The Republican Bernie Moreno won the Ohio Senate race on Tuesday, besting the Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown in a victory that could hand the GOP a majority in the upper chamber.
The Associated Press called the race at 11.27 pm EST.
The hard-fought race is crucial in determining whether the incoming president-elect can enact her or his platform. Democrats and Republicans alike took notice.
According to the Associated Press, Ohio saw half a billion dollars in campaign ad spending this election cycle. Pennsylvania saw $340m and Montana, which was also seen as key to determining control of the Senate, had $280m.
The race speaks to Ohio’s shifting demographics, which have made this midwest state key to presidential races. When Brown was elected US senator in 2006, Ohio seemed prime for Democrats, with expansive urban centers and manufacturing that would favor labor-aligned candidates.
Barack Obama won Ohio in 2008 and 2012 when Democrats were strongly represented in statewide elected office, but the state has since become more conservative. Meanwhile, manufacturing industry has languished.
Ohio, which has seen its population stagnate, is becoming older and whiter. Brown is the lone Democrat to hold statewide elected office.
Moreno, a former luxury car dealer, ran a campaign that was characterized by criticism over hyperbolic and seemingly untrue claims.
Moreno, who came to the US from Colombia at age four, claimed he learned English through Ronald Reagan’s addresses. This statement, while appealing to Republicans given their affinity toward Reagan, has been questioned.
In September, Moreno was revealed to have falsely claimed to have an MBA from the University of Michigan, also signing legal documents claiming the degree; Moreno’s team blamed “a staffer who made a mistake”.
Moreno has not struck a significantly deep chord with Ohio voters, but he enjoys Donald Trump’s popularity in Ohio. This is Brown’s first election with Trump on the top of the ticket.
Meanwhile, Republicans orchestrated a gerrymandering process to boost their chances at the polls. Ohio has a supermajority in the state’s senate and house of representatives.
Ohio’s offices of the governor, secretary of state and attorney general, and state supreme court, are all held by Republicans. And Trump’s vice-presidential pick, JD Vance, is Ohio’s second US senator.
Brown’s campaign sought to tout his pro-worker bona fides and distance himself from Biden’s White House and Kamala Harris, even though the president shepherded billions in infrastructure spending to rural regions of Ohio.
Thomas Sutton, acting president of Baldwin Wallace University and a political science professor, felt that Brown “has crossover appeal among Ohioans”.
“The labor vote, which has increasingly gone to Trump, has also gone to Brown,” Sutton said. “He shares some of the same positions as Trump when it comes to protecting local industry, manufacturing [and] support for farmers.”
Brown has also tried to address concerns about immigration. Some campaign ads have shown Brown onboard a speedboat, donning a bullet-proof vest, to cast himself as a tough-on-immigration candidate.
Read more of the Guardian’s 2024 US election coverage
