Maryland’s Martin O’Malley Makes His Move

The presidential long-shot is struggling to capture the left-wing base of the Democratic Party.

Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley announced his presidential run today at City Hall in Baltimore, Maryland. In his speech, he primarily distinguished himself from frontrunner Hillary Clinton on economic issues. “I’ve got news for the bullies of Wall Street,” he declared. “The presidency is not a crown to be passed back and forth by you between two royal families.”

A super PAC was launched this past week to support him: Generation Forward, named to emphasize another key difference between him and frontrunner Hillary Clinton, their age. O’Malley is 52 and Clinton is 67. The only other announced candidate in the race so far on the Democrat side is Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a self-described socialist, who is 73.

Considered one of the most liberal governors in the country, O’Malley is trying to position himself as the progressive in the race — even though most observes consider Clinton the more progressive candidate. Based on their public statements, Ontheissues.org calls O’Malley a “moderate liberal” and Clinton a “hard-core liberal.” (The page offers a good listing of O’Malley’s positions on the issues.)

Always a Liberal

His parents met while working on a newsletter for young Democrats. He got his start working for Gary Hart as a 20-year-old in the 1984 presidential race and then worked for Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Maryland, while in law school. He briefly became state’s attorney for the city of Baltimore, then was elected to the Baltimore City Council. He became mayor of the majority black city in 1999, serving until 2007, when he was elected to the first of two terms as governor. O’Malley stepped down in January of this year.

As governor, O’Malley signed a same-sex marriage bill in 2012 and a bill allowing illegal immigrants to receive driver’s licenses in 2013. He generally agrees with Obama on amnesty for illegal immigrants. He increased sales, gas and income taxes. His primary interest has been economic inequality; he has been highly critical of Wall Street.

He’s avoided saying much about foreign policy issues; as a governor he has been able to duck those issues. When a reporter pressed him recently on U.S. engagement in Libya and Syria, he responded, “I don’t know. I wasn’t there at the time, and I didn’t really bone up on the nuances of that to be able to discuss it with you today.”

One area where O’Malley has leaned more conservative in the past is crime. While mayor of Baltimore, he implemented a zero tolerance policy for law enforcement, resulting in a dramatic decrease in crime. But he backtracked on that accomplishment in remarks after the Baltimore race riots. He said on Meet the Press, “We didn’t get it wrong then, but we didn’t get it entirely right.”

His candidacy is being protested by an activist group called Baltimore Bloc, an organization that was involved in protests following Freddie Gray’s death. “I’m doing it because O’Malley didn’t do nothing for Baltimore,” explained its leader Duane Davis. “He created a prison system in Maryland. That’s his legacy.”

O’Malley is a practicing Catholic, though he favors abortion, embryonic stem cell research and same sex marriage. “I found the passage of marriage equality actually squares with the most important social teachings of my faith,” he told The Des Moines Register, “which is to believe in the dignity of every person and to believe in our own responsibility to advance the common good.” He points to some of the more liberal viewpoints of the Catholic Church as influencing him, such as opposing the death penalty.

He is the singer and lead guitar player for O’Malley’s March, a Celtic rock band. He often plays a song after campaign appearances. The fictional Baltimore mayor on the HBO show The Wire is modeled in part after him. O’Malley reportedly is not pleased with the corruption portrayed by the governor in the show.

O’Malley’s Chances

Though some have described him as a classic Democratic candidate — young (for a candidate), good-looking, articulate, reliably liberal on every point — at this point O’Malley doesn’t have much chance of getting the nomination. Most Americans have never heard of him and even the Democrats in his home state don’t like him that much, something that doesn’t bode well for a presidential candidate.

A poll of Iowa votes in late January found O’Malley last place out of six potential contenders. Clinton was in first place, followed by Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Jim Webb. Other polls give the same results. Even Lincoln Chafee, who has not announced yet, polls better.

His attempt to position himself as the progressive in the race may not help him. Bernie Sanders is further to the left than he is and more likely to attract the far left base. The left-leaning statistical site FiveThirtyEight is quite skeptical of O’Malley’s chances, observing that his attempt to run to Clinton’s left “makes no sense” because he’s not as liberal as she is. FiveThirtyEight successfully predicted which presidential candidates would win in each of the 50 states in 2012.

O’Malley is lacking in wealthy funders, another strike against him. On the other hand, he is seen as a Washington outsider — despite Maryland’s close proximity to D.C. If Clinton’s ethical scandals continue to escalate, and a big name like Sen. Elizabeth Warren doesn’t jump into the race, he could have a chance.

For insights into the other declared candidates, see Rachel’s articles on Republican candidates Rick Santorum, Mike Huckabee, and Ben Carson, and Democratic candidates Hilary Clinton and Bernie Sanders,