Gov. Mike DeWine expected to pick Jon Husted for U.S. Senate

Gov. Mike DeWine is expected to choose Lt. Gov. Jon Husted to fill a vacant seat representing Ohio in the U.S. Senate, four sources tell Signal Statewide.

DeWine has announced a 1 p.m. press conference. A media advisory didn’t share the subject matter. A spokesperson said he didn’t know what the governor will announce.

But several Republican sources told Signal that DeWine will announce that he’s picking Husted. The development is an about-face for Husted, who long has planned to run for governor in 2026 to succeed DeWine, who can’t run again because of term limits. But a source said the decision reflects concern that Husted would have a hard time winning a Republican primary for governor in 2026. The race also is expected to feature Vivek Ramaswamy, a Columbus-area billionaire who became a well-known political media personality following an unsuccessful run for president in 2024.

Gov. Mike DeWine has said he plans to announce his pick sometime this week. DeWine held a media availability on Thursday to announce a major new factory but was tight-lipped about the Senate race other than to confirm he’d met with Ramaswamy recently.

“Later,” DeWine said Thursday when reporters asked him when he’d make his decision. Pushed for more information he said: “Not too much later.”