Democrat Heather Mizeur, the former state Delegate hoping to unseat Rep. Andrew P. Harris (R), on Tuesday released her first video of the campaign, a two-minute ad that accuses the incumbent of boosting Donald Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 election.
The video highlights Mizeur’s early years, her professional career, and the issues she championed in the General Assembly — and it shows her working with her wife on their Eastern Shore farm.
The ad also takes on Harris, a conservative closely aligned with Trump, saying he “clings to old hatreds and new conspiracies.”
“Harris supported the big lie that incited the Jan. 6 on our Capitol,” Mizeur says in the video. “He tried to pick a fistfight in Congress and smuggle a gun onto the House floor. He even voted against a bipartisan effort to set up a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack.”
“He’s given up the right to represent us in Congress,” she concludes. “Help me end the Harris embarrassment.”
The Harris campaign did not respond to email or voice messages on Tuesday. Members of his staff have told reporters that the lawmaker has a gun permit and “has never carried a firearm on the House floor.”
The Mizeur ad marks six months since she launched her campaign to unseat the six-term incumbent. It also came on the day that several law enforcement personnel who helped defend the Capitol from the January insurrection testified before Congress about their ordeal.
In an interview, Mizeur said Harris “has refused to even acknowledge that it’s an insurrection. …He chose instead to side on propagating the big lie that the election was stolen.”
Last week, Mizeur announced that she has raised more than $717,000 for her campaign since January, a strong haul for a challenger this early.
She recently won the endorsement of 35 state and local officials from the Eastern Shore, and she secured the backing of Mia Mason, a Democrat who challenged Harris in 2020 and briefly pursued a rematch.
R. David Harden, a foreign policy strategist, is also seeking the Democratic nomination in the district. He raised $122,865 since entering the race in March. Harden has touted endorsements from former diplomats and national security officials.
Jennifer Pingley, an Upper Shore resident and registered nurse, is also a candidate.
Mizeur’s video was produced by Prism Communications, the firm that did media work for her 2014 gubernatorial bid.
Bruce DePuyt
Reporter
Bruce DePuyt is a contributor to Maryland Matters, where he was a full-time reporter until December 2022. Previously, DePuyt spent nearly three decades on local television, including 14 years as producer and host of “NewsTalk” on NewsChannel 8 in the Washington, D.C., region. He was a reporter and anchor on “News 21” in Montgomery, where he also served as producer and host of “21 This Week.” He then became a reporter and anchor at NBC affiliate WVIR in Charlottesville, Va. He appears occasionally on WTOP (103.5 FM), WAMU (88.5 FM) and MPT.
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