Maryland GOP Senate nominee Larry Hogan is working hard in the deep blue state to separate himself from former President Donald Trump and national Republicans, a position that has become a two-way street at times.

The former Maryland governor has decided to skip the Republican National Convention, has tacked to the left on abortion and urged Americans to respect the verdict in Mr. Trump’s hush money trial.

The moves are part of a concerted effort to show voters who helped Mr. Hogan win back-to-back gubernatorial elections in Maryland that they can count on him to be an independent voice in Washington.

The moves also are making him a pariah in Trump’s world.

Lara Trump, co-chair of the RNC and daughter-in-law of the former president, slammed Mr. Hogan over the weekend over his position on Mr. Trump’s guilty verdict. He urged voters to respect the jury’s decision. 

“I think it’s ridiculous and I think anybody who’s not speaking up in the face of really something that should never again have seen the light of day at trial, that would never have been brought against any other person aside from Donald Trump, doesn’t deserve the respect of anyone,” Lara Trump said over the weekend on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Chris LaCivita, a senior Trump campaign strategist, said Mr. Hogan’s comment on the Trump verdict was the death knell for his Senate bid.

Others have been more willing to cut him some slack and, in some cases, pushed back against the Hogan criticism.

Former Montana governor and ex-RNC Chair Marc Racicot slammed Ms. Trump’s attacks on Mr. Hogan as “contemptuous.” 

“That’s the language of the modern-day Republican Party and it’s more of a mob than it is a party,” Mr. Racicot said on CNN.

Mr. Hogan is running against Democrat Angela Alsobrooks for the seat of retiring Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin.

Mr. Hogan has never been a fan of Mr. Trump’s influence over the Republican Party. A top advisor to Mr. Hogan signaled to reporters on primary election night last month that the Republican would likely pass on attending the GOP convention in July in Milwaukee so he can focus on winning over voters in Maryland.

The following day, Mr. Hogan said he considered his views on abortion to be more aligned with the pro-choice movement, further alienating parts of the GOP base.

• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.