FULL INTERVIEW: Gov. Wes Moore talks 2026 elections

Governor Westmore, thanks for joining Fox 5. My pleasure. We are heading now two weeks to Election Day. Early voting starts on Thursday. Everyone has you ahead in the polls, but what is your message to your supporters now? Are you concerned at all about voter apathy, maybe overconfidence? I don't pay attention to polls. There's only one number that matters, and that is on Election Day. So we are going to run hard. We're going to make our case. And we're going to continue reminding people that, you know, for the past three years, we have seen how Maryland has had amongst the fastest drop in violent crime anywhere in the United States of America. We have seen how we have things like Enduro, which is, you know, over a $4 billion investment supporting over 14,000 jobs. The Sphere coming to Prince George's County. AstraZeneca coming to Frederick County and Montgomery County. You know, over $17 billion of private investment. And we've seen our education scores in both math and reading jump inside of the state of Maryland in virtually every single grade, and teacher vacancy is now down 74%. You know, we've made tremendous progress, but we have more work to do. Governor, as you know, this past weekend there were no King's rallies across the country and here in Maryland. One of the messages from those demonstrators was urging people to vote early. A lot of them sprung out of concerns for election integrity. What can you tell people about how elections will be run in this state this year? The Justice Department has sued California in just the last couple hours. Well, I tell people that we take election security very seriously in the state of Maryland, and so do the other governors around the country. I serve as the chair of the National Governors Association, Democrat and Republicans, and we have been red-teaming this now going on for five, six months, just to make sure that every scenario that we have planned out for. And so elections are state-run functions. In the state of Maryland, elections are free and fair and safe, and we will make sure that every vote is counted. And so we want people to come out early, get your ballots in, do early voting, but we want people to make sure your voice is heard. Governor, it's not just your race that's on the ballot. There was a big ballot question, Question 3, which could pave the way for redistricting in this state. A recent poll by University of Maryland in Baltimore County, though, found that 53% of voters in Maryland did not support the ballot question. It was a very controversial move. You had to maybe arm-wrestle a little bit with your own Democrats over it. Should voters be picking their politicians or should politicians be picking their voters? No, I mean, what this is is this is basically saying a yes for question three is a no to Donald Trump. Because what Donald Trump has been doing now, going on for over a year, is trying to manipulate elections. where he's telling Republican states that they should do mid-decade redistricting, but telling Democratic states that they should sit on their hands. And I believe in national redistricting reform, but what I believe is the power should belong to the people and not to Donald Trump. And so there is no map that Question 3 is asking about. What Question 3 is saying is who should control the power of our elections? Is it Donald Trump or is it the people of Maryland? And so that's why we're urging people to vote yes on Question 3, because it's making sure that the power of our elections remains in our hands while Donald Trump is trying to manipulate the laws in order to put more MAGA Republicans in the Congress. So this isn't about getting rid of Congressman Andy Harris? No, I think Ben Schwartz is going to get rid of Congressman Andy Harris. But I'm still going to vote for question three because I believe that the power of our democracy belongs to the people of Maryland and not to Donald Trump. You mentioned the Spear, some of the other projects you've been highlighting. One of the other big development things across the state that has been very controversial are data centers. It's an issue that has united people on both the left and the right. You've somebody who wanted big quantum computing to start up in that state, how do you balance the need for high technology industry, which will bring revenue to the state, versus a very vigilant push against data centers now in counties throughout the state of Maryland? Well, I think you can believe in economic growth and development, but also still say we need to protect our people and that we don't have to choose. And part of the challenge I've had with and part of my progression on the issue of data centers is, one, that the data centers are now drawing more and they're requiring more. And the second piece is, is that we do have a Trump administration that has taken away all guardrails. And they've basically said that the data center companies get to write the rules. And I have said, no, they do not, not in Maryland. And that's why I have applied amongst the strictest guidelines for data centers in America where I've said that data centers need to pay for their own energy. The taxpayers will not pay a cent for it. That data centers need to make sure they're not polluting our air, polluting our water, that they need to hire local union workers, and that local jurisdictions need to get the final say on data centers and not the data center companies. We've got counties now like Montgomery and Prince George's County putting in their own moratoriums, though. Is that an ad hoc approach to a major issue? Does the state need