The latest news today out of Maryland:
The sparse crowd chanted, “Bernie! Bernie!” as former NAACP president Ben Jealous and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders arrived on the makeshift stage.
“We’re going to change that to ‘Ben! Ben!’ ” said Sanders (I-Vt.), who was appearing for the third time to support Jealous’s run for Maryland governor. “While we have a president who wants to win votes by dividing us up . . . this is going to be a governor who brings us together.”
Jealous, the child of an interracial couple who left Maryland for California because they couldn’t be married in their home state, is seeking support from two distinct groups: white liberals who backed Sanders in the 2016 presidential race and African American voters who largely stayed home in 2014 because they were less than inspired by Anthony G. Brown, that year’s Democratic gubernatorial nominee.
With nearly 4 in 10 voters still undecided three weeks before the June 26 Democratic primary, the first-time candidate is one of two contenders leading a crowded field: Twenty-one percent of likely voters say they support him while 16 percent support Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll.
Stacey Abrams, a longtime friend who is the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Georgia, said Jealous “knows that every vote matters and that you have to contact every voter. But you have to particularly pay attention to the communities that are typically ignored by campaigns.”
Jealous wants Maryland to require a $15 minimum wage and become the first state in the country to adopt its own single-payer health-care system. As governor, he says, he would aim to reduce the prison population by 30 percent, raise the cigarette tax and increase income taxes by 1 percent on the top 1 percent of earners to help pay for several programs that would allow students to go to public colleges and universities free.
He also wants to legalize adult recreational use of marijuana to help pay for universal prekindergarten.
“Folks will tell you that the things I want to do are big and hard, and they are right. But nothing worth doing is ever easy,” Jealous said in an interview. “I’ve spent my whole life getting the big done, making the hard possible.”
That’s not the only poll to show Jealous in the lead:
The Maryland Democratic primary for governor is a toss-up between the two top candidates, with former NAACP president and CEO Ben Jealous surging, according to a new poll made available to BuzzFeed News Tuesday.
The poll was commissioned by Maryland Together We Rise, a pro-Jealous independent expenditure campaign, and conducted by Brilliant Corners Research and Strategies from May 22 to 27. The poll, which queried 600 likely voters in the primary, has Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker leading the field at 22%, with Jealous just behind him at 21%.
The Brilliant Corners poll found that Jealous and Baker are holding down their geographical bases in Baltimore City and Prince George’s County, respectively. A memo accompanying the results said that a third of voters in the June 26 primary are undecided, however, with three weeks left to fight for those votes. "Whichever of the two candidates garners the resources to most effectively communicate, in the closing month, will be well-positioned to win," it said.
Now Governor Lary Hogan (R. MD) is still in the lead but this would not be the first time a Democrat pulled off a surprise victory in unseating a popular Republican. Just ask Martin O’Malley. Jealous is very well aware that it’s all about turnout and that’s why he has some big names hitting the campaign trail:
Democrat Ben Jealous plans to deploy celebrity supporters over the next few weeks to rally his voters to the polls, starting this week with comedian and childhood friend Dave Chappelle, his campaign announced Tuesday.
Chappelle is scheduled to host a 2 p.m. rally for the Democratic candidate for governor at Morgan State University in Baltimore on Saturday, the second such event in two days.
The Comedy Central star is also scheduled to host a rally for Jealous in Prince George’s County on Friday, along with several other fundraisers in the area, the campaign said.
And helping him raise cash. I received this e-mail today from Actress & Activist Alyssa Milano:
2018 has been an incredible year for women -- but we have so far still to go.
If you're like me, you're committed to keep fighting for equality in every corner of our country, especially now -- when so many of our civil rights are under attack. While we can't change the White House (yet), we can take a page from the Republican playbook by making change at the state and local level.
That's why I'm so excited about Ben Jealous and Susie Turnbull -- they're the type of leaders we need across the country, and Maryland needs them right now. Donate $5 or more now to help Ben and Susie win the June 26th Maryland gubernatorial primary!
Ben and Susie have made civil rights a cornerstone of their platform, and they're committed to promoting equality for all Marylanders. And with a track record of passing the Maryland DREAM Act, passing marriage equality, and abolishing the death penalty, they're the only ones who can keep pushing for more progress.
It won't be easy, but they have a plan that will work now. Not in a few years or even a few months -- their platform is built on the idea that we can do it now.
Because while Maryland has made some real progress, we still have much more to do to protect and advance civil rights and ensure that we eliminate inequities that exist in education, the economy, and the criminal justice system. And we can make history, if we do it together.
That's why I'm asking you to make a grassroots donation today if you agree we can do it now: Chip in $5 or more today to support Ben and Susie.
Thank you,
Alyssa Milano