When Donald Trump talks, “America First” Republicans still listen.
That is what J.D. Vance’s victory in the Ohio GOP U.S. Senate primary on May 3 showed in the first test of Trump’s influence in the 2022 midterm election cycle, Defending Democracy Together director Bill Kristol believes.
“Anybody who dismisses Donald Trump as not a major factor in the party is crazy,” Dave Carney, a Republican consultant, added.
Vance will now face Rep. Tim Ryan (D–Ohio), who handily defeated Morgan Harper and Traci Johnson in the Democratic party primary.
Vance topped former Ohio state treasurer and state representative Josh Mandel, Ohio state senator Matt Dolan, Cleveland investment banker Mike Gibbons, former Ohio Republican Party chairwoman Jane Timken, central Ohio entrepreneur Mark Pukita, and Columbus businessman Neil Patel.
…