Once Vice President-elect JD Vance resigned After taking his Senate seat last Friday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) began the race to name a replacement. Republicans won a 53-47 majority in November, but leaving a seat open for too long could jeopardize their ability to pass major legislation, including the Laken Riley Act.
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There was intense speculation about who DeWine would appoint to replace Vance in the 2026 special election, and many considered former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to be a candidate for the post. As it turned out, DeWine chose his own lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, to Capitol Hill.
I am proud to announce that I have selected @LtGovHusted to serve in the U.S. Senate and replace the Vice President-elect @JDVance. pic.twitter.com/W5918DDaCz
– Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) January 17, 2025
DeWine said his selection:
“I worked with him, I saw him. I know his knowledge of Ohio. I know his heart. I know what he cares about. I know his abilities,” DeWine said at a news conference Friday at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. “All of that tells me he’s the right person for the job.”
DeWine and Husted reportedly met with President-elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago last month to discuss candidates for both the outstanding Senate vacancy and the 2026 gubernatorial race; DeWine is restricted to another term. Trump, who has clashed with DeWine in the past, apparently refused to endorse Husted for either job.
Still, Husted signaled his desire to work with the Trump administration:
It is an honor to accept my appointment as a member of the United States Senate.
We have worked to make Ohio great again and I look forward to working together @RealDonaldTrump & @JDVance to make America great again! pic.twitter.com/fwIgst3gEm
— Jon Husted (@JonHusted) January 17, 2025
Husted, 57, approved He thought long and demanding before deciding that he would accept the position.
“This decision was not made lightly,” said Husted, a former Ohio secretary of state and House speaker, as he stood next to his wife, Tina, and DeWine. “My family and I listened to the advice of so many people, including the governor and so many others.”
It had previously been assumed that DeWine would choose a woman to replace Vance.
Sources close to the Ohio governor RAccording to reports said that “the advancement of women is important to DeWine and that he would like to appoint a woman to the seat, although gender is not the determining factor.”
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As RedState reported back in November, Republican attorneys Mehek Cooke and Jane Timken were two women DeWine was considering. Some (unnamed) Sources claim that Ramaswamy, despite being named co-chair of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has “lobbied like hell” in recent days to replace Vance in the Senate and learned just before Friday’s announcement , that he was not DeWine’s final choice.
Husted, previously considered the leading candidate to succeed DeWine as governor, will serve in the Senate until the 2026 special election. He must then run if he wants to remain a senator until 2028, when Vance’s term ends.
It’s unclear when Husted’s swearing-in will take place.
