Alsobrooks pushes for national abortion rights in crucial Maryland Senate race

GAITHERSBURG, Maryland (AP) — Angela Alsobrooks sees an erosion of women's reproductive freedom with regard to her 19-year-old daughter.

“She's a sophomore in college and literally has fewer rights than her grandmother and her mother at this moment,” Alsobrooks said in an interview with the Associated Press.

Alsobrooks' daughter, now entering her sophomore year at Spelman College in Georgia, would have limited options if she had to decide whether to terminate a pregnancy because of that state's new abortion ban after six weeks. With her currently in one of the toughest U.S. Senate races in Maryland and the Democrats' narrow Senate majority at stake, Alsobrooks hopes that a new federal law protecting abortion rights will protect not only her daughter's autonomy, but that of all women across the United States.

Alsobrooks' Republican opponent, the former governor of Maryland. Larry Hoganhas said he, too, supports federal legislation to restore abortion rights nationwide. But Alsobrooks says the need to protect women's freedom to make those decisions for themselves is too important to risk giving Republicans a majority by electing the popular former governor in a normally reliably Democratic state.

“The question is not whether we like Larry Hogan or not,” she said recently at a campaign rally in Columbia, Maryland. “That's not the question. It's not even whether it's a good idea to elect him governor. The question we're answering is: Who should have the 51st vote?”

Alsobrooks, now chief executive of Prince George's County in the capital's suburbs, said Hogan showed his true feelings on the issue as governor when he vetoed a bill in 2022 to expand abortion access by removing the restriction that only doctors can perform abortions. Democrats, who control the Maryland General Assembly, overrode Hogan's veto.

“I think my opponent's record is very clear when it comes to abortion care,” Alsobrooks said.

She also said that during the election campaign she heard how important abortion rights were to voters.

“I hear this not only from women, but from a number of men who say they want this freedom for their daughters and granddaughters and that they are very concerned about the direction we are heading in terms of people's reproductive choices,” Alsobrooks said.

Abortion rights in Georgia were at the center of the presidential election. Vice President Kamala Harris Linking the state ban on abortion after six weeks with the death of two women who could not receive the necessary treatment there.

Both Alsobrooks and Hogan have said they would jointly support federal legislation to codify into federal law the standard that existed before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. But Alsobrooks said Hogan's party affiliation would have a practical impact on whether that could happen.

“When we think about Roe, for example, and the codification of Roe, we realize that there will never be a vote on whether or not we should codify Roe into federal law if Republicans are in the majority,” Alsobrooks said, “because they've made it clear, they've basically declared war on reproductive freedom, and we know that vote would never happen.”

During his Senate campaign, Hogan emphasized his support for abortion rights. He said he would not support a federal abortion ban and strongly supported assisted reproduction.

“Unlike most candidates or most people on my side of the aisle running, I have said I would co-sponsor a bill to codify Roe,” Hogan said in an interview last month.

Abortion law will be a concern for Maryland voters in November in another way. It is one of at least nine States considering voting issues to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution. State ballot initiatives protecting abortion rights have been a success even in conservative states like Kansas and Kentucky since the court turned the matter over to the states with its 2022 decision.

Hogan has won two statewide elections, only the second time in Maryland history that a Republican governor has been re-elected, giving him a national name recognition advantage from the start of the Senate race.

Nevertheless, Democrats outnumber Republicans in Maryland 2-1, and the GOP has not won a U.S. Senate seat in Maryland in more than 40 years. Hogan is also running for the first time on the same ballot as former President Donald Trumpwho is deeply unpopular in Maryland.

Hogan has been a harsh critic of Trump over the years. He is also under heightened interest from Democrats because Maryland rarely has a decisive Senate race.

The former governor says this is “a tougher campaign than my two gubernatorial races,” but Hogan says he finds Enthusiasm for his election campaign by voters who see him as an important voice of change, fighting “against the extremes of both parties.”

“I've said it time and time again: I'm the underdog,” Hogan said. “It's almost impossible to accomplish what I'm trying to do, but we're happy with what we've accomplished.”

But Alsobrooks brings her own vulnerabilities to the race, including a new report from CNN that she wrongfully received property tax credits for two houses that, according to her campaign team, she knew nothing about and which she intends to pay back.

Moreover, she is far less well known to most voters in Maryland than Hogan.

Alsobrooks defeated Maryland Rep. David Trone in the Democratic primary in May by 10 percentage points, even though the congressman and co-founder of the liquor store chain Total Wine and More spent more than $60 million of his personal fortune on his campaign.

Alsobrooks also drew large crowds at campaign rallies, where she expressed her confidence without underestimating Hogan.

“This is not an easy one either, in the grand scheme of things,” Alsobooks said in the AP interview, which took place Friday before the CNN report. “And there is even more at stake, and Marylanders are very engaged and will make a decision in this race to keep the Senate more Democratic.”

With a win, Alsobrooks would make Maryland history by becoming the state's first black U.S. senator. An Alsobrooks victory would also restore female representation in the state's congressional delegation. While Maryland has a long tradition of female officeholders from both parties in the delegation, Maryland's delegation in Washington has been made up entirely of men since former Senator Barbara Mikulski resigned in 2016 and Representative Donna Edwards lost the primary to replace her.

“It's a historic campaign and I'm proud of it,” Alsobrooks said. “For example, Senator Barbara Mikulski said she was the first woman elected, but she didn't want to be the only one. So I think the election of a woman to the Senate is very significant.”

While Hogan campaigns on crime and economic issues, Alsobrooks highlights her experience as a county commissioner with a focus on economic development, as well as her work as Prince George's County prosecutor before becoming county commissioner.

“As I've mentioned before, as an elected prosecutor, I achieved a 50% reduction in violence,” Alsobrooks said. “I'm also the only person in this race who has prosecuted murderers, rapists and car thieves.”

At the campaign rally in Columbia, Alsobrooks reminded voters that a Democratic loss of Senate control could affect future Supreme Court nominations.

“That's a clear reason why it's going to be really important to keep the majority,” she said in the AP interview.