Hogan owns ‘un-Trump Republican’ title after saying he ‘didn’t want’ former president’s endorsement

Former Gov. Larry Hogan celebrated his status as an “early critic of Donald Trump” as he framed himself as an independent candidate fit to represent the Democratic stronghold of Maryland .

Hogan gained notoriety for his widespread popularity as the two-term Republican governor of a deep-blue state. Since mounting a bid for the Senate this spring, Hogan has continued his strategy of invoking a centrist stance and distancing himself from controversial Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, as he fights to topple the blue wall and become the first GOP senator to represent the state since 1987.

A 60-second TV ad released by the Hogan campaign on Tuesday continued the former governor’s “anti-Trump” positioning.

“The un-Trump Republican: Governor Larry Hogan’s radically normal model for the GOP” is one of the headlines that flash on the screen as a narrator touts the Maryland Republican as “an early critic of Donald Trump.”

“Now more than ever, we need strong independent leadership in Washington who will never back down to the extremes and the party bosses,” Hogan said in a post to X announcing the TV ad.

Trump endorsed Hogan earlier this year, a move that the former Maryland governor declared was unwelcome.

"I didn't seek it, I didn't want to have it, and I have no interest in it," Hogan commented about the endorsement in June.

"It's not something we're going to be promoting. That's for sure," he added as he courts centrist voters. Trump's endorsement could hurt Hogan in a state where the former president is widely unpopular. Trump lost Maryland by 33 percentage points during the 2020 election.

During the one-minute ad, touted as the first of the fall campaign, Hogan issued thinly veiled condemnations of Trump’s handling of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.

“An early critic of Donald Trump — one of the few Republicans who never caved,” the narrator proclaims. “And on January 6th, as we watched in horror, Hogan didn’t just talk about defending democracy, he did something — sending in the Maryland National Guard to protect the Capitol,” the ad continues.

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Throughout his Senate battle against Prince George County Executive Angela Alsobrooks , Hogan has been determined to cast himself as a centrist Republican in the mold of Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV). The maverick ex-Democrat, whom Hogan calls a “good friend,” often clashed with the party leadership for crossing partisan lines.

The latest polling indicates Hogan is in a dead heat with Alsobrooks.