Adrian Boafo wins Maryland primary after $11 million outside spending

Adrian Boafo won Maryland’s 5th Congressional District Democratic primary after outside groups poured more than $11 million into the contest, helping the state delegate emerge from a crowded field to replace Steny Hoyer. The race centered on a safe Democratic seat east of Washington, where the primary winner is expected to have a major advantage in November.

Hoyer, who announced on January 8, 2026, that he would not seek reelection, had represented the district since 1981 and became the longest-serving Democrat in Maryland’s House delegation. Boafo was Hoyer’s former campaign manager and the retiring lawmaker’s preferred successor, giving the race the feel of a handoff inside one of Maryland Democrats’ most established political networks.

The spending barrage became the defining feature of the campaign. United Democracy Project, the super PAC affiliated with AIPAC, spent nearly $1.2 million in early June to boost Boafo. Before the total climbed above $11 million, outside spending in support of Boafo had already been put in the $7.6 million to $8 million range, with money coming from pro-Israel and cryptocurrency interests. The scale of the intervention made the contest one of the clearest examples this cycle of outside money reaching deep into a primary before voters in the general election had a say.

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen criticized the spending and accused the pro-Israel lobby and the crypto industry of trying to “buy” the seat. Three of Boafo’s rivals also urged Gov. Wes Moore, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and Hoyer to call on Boafo to reject dark money, underscoring how central the outside spending became as candidates tried to frame the primary as a test of who would control the district’s political future.

Boafo defeated a crowded field that included Rushern Baker III, Quincy Bareebe and Harry Dunn. He now advances to the general election against Republican nominee Chris Chaffee, but in a district rated solidly Democratic, the June 23 primary is likely to decide who represents Maryland’s 5th District in the next Congress.