Republican J.D. Vance, endorsed by former President Donald Trump, has won the race for Ohio’s open U.S. Senate race against Democrat Rep. Tim Ryan, according to NBC News, calling the race at 10:53 p.m. eastern.
Vance, whose best-selling memoir Hillbilly Elegy chronicled the deindustrialization of Middletown, Ohio — where he spent his childhood — ran his campaign centered around the economic nationalist vision to revive America’s manufacturing base with tariffs and a strict industrial policy.
On the other hand, over the last few months of the race, Ryan has campaigned with labor union leadership across Ohio. For years, the Democrat Party has had long ties to the union bosses, even though, in places like Ohio, those close ties are against the will of the union’s membership.
As exclusively reported last month, in the highly watched race, Vance told Breitbart News that Ohio union workers have wanted to endorse his nationalist-populist campaign but that union bosses, closely linked to Democrat Party officials, have objected to such endorsements.
“We’ve had multiple unions in the state of Ohio, where the local membership has wanted to endorse me, but the national membership either vetoed that and kept it neutral or vetoed that and have had the union endorse Tim Ryan — even though we know 70 to 80 percent of the membership is going to end up voting for me in the election,” Vance said.
The Buckeye State Republican also campaigned on having higher wages for workers, having a tighter labor market with less immigration, and a harsh social agenda focused on promoting the quality of life for working and middle-class American households.
Regarding Ryan, Vance acknowledged on the campaign trail, in debates, and in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News that the country needs a “new generation of leaders,” not the “old generation” like his opponent is a part of.
He has also focused on pointing to his voting record and being a rubber stamp for the Democrat leadership in the House and President Joe Biden, which would, in turn, push the idea that he would do the same in the U.S. Senate. And as Vance noted, Ryan has voted with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Biden 100 percent of the time in the most recent Congress.
However, the race outcome comes as no surprise to some as a recent poll from the Trafalgar Group showed that Vance secured 53.9 percent of support from likely voters in the Ohio U.S. Senate race and has a ten-point lead over Democrat.
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.