(PresidentialInsider.com)- General elections might not be the only thing that Democrats like to meddle in. Now, they’re influencing primary elections around the country by propping up MAGA candidates endorsed by former President Trump, according to 1945, all in the hopes to win the general elections in November. Democrats employing this strategy believe that “extreme Trump-aligned candidates” will be easier to defeat, but that not might actually be reality.
In a recent example, Democrats employed their strategy in the Maryland gubernatorial race, backing Dan Cox, a Trump endorsee. Cox allegedly holds “extreme views” because he supports Trump and called Pence a “traitor.” He was also there on January 6 to support the president but did not make his way to the Capitol after he heard that there was violence.
Cox ran against the moderate Kelly Schulz, a former labor secretary and commerce secretary. He eventually won by earning 56% of the vote. Democrats influenced the outcome by spending more than $1 million on ads touting Cox’s record supporting Trump, abortion restrictions and gun rights.”
If Democrats’ strategy is to increase voter turnout for a candidate that Trump has endorsed and having them win by a significant margin, the plan is working. But both Republicans and Democrats are skeptical. State Republicans say the ad were designed to help Cox, effectively giving Democrats an advantage in November given Cox’s position that is not moderate enough for the state.
Democrats, however, deny that they were bolstering Cox in anyway, claiming that the ads were designed to be “attack ads” where they are anticipating the general election fight. Some Democrats are not in favor of the strategy either, saying that democracy is at risk and it is dangerous to put people who do not believe in the rule of law in positions of power.
“You have a situation where there are people running for office who basically don’t believe in the rule of law and don’t believe in democracy, and potentially elevating them into positions of power,” Democratic strategist Howard Wolfson told Politico.
Democrats also meddled in the primary of the Pennsylvania gubernatorial race, propping up Republican Doug Mastriano who Politico claims tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election. However, contrary their intention, Mastriano now seems poised to win the general.
“The higher the gas prices go, the more electable Mastriano is,” the chair of the Cambria County Republican Party told Politico, adding that “this is Mastriano’s race to lose.”
This strategy might backfire on Democrats who want an easy win. But as the economy and country crumbles around them, they cannot substitute running advertisements for actual policy. They have not seemed to learn from 2016.
