Republican Bernie Moreno Files Paperwork to Run for Senate Against Sherrod Brown

Bernie Moreno, a businessman who dropped out of the crowded Republican Senate primary field last cycle, filed paperwork Monday to run in 2024 for Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-OH) seat.

Moreno filed paperwork to run with the Federal Election Commission and has signaled he would announce his intentions with a formal announcement soon.

“Today, Bernie filed paperwork with the FEC as he continues to explore a run for U.S. Senate,” the source told NBC News on Monday, noting that he is expected to make a formal announcement next week. “Over the past few weeks, Bernie has talked with voters, business leaders, conservative activists, and donors throughout the state and has received overwhelming encouragement to run.”

Unlike the last cycle when Moreno was running in the primary for an open seat, this time the Republican nominee will have three-term Democrat incumbent Sherrod Brown to oppose. He also joins state Sen. Matt Dolan in the race, who was also an unsuccessful 2022 candidate.

Moreno halted his 2022 bid after meeting with former president Donald Trump to “focus [his] efforts on supporting the candidate that wins President Trump’s endorsement” since “too many many Trump candidates” running could have “cost the MAGA movement a conservative seat.” NBC News noted that dropping out at the time was also to prevent Dolan from winning the Republican nomination in the crowded field.

Since last year’s election Dolan has also been accused of helping establishment Republicans with close ties to Democrats attempt to infiltrate the Republican Party of Cuyahoga County, a prominent group in Ohio, in order to help himself early in the primary process and wrest control away from conservatives who have taken command in recent years.

The election in Ohio will happen in a battleground state in a year with a presidential election and is expected to be messy as Brown is one of the top vulnerable Democrats this cycle up for reelection.

In 2024, 23 of the 33 Senate seats up for reelection are currently held by Democrats or left-leaning independents. Former President Donald Trump won six of these states by double digits in at least one of his presidential elections. Besides Brown, Sen. Jon Tester in Montana and Sen. Joe Manchin in West Virginia are expected to be the most vulnerable.

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.