A Republican who once called Donald Trump's unfounded claims of voter fraud "irresponsible" is endorsing the former president as he mounts a third run for the White House.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, who is running for Senate in a state Trump won by 8 points in 2020, lent his support to the 2024 front-runner on Monday in an emphatic press release that nonetheless hinted at his disagreements with Trump.
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LaRose used his Army service — he earned a Bronze Star while deployed abroad — to argue that Trump is uniquely qualified among GOP contenders to take on President Joe Biden next year.
He alluded to the federal and state charges filed against Trump to paint him as something of a martyr for the conservative cause.
"I learned in the Army that when you're headed into battle, you want to be led by someone who's both fearless and feared," LaRose said in a press release. "We're in a battle for the heart and soul of our nation, and President Trump is that leader."
Yet LaRose subtly created daylight between himself and the former president, hinting at his past disagreements over Trump's claims of election fraud.
"We don't agree on every point of style or substance, but we share a common vision of America's potential," he said.
The tightrope LaRose is walking is an awkward replay of his 2022 race, in which Trump endorsed LaRose for another term as Ohio's chief elections officer. In the aftermath of 2020, LaRose denounced those who "fearmonger about elections administration" but has flirted with Trump's rhetoric since.
Last year, he agreed with the former president's assertion that voter fraud is a "serious problem."
Now, LaRose is running for Senate in a state where Trump's endorsement could put him over the top in a competitive primary for the seat of Sen. Sherrod Brown, one of the most endangered Senate Democrats of the 2024 cycle.
LaRose has proven he can win statewide, but he is facing two wealthy self-funders, businessman Bernie Moreno and state Sen. Matt Dolan.
Moreno is staunchly pro-Trump — he attended a speech at the former president's estate in Bedminster after he was arraigned on federal charges of mishandling classified documents. Dolan, on the other hand, is a centrist Trump critic.
LaRose has placed himself somewhere between those two lanes.
He was recorded telling donors that Trump's endorsement did not have the heft it used to but speculated he would earn his support, according to Politico. The former president had encouraged Moreno to get into the race but has not yet endorsed.
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Trump still has considerable sway over Ohio Republicans and the GOP electorate more broadly. He leads his closest rival, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), nationally by 33 points, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average.
Besides DeSantis, the rest of the primary field polls in the single digits.