The congressional race in Maryland District 6 was supposed to be a shoe in for Rep. John Delaney. He’s an incumbent and the third richest member of Congress. Delaney is also a Democrat running in a gerrymandered district that includes parts of the liberal stronghold Montgomery County. Yet, a libertarian friendly Republican named Dan Bongino gave him a run for his money.
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For several days, the race was too close to call. It came down to the election board counting absentee ballots to determine the winner. There are still some outstanding votes but Bongino has conceded acknowledging that Delaney will win the vote count. As of this writing, the count is 91,569 to 89,300.
It’s safe to say that barely anyone predicted a tight race. Political “experts” didn’t even consider the race to be competitive.
What’s more is that the Republican Party largely ignored the race. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) whose mission is to help Republican candidates get elected didn’t give him a dime. Neither did the Republican National Committee (RNC).
Back in August, Bongino wrote that he hadn’t heard a peep from either GOP organization even though he won his primary months ago.
The Bongino campaign had difficulty getting any sort of coverage from traditional media outlets. Local newspapers covered Delaney endlessly but there was a virtual media blackout for Bongino. National media sources in Washington wouldn’t cover the race even though it was right in their backyard.
So, why were the experts so wrong? How did this happen?
First, western Maryland showed up.
I’m often told by people that Maryland is super liberal. These people, clearly, have never been to western parts of the state. As a Maryland native, I can assure you plenty of conservative people do exist in western Maryland where I attended college.
District 6 used to be a Republican stronghold. Republican Roscoe Bartlett represented it for 20 years. However, after the 2010 Census, it was gerrymandered to turn into a Democratic seat by including parts of populated Montgomery County where many federal government workers live.
It’s absurd that conservative Allegany County out west and the liberal DC suburbs are in the same congressional district.
Many western Marylanders are fed up with liberal policies and the manipulation of the district boundaries to favor the Democratic Party. As a result, they let their voice be heard at the polls.
Secondly, they discounted the power of social media.
Since he couldn’t rely on the mainstream media to get his message out there, Bongino mastered social media. He was one of the best examples of a candidate properly using Facebook and Twitter to advance his campaign. Lots of people can attest to Bongino personally thanking them for their support on social media. That goes a long way.
Online threads were full of people who were enthusiastic about Bongino. They weren’t just voting against someone, they were proudly voting for Bongino. His message of liberty and fiscal responsibility resonates with them. To them, Bongino is a real person concerned about his country—not a political party hack.
Lastly, look at Bongino’s grassroots army.
Grassroots matter. Bongino had an army of dedicated grassroots supporters and it showed. When I drove through the district several weeks ago, I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were Bongino signs everywhere. I didn’t see a single sign for Delaney. And this was in a liberal part of the district!
Delaney had money on his side. He cut his own campaign an $800,000 check a few days before the election. Bongino says that his campaign was likely out spent 5 to 1. However, Delaney didn’t have an army of grassroots that Bongino had.
Unpaid volunteers were willing to spend their weekends door knocking and phone banking for the campaign because they believed in his message of freedom. Bongino’s support was genuine and that’s something that money can’t buy.
Regardless of the final outcome, Dan Bongino’s strong showing shows that liberty is brewing in Maryland. The close race shocked the nation—but we’re not through yet. The fight for a free Maryland is just beginning.