,” Moore told a crowd gathered in downtown Baltimore during his victory speech. “It means lifting each other up and improving each other’s lives.”
Moore’s running mate, Aruna Miller, also made Maryland history by becoming the first immigrant to win the lieutenant governor’s office. Miller, who immigrated from India, also is the first Asian-American elected statewide.
Moore, 44, defeated a first-term state legislator who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, who only received 32% of the vote in Maryland in the 2020 presidential election.
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Anthony Brown also is hoping to make history by becoming the state’s first Black attorney general. Brown, a three-term congressman representing a majority-Black district in the suburbs of the nation’s capital, served as lieutenant governor for eight years. He lost the 2014 governor’s race to Hogan before winning his U.S. House seat.
Democrat Andrea Campbell has become the first Black woman in Massachusetts history to be elected attorney general.
The former Boston city councilor, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year, defeated Republican candidate and trial attorney Jay McMahon. Campbell becomes the third woman to hold the seat in Massachusetts.
Campbell had won the endorsement of Attorney General Maura Healey, the Democratic candidate for governor, as well as four prior state attorneys general, U.S. Sen. Edward Markey and U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley.
During her victory speech, Campbell cited her faith and her family history including her twin brother Andre who died in state custody.
“He and so many of you have given me the courage to keep pressing forward to turn pain into purpose and my god has given me the power to make it happen,” she told supporters who gathered at a downtown Boston hotel.
Campbell also ticked off a series of issues she said she plans to tackle including from targeting wage theft and defending seniors to protecting tenants and homeowners, pushing for what she called commonsense gun laws, and supporting anti-violence organizations.
“For those who have felt unseen this victory is for you. For those who have felt marginalized, this victory is for you. For those who have felt left out, left behind, and undervalued, this victory is for you,” she said.
Campbell has spoken openly about her father’s and brothers’ involvement in the criminal justice system.
The 40-year-old has credited a public education system in Boston with helping put her in schools that opened doors to success while her brother’s schools had few resources. She also said that as a girl she was less likely to be racially profiled by the criminal justice system.
Campbell grew up in Boston and attended Princeton University and UCLA Law School and served as deputy legal counsel to former Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick.
During the campaign, Campbell said she would “look at every issue through an equity lens.” She said Massachusetts residents don’t all have the same access to affordable health care or housing and aren’t all affected equally by the criminal justice system, crime or the climate crisis.
She added that communities of color are “disproportionately policed and incarcerated,” and the contrast in funding and quality of schools – when broken down by income, race, and region – is stark.
