CD4: Howard Dean Endorses Rep. Donna Edwards // CD2: Pundits Rate Sen. Nancy Jacobs v. Dutch Ruppersberger

The Huffington Post reports that former Vermont Governor and 2004 Presidential candidate Howard Dean has endorsed Rep. Donna Edwards for re-election to Maryland's 4th Congressional District:

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D) and Democracy for America, a progressive PAC, have endorsed Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Donna Edwards (D-Md.) in their 2012 reelection races.

In an email to DFA members Dean states, "Few Democrats in the House of Representatives have fought harder than Donna and Raul to stop Paul Ryan's plan to end Medicare. They stood strong to defeat attempts to cut Social Security. And they have never backed down in the fight to restore the American Dream for everyone. But now their districts have been redrawn to make them significantly harder for a progressive Democrat to win."

Meanwhile over in the 2nd Congressional District, an anonymous reader has forwarded a Cecil Times analysis of GOP Sen. Nancy Jacobs' chances against Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger. In a guest appearance on WBAL last Monday, Maryland Juice stated he thought it was a longshot. Here's another take:

If she does run, it would be a very tough uphill fight but the state and national political dynamics of 2012 suggest it would not be an impossible task....

But the goodwill she enjoys from her longtime supporters is but little comfort against the harsh political realities of taking on the popular “Dutch,” who has a formidable resume on national issues with some down-home constituencies. Jacobs has negligible experience on national issues that are at the forefront of many 2nd District voters’ concerns in 2012 and she is a political unknown in much of the district, which includes Ruppersberger’s Baltimore County homebase as well as part of Harford County.

Jacobs cannot count on her Harford base, since she narrowly lost the Harford portion of her state Senate District in 2010 to Democrat Art Helton and only won re-election due to her overwhelming support in western Cecil County. But Cecil County is not in the 2nd congressional district she would be running in and which is now represented by Rep. Andy Harris (R-1)....

In raw political terms, the 2nd District is majority Democratic, and while independent voters are an increasingly important factor in state elections, Jacobs is a hard-core conservative whose appeal to independents is uncertain, especially on “social” issues such as abortion.

But at the same time, Jacobs could benefit from broader political currents in the 2012 election. With President Obama at the top of the Democratic ticket, anti-Obama sentiment in the district could aid any candidate with an “R” (Republican) after their name on the ballot.

And there is a unique Maryland twist stemming from the mounting free-for-all in the western Maryland race for the Congress seat now held by Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, a Republican, that could trigger an infusion of campaign funds for Jacobs.

Much more on Maryland's Congressional races in the coming weeks!