Who is Bernie Moreno? The winner of Ohio’s Republican US Senate primary – who will face off against Democrat Sherrod Brown – is a Maga supporter who once called Donald Trump a ‘lunatic’ and a ‘maniac’
- Moreno’s contest against the incumbent senator for Ohio, Brown, will potentially determine who controls the US Senate, based on the Democrats’ current narrow voting majority
- The ‘absolute pro-life’ Republican has taken an anti-LGBT stance despite having a gay son, and was himself linked to a dating profile seeking gay sex in the noughties, though his team claimed it was a prank
Maga firebrand Bernie Moreno has the hopes of the Republican Party on his shoulders after winning Ohio’s Republican US Senate primary in March.
But his political career has seen a lot of controversy and U-turns as the 57-year-old not only spent millions of his own money on his campaign, but also had to settle party fears about having potentially sought out gay sex in the noughties via a hook-up site.
Get to know one of Trump’s key “henchmen”.
Why is Bernie Moreno’s win so critical?
Ohio, once known as a key swing state – meaning that it had strong ties to both Republican and Democratic parties, resulting in political parties giving it extra attention – has been leaning right in the last few years, per Time.
The outcome of the contest between Moreno and Brown could ultimately decide control of the US Senate. Per The Washington Post, Democrats have a narrow voting majority in the Senate, making Ohio a target for the Republican Party.