Rebecca Downs | 3/16/26
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Sen. Jon Husted is landing an endorsement from Americans for Prosperity Action in what is set to become its largest grassroots effort campaign.
As Donovan O’Neil, a senior adviser to AFP Action, explained to The Daily Signal, the support for the Ohio Republican will involve a “robust” campaign from digital ads to canvassing.
It will also include a data focus, identifying 2 million voters for AFP Action to engage. O’Neil said this bloc of voters can be the “change maker” in the election.
Former Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is looking to make a comeback after losing to Republican now-Sen. Bernie Moreno in 2024.
AFP Action will immediately commence canvassing efforts across Ohio’s 88 counties.
As the secretary of state in 2017, Husted received the inaugural Taxpayers’ Torch Award from Americans for Prosperity’s Ohio chapter.
O’Neil applauded Husted’s efforts in the Senate on family tax cuts and on a principled balanced budget amendment. “Good government is the through line for Husted,” O’Neil shared, calling him “the future.”
Brown has attacked Husted on economic issues in recent weeks, saying the senator “would rather fight for billionaires” and calling attention to rising health care prices for Ohioans.
“I’m in this for the Ohioans picking up odd jobs after work to help pay the rent. I’m in this for the parents putting $10 in the tank at a time just to make it to payday,” Brown said on X.
O’Neil recalled “consistently hearing at the doors in 2024” of concerns about the economy and inflation, a lack of reinvestment in Ohio, and border security.
Ohio has been a bellwether in past elections, and the state still carries significance in 2026. O’Neil acknowledged that Ohio “is a red state,” but that one “shouldn’t take Ohio voters for granted.”
“The final two years of [President Donald] Trump’s term will be highly impacted by how Ohio votes this November,” O’Neil said.
The Cook Political Report considers this Senate race as “Lean Republican.” The Ohio 2024 Senate race was reportedly the most expensive in the country, and this year’s race could follow that pattern.
