![Jane Timken poses with Donald Trump, now the former president, in an undated photo on her campaign website. [Janetimkenforohio.com]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/77fb016/2147483647/strip/true/crop/398x300+0+0/resize/840x634!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fimages%2Fnews%2Fnpr%2F2021%2F02%2F969158350_1603576955.jpg)
The contest for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate is a real race now that the former chair of the Ohio Republican Party and announced her candidacy. It鈥檚 shaping up to be a battle over which candidate can tie themselves more closely to former president Donald Trump.
Jane Timken launched her campaign with a highly produced video and , promoting her praise for Trump鈥檚 policies and connections to Trump 鈥� who won Ohio by eight points but lost the election.
Timken also blasts former Republican Gov. John Kasich, who earned the scorn of many Ohioans in his party for his criticism of Trump. Timken Matt Borges after Trump won in 2016.
Those criticizing Timken include her likely opponent, former state treasurer , who tweeted out an old photo of Timken and Kasich in a happy embrace.
On her campaign website, bashed former Gov John Kasich (she took over the Ohio GOP after ousting Kasich鈥檚 handpicked chair Matt Borges). - who went w Marco Rubio and then Trump in 2016 as other Republicans were supporting Kasich - tweeted out this pic:
— Karen Kasler (@karenkasler)
Mandel said through a spokesman that he 鈥渋s the only unabashedly pro-Trump candidate in this race.鈥�
Mandel also claimed Timken "flip-flopped" on Trump鈥檚 impeachment, which he called a "sham" and "unconstitutional." Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who Mandel and Timken want to replace, used that argument last weekend.
Timken also called the impeachment a sham in a tweet earlier this month.
This second sham impeachment is not based in reason or the law 鈥� it's about one thing and one thing only, trying to tarnish the great record and legacy of President Trump.
— Jane Timken (@JaneTimkenOH)
She also spoke out against U.S. Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, the only Ohio Republican to vote to impeach Trump.
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