Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Expected to Appoint His Lt. Governor to Fill JD Vance’s Senate Seat

(AP Photo/Paul Vernon, File)

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) is expected to appoint Lt. Gov. Jon Husted (R) to the empty Senate seat vacated by Vice President-elect JD Vance. 

According to a report by NBC News, the Republican governor is expected to make the announcement public on Friday afternoon. NBC News granted anonymity to two sources with knowledge of the private discussions.

DeWine has called for a news conference at the statehouse in Columbus for later this afternoon where he is expected to make the announcement.

Husted will serve the remaining two years of Vance’s term until the 2026 special election. DeWine previously told reporters that he would only appoint someone to Vance’s seat if they could win the Republican primary in 2025.

DeWine and Husted had a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach last month. Per NBC News, Husted’s desire to succeed DeWine as governor in 2026 was discussed with Trump:

Husted’s interest in succeeding DeWine as governor in 2026, and the possibility of Husted being endorsed by Trump, was a topic of conversation, two sources briefed on the meeting told NBC News. But Trump made no commitments to Husted on that race or on the Senate vacancy, these sources said.

The imminent Husted appointment follows a late push from biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, a close Trump ally who lives in the Columbus area.

Ramaswamy last fall took himself out of the running for the post after agreeing to lead the new Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency. But he had signaled a change of heart recently and met with DeWine about the appointment.