What Went Down During Ohio’s And Indiana’s Primary Elections

With 45 percent of the expected vote in, it looks like DeWine has dropped below 50 percent in his primary. He’ll still win but so far it’s not a rousing endorsement for the embattled governor. And it’s an indicator that if he had faced an opponent more formidable than Renacci (like, say, one of the half-dozen hopefuls who spent millions of their own money on losing Senate bids), this night could have gone very differently for him.

In the GOP primary in Indiana’s 1st District, Green has the lead with about a third of votes reporting. This race has attracted a number of Big Lie believers. We couldn’t find a clear position on the Big Lie for Green, and Milo also hasn’t been firm — though a local news site said Milo had “expressed Trump-like doubts” about the 2020 election.

Two other candidates in this race have more overtly embraced the Big Lie: Ben Ruiz and Mark Levya. When our colleagues at ABC News reached out to Levya’s campaign to ask whether he believed the 2020 election was illegitimate, he replied (in all caps): “YES AND THE TRUTH WILL SOON COME OUT!”

There’s also one candidate who has clearly stated that he accepts the outcome of the 2020 election, Martin Lucas, who told us: “The Los Angeles Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl. Joe Biden beat Donald Trump for the presidency. Both statements are historical facts. I do not believe Donald Trump won the 2020 election. I do not believe the election was illegitimate.”

Important pattern emerging in the Ohio Senate race: Vance is doing better with election day ballots across the state. This may reflect the fact that Trump endorsed Vance somewhat late in the race, so many early voters may not have had that information. Or it could be because Trumpier Republicans are less likely to vote early or absentee.