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In the contested Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, candidate Angela Alsobrooks picked up support from the only other woman to hold the job in Maryland: Barbara A. Mikulski.
Mikulski surprised a crowd gathered at an Alsobrooks fundraiser at Guilford Hall Brewery in Baltimore Tuesday night with her brief speech praising the candidate. Though the retired senator did not use the word “endorsement,” her remarks had all the hallmarks of one.
“My spirit is young, but the knees are weak,” joked Mikulski, now 87 and using a walker. “But I’m here tonight to make my enthusiastic support for Angela Alsobrooks to be the next senator for Maryland.”
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Mikulski is the only woman ever to be elected to the U.S. Senate from Maryland, serving from 1987 to 2017.
“Though I was the first, I didn’t want to be the only,” she said. “And now we have the opportunity to send another woman back to the United States Senate from Maryland because, for Angela, it’s not only about gender, it’s about the agenda. She’s got the right stuff. Let’s get behind her!”
Mikulski is the latest member of Maryland’s Democratic political establishment to back Alsobrooks in her campaign that’s primarily against U.S. Rep. David Trone, a self-funded candidate who so far has led in independent polls.
Trone, the founder of the Total Wine & More liquor store chain, has poured $41.8 million of his own money into his campaign, according to his most recent finance report.
One of Maryland’s U.S. Senate seats is up for election this year, following U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin’s decision not to run for reelection. The winner of the Democratic primary is likely to face Republican former Gov. Larry Hogan in the general election.
Once Hogan got into the race, it began drawing national attention as one of the elections that could determine the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. Though Maryland has reliably elected Democratic senators for years, Hogan is a popular politician who was elected to statewide office twice.
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Alsobrooks sewed up endorsements from many top Democratic politicians, including the other U.S. senator, Chris Van Hollen; Gov. Wes Moore; and most of the state’s members of the House of Representatives. Some spoke at Tuesday’s fundraiser and asserted that the race between Alsobrooks and Trone is narrowing.
Trone picked up support from U.S. Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, who is also retiring; an array of local officials and state lawmakers; and many of his Congressional colleagues from other states.
Alsobrooks thanked Mikulski for her support, bestowing one of her favorite compliments by calling the retired senator “super-bad.”
Mikulski, in a brief interview, said that she prefers the term “support” rather than “endorsement.” She said she wanted to make her opinion known because she’s been asked often who she wants to win the primary election.
Mikulski has offered similar support — without the word “endorsement” — for other women candidates this year, including Baltimore mayoral candidate Sheila Dixon and Sarah Elfreth, a state senator running for the U.S. House of Representatives in a suburban district.
Mikulski said she’s “not knocking” Trone, but thinks Alsobrooks is better.
“I’ve known Angela as a prosecutor and a county executive and she’s got the right stuff,” she said.
In-person early voting begins Thursday and runs through May 9, followed by traditional Election Day voting on May 14.
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Pamela Wood covers Maryland politics and government. She previously reported for The Baltimore Sun, The Capital and other Maryland newspapers. A graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, she lives in northern Anne Arundel County.
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