Donald Trump Coming To Ohio For Special Election

NEWARK, OH — President Donald Trump will appear in Central Ohio on Saturday in an attempt to sway special election voters toward Troy Balderson, a Republican candidate for the House of Representatives. Balderson finds himself embroiled in a tooth-and-nail fight for a vacant seat.

Longtime District 12 representative, Republican Pat Tiberi, resigned in the fall. His district has traditionally been a Republican stronghold in the middle of the state — but recent polls show a tightening gap between voters intending to vote Democrat and those holding Republican.

Balderson — currently a state representative — seemed destined to take over for Tiberi in Congress, but he's faced a stiff challenge from Franklin County Recorder Danny O’Connor, a Democrat. Apparently worried about the optics of another special election loss, after defeats in Pennsylvania and Alabama, Republicans have been trotting out a lineup of heavy hitters to support Balderson.

That lineup is headed toward the heart of the order with Vice President Mike Pence stumping for Balderson on Monday and Trump planning a visit on Saturday. Politico notes that National Republicans have also poured in about $3.3 million in TV advertisements to boost Balderson's profile.

Plus, Trump has made use of his favorite social media platform to begin pushing a message of support for Balderson.

O'Connor has positioned himself as a moderate Democrat, distancing himself from, say, budding left star Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Instead, O'Connor has said he wouldn't support universal healthcare, or the dissolution of ICE, Politico said.

To his benefit, O'Connor has been able to out-fundraise his opponent, but that hasn't stopped National Republicans from dumping money into the election.

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Photo from Alex Costello, Patch