Under-The-Radar Race In Ohio Pits Two Trump Allies Against One Another
A low-key, local race pits two allies of President Trump against one another: Vice President JD Vance and Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
The race for Ohio state treasurer, between state Sen. Kristina Roegner and former state Rep. Jay Edwards, is also a mini-battle between Vance and Ramaswamy. Vance supported Edwards, while Ramaswamy supported Roegner. After a failed presidential campaign, Ramaswamy became a Trump campaign surrogate in 2024. He also briefly served as co-chair of DOGE, alongside Elon Musk. (RELATED: Vivek Ramaswamy confirms he’s leaving DOGE and teases his “future plans” in Ohio)
“Jay and I are both sons of Appalachia. We know what it’s like to come from places the elites ignore — and we know the strength, pride and values that built Ohio,” Vance said in February. “Jay never forgot where he came from, and he spent his career advocating for Southeast Ohio and putting hardworking people first.”
U.S. Vice President JD Vance (C) speaks with Vivek Ramaswamy as Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance arrive at Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna Ohio, en route to East Palestine, Ohio, February 3, 2025. Residents of East Palestine, Ohio, were forced to evacuate in February 2023, when a Norfolk Southern train carrying chemicals derailed, covering the area thick black smoke. (Photo by REBECCA DROKE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
As Politico noted, this is one of “many divisions simmering within the Republican Party that is tentatively charting a post-Trump future, with Ramaswamy and Vance scrambling to put their stamp on the GOP.”
Additionally, although Treasury’s position appears far removed from national politics, it has served as “a springboard for Ohio Republicans with higher aspirations,” the outlet reported.
Joe Deters, former state treasurer, serves on the Ohio Supreme Court. Josh Mandel, who served as state treasurer from 2011 to 2019, ran for U.S. Senate three times. In 2022, Mandel lost in the GOP primary to Vance. (RELATED: JD Vance wins hard-fought GOP Senate primary, faces Rep. Tim Ryan in November)
American entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks during the second day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 16, 2024. Days after surviving an assassination attempt, Donald Trump won the official nomination as Republican presidential candidate and chose right-wing loyalist JD Vance as his running mate, launching a triumphalist party convention in the wake of the failed assassination attempt last weekend. (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Elsewhere within the Republican Party, the high-profile primary race between Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie and Trump-backed candidate Ed Gallrein is another prime example of future GOP divisions “bubbling” to the surface. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Democratic donors flood Trump-backed funds Massie Challenger)
As the support war between Massie and Gallrein plays out, expect there to be an ever-widening divide between Trump loyalists and the more libertarian, America First wing of the Republican Party. Each faction will fight for power and shape the future of the party once Trump’s second term ends.
