The Ohio Republicans hoping to unseat Sherrod Brown this cycle
Emily Jacobs
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Republican candidates have begun entering the race to challenge Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) as he seeks a fourth term next year in what will be one of the most competitive general election fights of the 2024 cycle.
Brown’s 2024 race will be the highest-profile fight of his career. He’ll be running as an unapologetic progressive in an increasingly red state, though he’ll benefit from the power of incumbency, strong name recognition, and high approval ratings. Democrats currently control the Senate by a 51-49 margin, a slim majority threatened by a tough 2024 map that includes four swing or red state incumbents up for reelection, including Brown.
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Two Republicans have launched their campaigns thus far, but the contest is in its early stages. Given that potential candidates aren’t facing an imminent deadline to make their bids official, others may hold off on getting in the race. At the moment, there are four names primarily thrown around as Brown’s most likely and serious challengers.
State Sen. Matt Dolan came in a close third in the 2022 GOP Senate primary, just behind former Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel, who had the backing of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) was the eventual winner of that contest after he secured the coveted endorsement of former President Donald Trump. Unlike Vance and Mandel, who ruled out a 2024 Senate bid, Dolan has run both races as an unapologetic Trump critic while avoiding making him a focus of his campaign. He launched his most recent bid in January.
Aside from his legislative work in the state Senate, Dolan, the son of billionaire Cleveland Guardians owner Larry Dolan, is a lawyer in private practice.
It is unlikely that Dolan will secure Trump’s endorsement, and it seems unlikely that he’s seeking that support.
Bernie Moreno, an Ohio-based businessman with ties to the former president, is taking a different approach. Moreno declared his candidacy earlier this month, two years after agreeing to sit out the 2022 race as it became clear Trump was planning to endorse Vance. The Trump ally eventually went on to back Vance himself, helping him prep for general election debates and raise funds.
Trump praised Moreno ahead of his campaign launch, but he withheld an endorsement of the self-proclaimed political outsider.
“Word is that Bernie Moreno, the highly respected businessman from the GREAT STATE of OHIO, and the father-in-law of fantastic young Congressman, Max Miller, is thinking of running for the Senate,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “He would not be easy to beat, especially against Brown, one of the worst in the Senate!”
Moreno endorsed Trump’s 2024 bid in February.
In addition to Dolan and Moreno, Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH), whose Freedom Caucus background would give him strong credentials with far-right voters, is being pushed by a top conservative advocacy group to throw his hat in the ring. The Club for Growth, which has deep pockets and enormous influence in GOP politics, has actively encouraged Davidson to get in the race, promising the group’s full support.
Davidson, who has served in the House of Representatives since 2016, has maintained a fairly low profile on the Hill. The vocal Trump ally receives far less media attention than House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), his Ohio colleague. Despite his close ties to Moreno, Trump would be likely to consider Davidson’s candidacy when deciding on an endorsement.
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Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose has been far more vocal about his interest in a 2024 bid. After some Republicans pushed for him to enter the 2022 primary, LaRose began making calls to donors about a potential run, but he ultimately decided against a bid. The Republican has walked a political tightrope of sorts, attempting to distinguish himself from Trump’s false election fraud claims and promoting his work to uphold the 2020 election results while not alienating base voters.
LaRose said in March that he would make an announcement sometime this summer on his decision about running. In the meantime, he’s been actively raising money through a super PAC.