Trump reels in more endorsements from Ohio

CLEVELAND — Former President Donald Trump continues to lock down support from key Republicans in Ohio — a state he won by healthy margins in the 2016 and 2020 general elections.

Trump’s campaign secured endorsements Tuesday from state Treasurer Robert Sprague and two members of Congress, Reps. Troy Balderson and Bill Johnson, in an announcement shared first with NBC News.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, our nation’s economy was strong, we were achieving energy independence, our allies respected us and our enemies feared us,” said Sprague, who is term-limited as treasurer and is raising money that can be used to run for higher statewide office.

Sprague, Balderson and Johnson join Sen. JD Vance and Reps. Mike Carey, Max Miller and Jim Jordan in backing Trump. So are two of Ohio’s three GOP 2024 Senate candidates: Secretary of State Frank LaRose and businessman Bernie Moreno. The former president hosted many of the endorsees for dinner last week at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Trump now has endorsements from six of the 11 Republicans who represent Ohio in the House and the Senate.

“It’s time to return to the America First, common-sense policies of the first-term of President Donald Trump, and that’s why I am pleased to endorse him in 2024,” said Johnson, whose district includes East Palestine, the site of a toxic trail derailment earlier this year that became heavily politicized, with Trump visiting the town and criticizing President Joe Biden for not doing so.

The new endorsements come with Trump facing mounting legal troubles while also dominating the GOP primary field nationally and in Ohio. A recent USA Today-Suffolk University poll found Trump leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, his closest Republican competitor according to most polls, by 25 points in the state.

DeSantis has emphasized his family’s ties to northeast Ohio. Another GOP contender, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, lives in Ohio but has never run for office before.

Trump has kept a close eye on Ohio politics, extending endorsements over the years that are now being reciprocated. He previously backed Balderson and Carey in competitive special elections, supported Miller’s 2022 House campaign and endorsed LaRose and Sprague in their statewide re-election bids.

Most notably, his endorsement of Vance in last year’s Senate race helped elevate the “Hillbilly Elegy” author in a crowded GOP primary that included better-known candidates.

Trump has not yet endorsed anyone in the 2024 Senate primary, though he has publicly encouraged Moreno, a wealthy former car dealer who has donated to a Trump-aligned super PAC. LaRose announced his endorsement of Trump ahead of last week’s dinner. The third GOP candidate, state Sen. Matt Dolan, has been noncommittal in the presidential race but has spoken critically of Trump in the past.

Brian Jack, a senior Trump campaign aide, has led the endorsement talks in Ohio, along with Trump’s former Ohio chief Bob Paduchik and Trump adviser Clayton Henson, an Ohio native.

Some notable GOP names are not yet on Trump’s Ohio list, including Gov. Mike DeWine, who is term-limited and often cautious when asked about Trump. Lt. Gov. Jon Husted and Attorney General Dave Yost, both of whom are preparing runs to succeed DeWine in 2026, also have yet to endorse Trump or any other candidate.