Republican Announces Offer To Flip Ohio’s Democratic Senate Seat: Matt Dolan enters race and vows to put The Buckeye State first after losing primary to JD Vance
- “Together with Joe Biden, Sherrod Brown launched America’s troubles for a generation. Your time is up,” Dolan said
- Brown’s seat is a top target for a GOP pickup in 2024 in the increasingly red Ohio
- Democrats must defend their slim 51-49 majority in a year in which they have twice as many Senate seats up for re-election as Republicans
Ohio State Senator Matt Dolan — the moderate Republican who lost to Trump-backed JD Vance in a primary — now has his sights set on Democrat Sherrod Brown’s US Senate seat in 2024.
“I am uncompromisingly committed to putting Ohio’s needs first and delivering results as our next U.S. Senator,” Dolan said in a statement. “With the boldness of my beliefs, clear purpose, and a determined focus on the challenges and opportunities facing our beloved state, I am ready to lead.”
He also launched a new attack on Brown, which is expected to return in 2024.
“Much can change in thirty years, but in that time Sherrod Brown’s commitment to his party has remained the same,” Dolan said.
“Together with Joe Biden, Sherrod Brown launched America’s troubles for a generation. Your time is up.”
Ohio State Senator Matt Dolan — the moderate Republican who lost to Trump-backed JD Vance in a primary — now has his sights set on Democrat Sherrod Brown’s US Senate seat in 2024
Senator Sherrod Brown’s seat ranks as a top target for a 2024 GOP pickup in increasingly red Ohio.
Brown’s seat ranks as a top target for a GOP pickup in 2024 in the increasingly red Ohio. Democrats must defend their slim 51-49 majority in a year in which they have twice as many Senate seats up for re-election as Republicans.
Brown is one of three Senate Democrats who must defend a seat by at least eight points in a state won by Donald Trump in 2020.
Dolan, whose family owns the Cleveland Guardians baseball team, finished third in the GOP primary, led by Vance. He tapped into his personal fortune to start this effort, giving and lending more than $10 million to his campaign.
Vance defeated Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan in the general election by 53.3 percent to 46.7 percent.
The race to replace retired Sen. Rob Portman drew a crowded field of Republicans, and the race for Brown, who has held the seat since 2007, could make for another crowded GOP primary.
In 2022, Dolan was a rare candidate not to tie himself to former President Trump by casting doubt on the legitimacy of the 2020 election.
“America’s challenges require the focus of seasoned leaders who reject fictional grievances and are willing to put in the hard work to achieve results to make our future better than the past,” he said in an announcement Tuesday.
The business attorney and former prosecutor is in his second four-year term in the Ohio Senate. He previously served three terms in the Ohio House.