Mooney Elected Chair Maryland Republican Party

George Wenschhof

Today, in a contested battle, Republican Alex Mooney was elected chair of the Maryland Republican Party. He beat Mary Kane who ran for Lt. Governor with Republican candidate for Governor Robert Ehrlich. Ehrlich was beaten soundly by Democratic Governor Martin O'Malley in the recent election.

Alex Mooney lost a close race in the November elections by 1,000 votes to Democrat Ron Young for the state senate seat in district 3, after serving three terms.

There were five candidates vying for the dubious distinction of serving as party chair in a state heavily dominated by Democrats. The Montgomery County Daily has more here. The five candidates were:
Mary Kane MONTGOMERY COUNTY
Alex Mooney FREDERICK COUNTY
Sam Hale MONTGOMERY COUNTY
Bill Campbell HOWARD COUNTY
Mike Esteve BALTIMORE CITY

Mooney's job will not be easy in a state where Democratic voter registration is 2-1 over Republicans.

In the recently held November elections, Republicans gained six seats in the House, but lost two seats in the Senate. In the state senate, only 12 Republicans make up the 47 member delegation. Over in the House, Democrats have 98 and Republicans 43 of the 141 delegates.

Mooney is known for his ultra conservative political philosophy, so it remains to be seen how effective his leadership will be in the state of Maryland.

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