What makes Ohio’s U.S. Senate race one of the biggest of 2024
In the video player above, watch previous coverage of the race for Ohio senator.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — In 2024, Ohio could play a key role in determining whether the U.S. Senate is controlled by Democrats or Republicans.
The Senate currently favors Democrats 51-49, and Republicans are already likely to flip one of 33 seats going before voters this November, with West Virginia’s Democratic Senator Joe Manchin not seeking reelection.
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Ohio, along with Arizona and Montana, are seen as the three other states where Democrats are the least safe. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, has served since 2007, but Ohioans favored Republican Donald Trump in the 2016 and 2020 presidential races and they elected Trump’s pick, political newcomer J.D. Vance, to the Senate in 2022 over a more experienced Democrat in a race to replace a retiring Republican.
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Here’s a look at Brown and the three main Republican challengers vying for the chance to go against him. They will face off in the primary election on March 19. NBC4 and other Nexstar stations in Ohio are set to host a debate among the Republican nominees on Jan. 22.
Sen. Sherrod Brown
Despite Ohio leaning Republican in recent years, Brown has remained a winner for Democrats. The senator won his reelection with 53.4% of the vote in 2018, a higher vote percentage than Trump received in 2016 or 2020.
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Brown’s campaign began riding the wave of the abortion amendment passing immediately, writing in an email the next day, “We were victorious last night in defeating special interests and keeping power where it belongs — in the hands of voters.”
Continuing to build on themes that most Democrats support will be part of Brown’s strategy, as will his opposition to Trump should the former president be nominated again. Brown voted to convict Trump during the 2021 impeachment trial. Brown also has name recognition; a November poll showed he held a slight edge over each of his three Republican counterparts.
Bernie Moreno
The candidate who has gained the most traction recently among Republicans is Moreno, who received Trump’s endorsement. This endorsement has the potential to shake up a primary that had shown him polling in last place.
Moreno ran for the Senate in 2022, the seat eventually won by Vance. During that race, Moreno dropped out before the primary.
Before running for senate, Moreno made his name as a luxury car dealer in Cleveland before co-founding tech company ChampTitles in 2018.
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Despite criticizing opponents for growing up with privileged lifestyles, Moreno has previously commented on his wealthy upbringing. In a 2020 interview, he described his parents as coming from “outsized privilege,” saying that they both came from wealthy families in Colombia. He even said his father’s family home was “so large that it was converted into the embassy for Germany.”
Personal financial disclosure documents for each candidate revealed that Moreno is the wealthiest candidate in the race by a significant margin.
Ohio Sec. of State Frank LaRose
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is the GOP candidate who began the race with the most name recognition. His familiarity was made clear by a December poll that showed him leading all Republican candidates by 15%, though the poll came before Trump’s endorsement.
LaRose had the unfortunate timing of saying Trump had no intentions of making an endorsement in the race one day before the former president picked Moreno.
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Personal financial disclosure documents, which LaRose missed his original deadline to file, showed LaRose is worth more than $1 million, despite him previously saying he’s the only “thousandaire” in the race.
State Sen. Matt Dolan
Dolan appears to be the candidate with the best odds against Brown in November. The state senator is projected to outperform both of his Republican opponents in the general election, according to a November poll.
Fans of the Cleveland Guardians may be familiar with Dolan, whose father, Larry, bought the major league team in 2000 and gave him a partial stake in it. Dolan held a position in the front office before running for Ohio Senate in 2016.
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Dolan, like Moreno, was previously in the 2022 Senate primary. Unlike his counterpart, Dolan made it to the primary election, finishing third.
While Moreno and LaRose vied for Trump’s endorsement, Dolan has distanced himself from the former president.
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