Columbus, OH — The Ohio Republican Senate primary is one of the most expensive races in the country. The crowded primary is “unprecedented,” “expected to break records,” and “one of the costliest elections in America.”

An expensive primary with five well-funded candidates could mean a long, protracted primary fight that forces candidates to extreme positions and hobbles the eventual Republican nominee. Without any records to be proud of, the out-of-touch millionaires have already descended into personal and nasty attacks that will spotlight each of the candidates’ individual weaknesses that could carry over into the general election.

Here’s what they’re saying:

  • Review Times: “With campaign spending in the race for Ohio’s open U.S. Senate seat in 2022 expected to break records, Ohioans should brace for a bombardment of political advertising — and soon.”
  • Fox News: “The showdown is fast becoming the most expensive and ugly GOP Senate contest in next year’s midterms.”
  • Wall Street Journal: “Each has the means to assemble a fully loaded war chest for the primary battle. In interviews, all five said they expected to raise—from individual contributions or their own bank accounts—the $10 million that political operatives estimate a successful primary contest would cost…That would give them all the ability to pitch to the two million Republican voters in the state’s 12 media markets. A primary with so many well-funded candidates would be unprecedented, political operatives said.”
  • Cleveland.com: “Thanks to a rare mix of factors – an open seat, several independently wealthy candidates funding their campaigns and one billionaire super donor — Ohio’s Republican U.S. Senate primary stands out as one of the costliest elections in America.”
  • NBC News: “Nearly all of the ad spending has been on the Republican side, thanks to a crowded Republican primary to replace Portman.”
  • Axios: “The race is expected to be one of the most expensive in the country, during a midterm cycle that will likely break election spending records.”
  • Roll Call: “The open Senate race in Ohio has attracted the most self-funders so far, with five Republicans putting in their own money to bolster their campaigns.”

Politico: “Former President Donald Trump has yet to issue an endorsement in the race, which has featured messy attacks and high-dollar outside super PAC spending.”