The 2022 midterm elections will prove critical for both parties’ efforts to control the U.S. Senate. There are many vital races that Republicans need to win back, such as Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada, and close campaigns in states that Republicans need to keep like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and North Carolina. One such seat is in Ohio, and a new public figure has entered the political arena.
JD Vance, a well-known author for his memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” announced this week that he would seek the open Senate seat in Ohio vacated by Republican Senator Rob Portman. Vance explained Tucker Carlson’s show that the elites had taken rural voters for granted for too long. Yet when they complain about essential issues, such as the border crisis or job loss, they get called racists and xenophobes, and we need politicians who listen to the people, according to Vance.
Vance presents himself as a populist conservative. He has taken conservative positions on social issues but presents himself as an economic nationalist, believing that tariffs will help save middle American jobs from foreign influences. Vance also focuses on fighting back in the culture war, blaming “wokeism” for the declining state of America. But Vance’s opponents may use his old anti-Trump tweets against him, as Vance did not support Trump back in 2016 but has changed his stance after Trump governed like a conservative.
Though Vance may have had some past trouble with Trump, it is undeniable that Vance would never have been considered a serious candidate without his influence within the party. Trump’s appeal to the populist right allowed for knowledgable celebrities to be taken seriously in politics. He helped restore the Republican Party as the people’s party, allowing those without political experience to enter the political stage.
