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On the day he effectively ended his bid for governor, Rushern Baker spent hours fielding phone calls from his former Democratic rivals. All nine reached out almost immediately after news broke Friday morning that he had suspended active campaigning.
Most praised him for the manner in which he campaigned 鈥� and for his record of public service, which dates back nearly 30 years.
Left mostly unspoken was the obvious: Now that Baker is out of the race, the Democrats still battling for their party鈥檚 nomination would all love to have his endorsement.
In an interview, former Gov. Martin O鈥橫alley (D) called Baker 鈥渢he most experienced executive in the whole field.鈥� He said Baker鈥檚 endorsement would be 鈥渧ery significant.鈥�
鈥淗e doesn鈥檛 owe anybody鈥� his endorsement, the former Baltimore mayor added, but 鈥渋f he were to make an endorsement, I think it would be a powerful statement for whomever were to receive it.鈥�
Baker said he decided to quit the race because he lacked the funds to compete successfully. He insisted that he and his running mate, Montgomery County Councilmember Nancy Navarro (D), offered voters the best choice. Although earlier polls conducted by various campaigns placed Baker in the low double-digits, part of a four-way top tier, a Baltimore Sun/University of Baltimore poll published last weekend showed him with just 7% support, with Comptroller Peter Franchot at 20%, former nonprofit CEO Wes Moore at 15%, and former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez at 12%.
鈥淲hile he is only at 7%, that 7% could lift a candidate or give them momentum at a critical time as we enter mail and early voting,鈥� said Roger Hartley, dean of the University of Baltimore College of Public Affairs. 鈥淲ith a lot of undecideds, a nod like this could matter for a candidate to build steam or pull away.鈥�
鈥淎 lot of undecideds are looking for a cue to signal a winner to back,鈥� Hartley added. The Sun poll showed that 31% of Democrats were undecided ahead of the July 19 primary.
In 2018, nearly 22% of the vote in the statewide Democratic primary came from Prince George鈥檚 County. Baker served as county executive from 2010 to 2018. He represented the county in the House of Delegates for eight years during the 1990s and early 2000s.
In the 2018 race for governor, Baker finished second in the Democratic primary, despite being the favorite of most of the Democratic establishment, with 29% of the vote.
鈥淩ushern Baker is one of the most decent and highly respected executive public servants in our state,鈥� O鈥橫alley said, 鈥渁nd he comes from a really important county where he was very well regarded after two really good terms.鈥�
Baker鈥檚 successor, County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), surprised observers 鈥� and Baker 鈥� by endorsing Moore, who has been targeting Prince George鈥檚 voters with radio ads. Several candidates have chosen running mates from Prince George鈥檚, including Franchot, the frontrunner, who is paired with former County Councilmember Monique Anderson-Walker (D).
In an interview on Friday, Baker said he would make a decision about whether to formally withdraw from the contest late next week. Although he has known most of his former rivals for many years, he offered no clues as to who he will back 鈥� though he did say he wants a nominee who will have the resources to be successful in November.
He called the outpouring of praise from other candidates 鈥渉umbling.鈥�
鈥淭hey鈥檝e been very kind in their words,鈥� he said.
Several Democrats issued statements about Baker or posted on social media Friday.
鈥淩ushern was always in this race for the right reason: a deep belief that government can be a force for good in people鈥檚 lives,鈥� said former U.S. Education Secretary John King.
鈥淎 person of unparalleled grace, integrity and accomplishment,鈥� said former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez. 鈥淚 have been so very proud to call him my friend for almost 20 years.鈥�
Moore praised Baker for his 鈥渓eadership, integrity and fundamental decency.鈥�
Former Attorney General Doug Gansler called Baker 鈥渢he only other candidate who understood the urgency of the crime problem in Maryland鈥︹��
Comptroller Peter Franchot said Baker 鈥渞aised the bar on issues from education to public safety.鈥�
On Twitter, another Democratic candidate, former Clinton administration official Jon Baron, said he voted for Baker in the 2018 primary.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e a good man and a dedicated public servant,鈥� Baron wrote. 鈥淕ood luck on your future endeavors. I know you鈥檒l continue your lifelong work to bring Maryland forward.鈥�
On Friday, Baker said only that he was suspending his campaign, and did not rule out the possibility of reigniting his candidacy between now and the July 19 primary. But most political professionals consider that an unlikely scenario.
Even if he formally withdraws as a candidate and endorses someone else, Baker will remain on the ballot 鈥� and because candidates are listed alphabetically by last name, he will appear first. Baker is better known to casual voters than most of the other candidates 鈥� meaning he is still likely to rack up some votes.
The final status of Baker鈥檚 candidacy may also be dictated by the fact that he was the only candidate in the Democratic primary in the state鈥檚 public financing system.
