J.D. Vance leads the polls at the moment. Ryan asked for donations to the poll’s most recent results.
🔵Tim Ryan (D): 42%
đź”´JD Vance (R): 45%The GOP is massively outspending us on the airwaves and a BRAND NEW poll shows me slipping 3 points behind JD. We need your help ASAP to get things back under control before it’s too late to recover.
— Tim Ryan (@TimRyan) August 30, 2022
Vance repeatedly stated that Ryan wasn’t a centrist Democrat and that he spoke like one. Ryan’s voting record in Congress is a clear example of this. Ryan claimed that he was progressive in an Instagram video.
You can count on me to fight for you… “You can count on me to be there fighting for you…
.@TimRyan was specifically asked whether he will fight for abortion, LGBTQ and trans issues.
His response: “You can count on me to be in the fight…I’m progressive. I’m going to vote that way. I’m going to support you in every way shape and form…You can count on me.” pic.twitter.com/j6S93imUWT
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) August 30, 2022
He spoke the quiet part loudly, noting that it was a statement about his intention to vote for a progressive senator. Because it shows Ryan’s true side and not just that he isn’t a centrist.
Why it matters: Ohio has historically rejected progressive candidates both locally and nationally. While Nina Turner was a Senator of Ohio, there have been shifts in recent years and no other progressives are winning their races apart from Turner. Take a look at some of these races.
Hillary Clinton received 56.7 percent, while Bernie Sanders got 42.7 percent in the 2016 Democratic primaries. Joe Biden won 72.4 percentage points in 2020, while Sanders received 16.6 percent. Shontel, a centrist Democrat got 50.1 percent. Nina Turner, a progressive Democrat, received 44.6 percent. Turner received 33.7 percent. Brown won by a larger margin in 2022 than in 2021.
It is clear that Ohio has rejected progressive candidates repeatedly. Ryan’s comments may prove to be a gift to Vance if he incorporates that clip into an advertisement campaign.
Tim Ryan caught on camera telling people he is, in fact, a culture warrior—for the values of the far left. https://t.co/OVdZTlHhLT
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) August 30, 2022
Vance answered the question regarding Ryan’s constant flipping.
“I think we’re in an excellent spot here in Ohio. Tim Ryan is my Democratic opponent. He pretends one thing in his TV ads but his voting record and public statements do not support it. Ohio voters should vote. If they do not, we will elect a man who supports defunding police and supports inflationary policies to the Senate. We need a senator from Ohio who is a real representative of our state and not just Joe Biden’s rubber stamp. ”
It is too close to call, but it will go back and forth until November. Vance is now on the rise and, if Ohio’s GOP base votes for him, he will become Ohio’s next senator.
