Former President Donald Trump endorsed Ohio Senate candidate Bernie Moreno on Tuesday, arguing the wealthy businessman is a “successful political outsider” and “exactly the type of MAGA fighter” needed in the Senate.
Trump’s endorsement came after Ohio Sen. JD Vance, a close Trump ally who has long backed Moreno’s Senate campaign, urged the former president to endorse Moreno’s candidacy during a meeting at Mar-a-Lago on Friday, a source familiar with the meeting told CNN.
Trump agreed during that meeting that he would throw his support behind Moreno in the coming days, the source said.
Moreno is running in a crowded Republican primary, which includes Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, to try to unseat Sen. Sherrod Brown — one the two most vulnerable Democratic incumbents running for reelection next year.
Unlike during the 2022 midterm election cycle, when Trump issued a series of endorsements in state and local races, the former president is taking a far more cautious approach to endorsements ahead of the 2024 races.
The former president had previously praised Moreno on social media, and the two have met in person a handful of times over the past several months.
Moreno mounted an unsuccessful campaign for Senate in 2022, loaning his campaign millions of dollars from his personal fortune before ultimately dropping out of the race and campaigning for one of his rivals, Vance.