The widow of the late Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., is running for his vacant seat in the upcoming special election to replace him.
Maya Rockeymoore Cummings told The Baltimore Sun of her plans to enter the race.
"I am, of course, devastated at the loss of my spouse, but his spirit is with me," she said. "I'm going to run this race and I'm going to run it hard, as if he's still right here by my side."
The deadline to file for the Feb. 4 special election primary is Nov. 20. The election is slated for April 28.
Rockeymoore Cummings also is resigning as chairwoman of the Maryland Democratic Party as she kicks off her campaign. She unsuccessfully ran for Maryland governor in 2018.
Cummings died at age 68 after a battle with cancer on Oct. 17. His widow said they spoke in recent months about him resigning due to his illness, but they held out hope that he could bounce back from the thymic carcinoma that had afflicted him.
"That was a discussion we had some months ago," she said. "In the end, he was conflicted about whether he should resign or stay in office. We thought there might be a turnaround. It didn't happen."
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