A challenge on the right?

“ I’m very concerned about where we are, where the Republican Party is, and where the country is , ” Maryland Governor Larry Hogan told The Washington Post last December Perhaps motivated in part by this sentiment, Hogan is reportedly mulling a primary challenge to the sitting President than those espoused by the eventual Democratic nominee in 2020 hard recently to get boxes of cookies to donate through the "Care to Share" program. They donated boxes of cookies to the

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If he indeed decides to run for President, he would join former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld in the race for the Republican nomination Other challengers could emerge in the coming months In the meantime, the charismatic Hogan seems to be readying his pitch to voters, despite his insistence that he is focused on his current role “I appeal to Republicans because my message is: I haven’t abandoned my principles I’ve just said let’s deal in the art of the possible,” he recently told The Washington Post

Any primary challenge to an incumbent President is fraught The last sitting President to lose his party’s nomination was Chester A Arthur in 1884 Not exactly the kind of historical precedent a potential candidate can find solace in when plotting out the nuances of a primary challenge.

Despite this lack of historical success, primary challengers often play the role of spoiler, at least in the modern era. In 1992, George H W Bush’s support within his party was weakened by a stronger than expected challenge posed by Pat Buchanan This was the beginning of his eventual defeat at the hands of Bill Clinton in 1992 In 1980, President Jimmy Carter faced a stiff challenge from Senator Ted Kennedy, eroding his support among members of his own party Carter would eventually be defeated in a landslide by Ronald Reagan

For the opposing party, the idea of a primary challenge is therefore quite appealing Such intra-party disagreement can lead to a victory for the other side come November

Despite the fact that this is likely not the intent of the challenger No matter the level of disagreement, any potential Republican primary opponent will likely be more aligned with the President’s policies

Hogan is markedly different from the typical national candidate, as he has won two terms as governor in one of the most liberal states in America His noted brand of “centrism” is a marked change from the typical campaigns waged in a primary Instead of catering to the party’s base, he seems intent on appealing to a broader, bipartisan coalition A strategy that could prove to be a much-needed antidote to the partisanship currently raging within our nation Such stark odds present an interesting question What is behind the power of incumbency? Certainly, the sitting President has built-in advantages when it comes to party infrastructure and support Yet is it the backdrop of the White House when the President speaks that allures potential primary voters or the built-in advantage in media coverage? There must be some reason why when it comes to primaries, the house nearly always wins

As Hogan weighs his options amid growing speculation of a possible presidential bid, an opportunity emerges for us to examine our own political landscape Is the twoparty system providing Americans with the most qualified and inspiring candidates? In the past, some have chosen to run for President in order to bring more attention to a pet issue, or advocate for a cause not often broached in the national discourse Should candidates with good ideas that could be adopted whether they win or lose be discouraged from running in a primary simply because such a bid could erode party unity?

For now, Hogan seems to be playing coy “Of course you couldn’t win a Republican primary challenge today,” he told The Washington Post “But I also have been around long enough to know that things can change very rapidly ” If anything is true about politics, it’s the fact that things can change at a moment’s notice Hogan seems to be intent upon waiting, surveying the landscape until he sees an opening Perhaps his time will come After all, in the words of Otto von Bismarck, “Politics is the art of the possible ”

Samuel Moore-Sobel is a freelance writer To read more of his work, visit wwwholdingontohopetodaycom