Bernie Moreno, a businessman running in the Ohio Republican Senate primary to oust Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced some good news on Monday morning. A press release for his U.S. Senate campaign indicated he had raised $2.2 million for the first quarter, $1.3 million which was raised from fellow Ohioans.
"That is a record for the amount of money raised in-state during an Ohio U.S. Senate candidate's first quarter in a Republican Primary," the press release noted. "All dollars raised are directly to the campaign, and include no personal funds from the candidate."
RECORD BREAKING fundraising numbers for Bernie! Ohioans are FIRED UP to take back our country and retire Sherrie Brown! #TeamMoreno pic.twitter.com/iZaRfYos56
— Team Moreno (@teammoreno2024) July 10, 2023
"I am grateful and honored by the groundswell of support for our campaign," Moreno shared in a statement. "Ohioans have had enough of the same old thing and insider politics of Sherrod Brown and the Washington establishment. I'm proud to be America First political outsider who can bring a message of conservative change to Washington."
Moreno officially entered the race in April. Former and potentially future President Donald Trump has encouraged him to run. Moreno's daughter is married to Rep. Max Miller (R-OH), a freshman congressman who was endorsed by Trump and who had served as an aide to the former president.
He has already been endorsed by Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), who was just elected last November to replace retiring Sen. Rob Portman, also a Republican. Others who have endorsed Moreno include former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) and Kash Patel. Moreno ran in the crowded 2022 Senate primary, but dropped out in February. He went on to enthusiastically support Vance, who won that race against then Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH).
Kurt Schlichter has also spoken favorably about Moreno in numerous columns, including his most recent one from Monday morning:
Ohio: Sherrod Brown is a weird communist doofus who my home state has inexplicably elected several times, even though it has been getting consistently redder over the years. The idea of a younger, less-virile Bernie Sanders representing Ohio is bizarre, and this cycle, it is time to send him to where fired pinkos go. Trump will not hurt the GOP here, but the impeachment issue will hurt Brown since Brown holds a fellow Democrat countable for his crimes. I like Bernie Moreno here, but it will be a big primary because the GOP smells blood. This is a likely win for the GOP.
Schlichter also praised Moreno in a column from March 13:
I like Bernie Moreno, the car dealer magnate who dropped out last time to clear a path for JD Vance. I met him at CPAC. He’s cool. He’s based. He and my wife spoke to each other in Spanish and I think they were talking bad about me. His immigrant pro-American dream agenda is infectious – it’s genuine, and that’s hard to fake. He’s another candidate in that normal/competent frame that voters want right now. Yet he’s got no use for commie nonsense. Cool.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose, the only sitting secretary of state in 2022 to be endorsed by Trump, has hinted that he may enter the race. State Sen. Matt Dolan also announced his candidacy in January. Rep. Warren Davidson, once considered a possible contender announced in late May that he was passing on entering the race.
Ohio is widely considered to be one of the top Senate races to watch in 2024, a cycle that looks to be quite favorable to Republicans, at least on the Senate side. An Axios report, "Ohio's U.S. Senate race is heating up," also released on Monday morning, referenced Moreno's campaign.