Report: Ruppersberger Still Considering Run for Governor

Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger continues to flirt with running for governor.

Ruppersberger told The Daily Record’s "Eye on Annapolis" blog that he's still mulling a run for the executive slot in his home state, even though he’s enjoying his work in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"I’m really conflicted about this," he told the newspaper. "I love what I’m doing in Washington but I love my state, too."

In October, Ruppersberger told The Washington Post that he was stillcontemplating a run, and would make a decision by Thanksgiving.

Ruppersberger, a two-term Baltimore County executive, would be the only Baltimore area candidate in the race on the Democratic side. Currently Attorney General Doug Gansler, of Montgomery County, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, of Prince George’s County, and Del. Heather Mizeur, of Montgomery County, are seeking the party’s nomination.

Some pundits questioned if the lack of a Baltimore area candidate was a sign the area’s importance in Democratic politics was declining, although others said they felt it was a fluke that a Baltimore candidate wasn’t in the race.

"If Dutch Ruppersberger got in he certainly would have an edge," Matthew Crenson, a political science professor at Johns Hopkins University, told Patch.

If Ruppersberger were to enter the race he would be several months behind the other three candidates in campaigning, and would need to raise money quickly because funds from his federal campaign account cannot be transferred for use in a state race. 

The deadline to register to run in the primary election is Feb. 25, 2014.