to set out a clear path forward on this? No, because I think the local jurisdictions, I think they matter. And we do have about half the state now has either bans or moratoriums on data centers. And the state will never override those. A no is a no from a local jurisdiction. But if a local jurisdiction does not have that, they just need to know that the state has a very high bar in order for any state support to take place. I know you said you don't watch polls, but the latest poll, UMBC has you 51% over Dan Cox, 24%. It's very likely, Governor, that you're going to get reelected in a couple of days. Why is that? Is that the strength of your administration or the weakness of your opponent? Well, I think that the fact that we had a lot of people who chose not to run against us I think also continues to show the strength of the administration. And I think it continues to show that we've delivered results for people. When people said we have to address violent crime, we've had amongst the fastest drops in violent crime in America, that we know there's more work to be done, but we've been able to buck a trend that we were seeing for a decade before, that when we said we've got to get this economy moving, we have gotten this economy moving in a really powerful way, supporting small businesses, doing regulatory reform and permitting reform by giving the middle class and military veterans a tax cut, and while also asking wealthy Marylanders to invest a little bit more so we can have safer streets and better schools. So I think people are seeing the results we've been able to deliver, and I'm thankful for the opportunity to ask them for four more years. You mentioned the crime numbers recently. You issued a directive on youth crime, specifically trying to address car thefts among young people. This is an issue that has dodged previous governors as well, too. Why is it so hard for the state to get its hands around this? Well, I can tell you the progress that we have made in our three years is real. If you're looking at not just juvenile crime, but particularly auto theft, we have significantly dropped. We're talking around the magnitude of around 60-plus percent drop in juvenile auto theft. So we've made very real progress, but I am not satisfied with just progress. I want to completely address the problem, period. And that's why I've ordered all of our agencies to be able to work in concert to be able to address it. A moment ago you said you've been running hard. You've also been running hard around the country as well, too. You've had a number of outside-the-state appearances. Why is that, and can you explain to Maryland voters why some of your time has been spent out of the state campaigning for other candidates as opposed to being here in Maryland where you're actually up on the ballot yourself? Well, I do think it's important for people to know that part of the job as chief executive, when I'm out of state, you know what we're doing. I'm also bringing Enduro to Maryland, which is supporting over 14,000 new jobs. When I'm out of state, you know what I'm doing? I'm bringing the sphere to Prince George's County, Maryland. When I'm out of state, I'm bringing Samsung Biologics, doing their first manufacturing facility inside of the United States. They're doing it in the state of Maryland. Part of my job as the chief executive is to go and pitch Maryland and to make sure that Maryland wins. And when you're looking at the economic growth that we have seen, I think we're doing a pretty good job of it. Everybody says this is a consequential election, but it also comes in an environment that may be more divided politically than we've ever been in a generation. After Election Day, no matter how this election turns out, where do you see the state winding up as far as how the political communities deal with each other? How do you see this country, the chairman of the National Governors Association, how do you see this country moving forward? You know, I pride myself on the ability that, you know, I don't come from a political background. You know, I said when I was leading soldiers, you know, I never once asked my soldiers, what's your political party? It didn't matter. And it's the way that I govern right now. I'm proud of the fact that we've received support from Republicans all over the state as well. Because I believe that right now what this state and what this nation needs is repair. That it's not about revenge. It's about repair. And when I'm thinking about the things that we've got to be able to do to work together to be able to build bonds, It's the reason we made things like Maryland the first state in the country that has a service year option for all of our high school graduates. That's the thing that's going to help to bring us together. Is this repairable, though, the way people deal with each other, the way people talk with each other online? Have we crossed a bridge that we just can't go back over? No, I never think that we have crossed a bridge that we can't fix, but I think we need to be very deliberate about fixing it. You know, and listen, I think for all of us who find ourselves guilty of it at moments, And I think when you have a president who literally becomes a daily habit of doing it, I just think we have to be clear that the things that can bring our country together and unite us in a very powerful way are not just there, but it's important that we actually lean on those things right now because we cannot watch this 250-year amazing experiment. We cannot watch this thing die on our watch. Governor Westmore, thanks for joining us. Thank you so much, Tom. Appreciate it. Oh, it's a pleasure.