U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) who has been in the Senate since 2007 and served his last term with Ohio Senator and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, lost his re-election campaign to the Donald Trump-endorsed GOP candidate Bernie Moreno in 2024.
Brown’s office reported that he will give the “final speech of this term” on trade, work and fentanyl, on Tuesday. Political pundits including Semafor congressional bureau chief Burgess Everett predicts it won’t be Brown’s last speech.
Everett wrote on X: “Don’t call it a farewell speech…yet.” He added: “There’s going to be a special election in ’26 for Vance’s seat and Brown hasn’t ruled it out.”
Don't call it a farewell speech … yet
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) December 16, 2024
Sen. Sherrod Brown will give the "final speech of this term" tomorrow on trade, work and fentanyl, his office says
(There's going to be a special election in '26 for Vance's seat and Brown hasn't ruled it out)
Democratic “political junkie” Timothy Bellman replied to Everett’s report: “Sherrod making a comeback in ‘26 could be cool, but it could also be time to pass the torch. I’m not sure what Ohio’s bench looks like, metaphorically speaking.”
In a MAGA-leaning political environment, Brown sliding into a seat exited by archly MAGA Vance might seem unlikely at first glance. But Brown actively courted Trump voters in the last election, even if he did not find quite enough “ticket splitters.”
And while Ohio looks red at present, the state historically tends to vote on pocketbook issues as much as on any culture war ideology. To wit, Barack Obama won Ohio twice.
If Brown does run and wins the special election in 2026, he will have to run again in 2028 for a full term. In 2028, Brown’s fellow Ohioan Vance will likely be at the top of the GOP presidential ticket.
Note: Prior to being elected a Senator in 2007, Brown was a U.S. Congressman (1993-2007), served as Ohio Secretary of State (1983-1991), and as a State Representative (1975-1983).
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