Dem
51
GOP
49
If Donald Trump is elected president, J.D. Vance will have to give up his Senate seat and Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) will get to appoint someone to occupy the seat until a special election is held in Nov. 2026 for a "permanent" replacement to serve until Jan. 3, 2029. Of course, the appointee will have a leg up on all other Senate wannabes in the special election, so the jostling for the seat has already begun.
DeWine has said: "I've certainly thought about it." How could he not have? One of his aides has said his phone has been blowing up with people calling to suggest every person who has ever run for public office in Ohio in the last decade.
DeWine is not especially Trumpy. In fact, he is one of the few Republican governors who has not endorsed Trump. In 2022, Vance ran in the Senate primary against state Sen. Matt Dolan (R), who had DeWine's endorsement. Dolan lost to Vance. Dolan's family owns the Cleveland Guardians (née Cleveland Indians) baseball team. Having a ton of money doesn't always mean you win, though.
DeWine could easily use the appointment to make a statement. Replacing a very Trumpy senator with a not-so-Trumpy senator would definitely be a statement. And Dolan isn't the only name being bandied about. Reps. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and Mike Carey (R-OH) are also possibilities. On the other hand, don't expect Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) to get the nod, even though he wants it so badly he can taste it.
If DeWine has trouble making a pick, Vivek Ramaswamy has a suggestion to make DeWine's life easier. Ramaswamy suggested appointing Vivek Ramaswamy to the vacant seat. And you didn't realize that Ramaswamy cared about easing DeWine's troubles, did you? Now you know. (V)