Ohio Republicans hand Vivek Ramaswamy an early endorsement in the GOP governor’s race

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Vivek Ramaswamy’s hold on the 2026 GOP nomination for governor got even tighter Friday as he landed an early endorsement from the Ohio Republican Party.

The endorsement, approved by a supermajority of the Ohio GOP’s State Central Committee, came despite lobbying by Ramaswamy’s main primary opponent, Attorney General Dave Yost, and a last-minute hint by Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel that he might consider joining the race.

After the vote, held behind closed doors, Yost’s campaign manager, Emily Hottinger released a statement congratulating Ramaswamy and saying the attorney general “is going to take a few days to consult with key supporters about the path forward.

“But,” she added, “the people of Ohio deserve a choice, not a premature coronation of an untested candidate.”

Yost campaign spokeswoman Amy Natoce said Hottinger’s statement doesn’t mean that Yost is considering dropping out of the race.

Ramaswamy and his supporters have been lobbying Ohio Republican Party leaders for weeks for a state party endorsement, which brings benefits like access to the state party’s voter data, campaign services, field staff support, and bulk-mail permit, among other perks.

Perhaps even more importantly, it ensures that neither of the two other Republicans already in the race – Yost and Morgan County businessowner Heather Hill – nor potential entrants such as Tressel can land the endorsement down the line to gain a foothold toward a belated comeback.

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“Now, we’re going to be able to work together with the Republican Party of Ohio with a ‘one-team’ mentality, focused on winning in November of 2026,” Ramaswamy told reporters after the endorsement was announced.

The 66-member state central committee voted 51-13 behind closed doors to hold an endorsement vote on the governor’s race at all, Republicans said. The committee then voted 60-3 to endorse Ramaswamy over Yost, the only other candidate whose name was put into nomination for the endorsement.

The state central committee also voted to endorse U.S. Sen. Jon Husted of suburban Columbus in the 2026 Senate primary. That was a far less contentious vote -- not only because Husted is an incumbent, but because so far no other Republicans have emerged to run against him.

In the past few election cycles, the Ohio GOP’s state central committee waited until January or February of the election year before making primary endorsements, sometimes amid grumbling over whether the party should be endorsing in primaries at all.

But the 2026 campaign cycle in Ohio has started far earlier than usual. That’s in part because President Donald Trump issued early endorsements of Ramaswamy and Husted.

The winner of the Republican primary will face a Democrat from a still-evolving field. Dr. Amy Acton, the state’s former health director, is the only Democrat currently campaigning for governor, though ex-U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, a former candidate for U.S. Senate and president, is also considering a run.

Jeremy Pelzer covers state politics and policy for Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.