As is their custom, Maryland Republicans offered their own take on the state of the state Wednesday, to contrast with the Democratic governor’s official address. This speech was written and recorded before Gov. Wes Moore delivered his speech to a joint session of the Maryland House and Senate at noon Wednesday. It was delivered by Senate Minority Leader Stephen S. Hershey Jr. (R-Upper Shore):
I’m Senator Steve Hershey, proud to represent Maryland’s Upper Eastern Shore — Caroline, Cecil, Kent, and Queen Anne’s counties — and honored to serve as Senate Minority Leader on behalf of my Republican colleagues.
Earlier today, you heard Governor Moore deliver his fourth State of the State address and outline his vision for Maryland. As Republicans, we welcome the opportunity to respond — because vision matters. But, as this Governor enters his fourth year in office, Marylanders are entitled to more than vision.
Results matter more.
The Governor’s first State of the State was grand. The second was ambitious. The third was hopeful.
Now, Marylanders are asking a very simple question: What has actually changed?
Do families feel more secure? Is life more affordable? Is it easier to live, work, build, and invest in Maryland?
For far too many Marylanders, the honest answer is no.
Where I come from on the Eastern Shore, people don’t ask for much from government. They work hard. They budget carefully. They play by the rules. But, they’re telling me something I now hear across our entire state, that it’s getting harder to keep up, harder to plan, and harder to stay in Maryland.
When energy bills spike, when groceries prices rise, when taxes grow — families feel it immediately. Government should not be making life harder for the people who are already doing everything right.
Governor Moore has said Democrats cannot be the party of slow and no — but must become the party of yes and now.
Those are his words, and they’re the right words, because if we want to grow our economy, address housing shortages, lower the cost of living, and create opportunity, then government has to allow things to happen, not stand in the way.
But four years later, Marylanders are still waiting to see the “yes.” And they’re still waiting for the “now.”
The real barrier to progress in Maryland isn’t a lack of slogans. It’s a lack of follow-through. Marylanders don’t want headlines. They want results.
They want a governor who can point to regulations eliminated, costs lowered, and obstacles removed. They want a governor to say: This is what I did to make your life easier.
No one needs a spreadsheet to know Maryland has become more expensive.
Families feel it at the grocery store. They see it on their electric bills. They’re enraged when they renew their vehicle registration. And these costs aren’t accidental. They are the direct result of decisions made right here in Annapolis: energy mandates, regulatory expansion, and unchecked spending.
Marylanders have been taxed more. The cost of living is higher, and relief is always promised — but rarely delivered.
After three years, Marylanders are asking: Why does it feel harder — not easier, to get by?
One of the clearest examples of failed Democrat leadership is energy policy.
Marylanders now pay some of the highest electric rates in the country not because of storms, not because of global markets, but because of political decisions made in Annapolis.
This administration shut down reliable, affordable generation — while forcing Maryland to depend on out-of-state power — power we now buy at higher prices. We replaced common-sense energy policy — with mandates that sound good in press releases — but hit families in their wallets — every single month. Reliable energy was sacrificed. Affordability was ignored, and Marylanders are paying the price.
Maryland’s affordability crisis is tied directly to a lack of accountability in state government. Spending has grown faster than revenues, hard choices have been postponed, and fiscal discipline has been replaced by empty assurances.
Now we face a massive structural deficit — one the next governor will inherit — likely exceeding three billion dollars annually. That didn’t happen overnight, and it won’t be fixed with speeches. Marylanders deserve leadership willing to make responsible decisions — not kick problems down the road.
Governor Moore has described Maryland as “asset-rich but strategy-poor.” He’s right. But after three years in office, Marylanders are left asking the obvious: Where is the strategy?
Maryland is still asset-rich. We have world-class workers, strategic geography, top universities, ports, agriculture, life sciences, and innovation. What Marylanders don’t see is a clear plan to grow, protect, and leverage those strengths. Because if we had a strategy: We wouldn’t be facing a massive budget shortfall, affordability wouldn’t be getting worse, and businesses wouldn’t be questioning whether Maryland wants them to stay.
Calling Maryland asset-rich but strategy-poor may have been honest on day one. After three years, it has become an indictment of inaction.
If Maryland wants to compete, we have to stop making it harder to succeed here. Maryland is already among the most heavily regulated states in the nation — and under this administration, government has grown, not shrunk.
Small businesses see uncertain tax policy, an unpredictable regulatory environment, a growing deficit, and they ask a fair question: Is Maryland truly open for business?
Republicans believe government should do less, not because we don’t care, but because Marylanders are ready to build, invest, and grow if government will simply get out of the way.
There has been no shortage of reactions to national headlines. Leadership isn’t about chasing headlines. It’s about doing the hard work — consistently, responsibly, and with a clear direction. Maryland doesn’t need a governor focused on what’s next politically. Maryland needs a governor focused on what’s best for Maryland. After four State of the State speeches, people want proof — not promises.
Maryland stands at a crossroads. We are a state with extraordinary people, unmatched assets, and limitless potential, but potential alone is not enough.
What matters is leadership that makes hard decisions. Leadership that puts families first. Leadership that focuses on the everyday challenges Maryland families face: affordability, energy costs, housing, and economic security … not headlines.
We don’t have to accept rising costs as inevitable. We don’t have to accept government that grows while families struggle. And we don’t have to accept a future where Maryland becomes less competitive every year.
While Democrats remain stuck in slow and no, Republicans are ready to lead with yes and act with now.
Yes to affordability. Yes to accountability. Yes to reliable, affordable energy. Yes to an economy that grows because government allows it to grow.
But “yes and now” must mean action — not applause lines.
Our best days are not behind us. But they will only be ahead of us — if we choose a new direction. Maryland deserves leadership measured by results not rhetoric.
Republicans are ready to lead with common sense, real solutions, and a relentless focus on results.
Marylanders deserve nothing less.
Thank you.
