BALTIMORE (CBS) - Wes Moore is the winner of the Democratic nomination for governor, CBS News projects.
Since election night, Moore remained the top contender among the ten Democrats on the primary election ballot. He's carrying about 35% of the vote as of Friday morning with 70% of districts reporting.
Moore outpaces frontrunners Tom Perez, a former Labor secretary, and Comptroller Peter Franchot by 7 points and 14 points, respectively. His campaign told CBS Friday they are encouraged by the projections but are not yet declaring victory.
The author, military vet, Rhodes Scholar and nonprofit CEO first became famous for his 2010 bestselling memoir, "The Other Wes Moore," a story of two boys with the same name and ties to the streets of Baltimore.
Moore told CBS last week his three top priorities involve equity, the environment and keeping Maryland competitive.
"One, we have to make sure our state is more competitive but also make it more equitable and that's not a decision, we have to do both. The second thing is, that we've got to close the racial wealth gap," Moore said. "Right now in the state of Maryland, the racial wealth gap - that's hurting everybody. The third thing is, we've gotta deal with the issue of climate, you've gotta deal with the environment, we've got to make sure we are protecting our assets."
"We want to build a state that does not leave anyone behind," Moore continued.
The Democratic nominee will face off against projected Republican pick Del. Dan Cox, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. Cox has embraced Trump's debunked claims that the 2020 election was stolen and has called for a forensic audit.
The GOP primary was seen as a proxy war between Gov. Larry Hogan and Trump - two Republicans eyeing 2024 presidential bids. Cox leads Hogan-backed hopeful Kelly Schulz by 13 points as of Friday morning.