Midterm election results: Trump-backed J.D. Vance wins Ohio Senate race

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Trump-backed J D Vance wins Ohio Senate race against Tim Ryan

, author of J.D. Vance on Nov. 7 in Vandalia, Ohio. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images Venture capitalist and author J.D. Vance has defeated Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan in Ohio's pivotal open Senate race, the Associated Press reported. Why it matters: Vance's conversion from fervent Donald Trump critic to attracted the former president's endorsement — propelling his victory in a state Trump won comfortably twice. State of play: The Vance campaign's emphasis on economic issues and public safety appealed to Ohioans, and he won despite supporting hardline anti-abortion views that conflict with a majority of voters who . Vance was considered to be a slight favorite in the race after to replace retiring Republican Sen. Rob Portman.Ryan, who had sought the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, kept the race closer than expected by . He praised Trump’s economic policies in ads while keeping President Biden at a distance.Ryan accused his opponent of peddling white replacement theory , which Vance vehemently denied. What's next: How Vance will conduct himself in Washington remains unclear. He may opt to resemble the outgoing Portman, a fellow Cincinnati Republican, by reverting to his pre-election identity as a pragmatic capitalist.Or he could carry on his newer public persona as a MAGA firebrand akin to Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, . The bottom line: his return to Ohio in 2017 after the publication of his “Hillbilly Elegy” memoir as being rooted in civic responsibility. He will take office in January with that responsibility — representing 11.8 million constituents in his first-ever public role — put to the test.

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