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The father-in-law of Trump's 'bro' is the Ohio GOP's newest Senate contender [1]

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Date: 2023-04-18  

Miller is married to Moreno’s daughter, Emily Moreno Miller, who gives the candidate some coveted connections to the GOP’s master, as she worked on Trump’s failed 2020 reelection campaign and founded a dating app called Donald Daters. Moreno Miller and the now-congressman were married last year at Trump’s Bedminster lair, and no, they did not meet on Donald Daters. (The app, which was hacked hours after its 2018 launch, no longer appears to exist.)

Moreno joins a primary field that already includes state Sen. Matt Dolan, a fellow self-funder with whom he’s clashed before. The two initially were among the many Republicans who competed in last year’s primary to succeed retiring Sen. Rob Portman, but Moreno dropped out well ahead of the primary after throwing down almost $4 million of his own money. Moreno said he’d decided to quit after he and Trump agreed that the crowded contest “could cost the MAGA movement a conservative seat.” There was no question that the candidate they were worried about was Dolan, who stood out as the one major candidate to condemn the Big Lie.

Dolan, who is a part-owner of the Cleveland Guardians baseball team, ultimately spent almost $11 million of his fortune only to come in third with 23%, well behind Trump’s pick, J.D. Vance. Dolan quickly signaled he’d try again, but Moreno began attacking his once and future rival even before his own announcement, saying in February that the Trump-skeptical Dolan was “running in the wrong primary.” (Moreno himself called Trump a “maniac” before the 2016 primary.) Dolan is once again relying on his own money for this race: He self-funded $3 million during the opening quarter of 2023 while raising just $300,000 from donors, and he had $3.3 million to spend at the end of March.

Moreno and Dolan may not have this latest primary to themselves, though. Rep. Warren Davidson, whom the deep-pocketed Club for Growth has been encouraging to run, told Politico this week, “It’s safe to say I’m actually very actively looking at the race every day.” That may be news to his donors, though, as the hardline congressman raised only $170,000 during the first three months of the year and finished the quarter with $450,000 in the bank. Secretary of State Frank LaRose also has been eyeing this contest and says he’ll decide in the summer.

Brown, for his part, has been stockpiling money ahead of what will be a challenging race in a state that’s turned sharply against Democrats in recent years. The senator hauled in $3.5 million during the opening quarter of the year, and he ended March with $5.8 million in the bank.

It's never too early to start talking about the House! Joining us on this week's edition of The Downballot is Inside Elections' Jacob Rubashkin, who offers his thoughts on the overall playing field and a wide range of key contests. Jacob explains why Lauren Boebert might have an easier time of it in her likely rematch, how some candidates have a "special sauce" that allows them to keep winning difficult districts, and why he thinks Mary Peltola is favored for re-election despite Alaska's persistent red lean.

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/18/2164596/-The-father-in-law-of-Trump-s-bro-is-the-Ohio-GOP-s-newest-Senate-contender

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