Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy received early endorsements from President Donald Trump and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk shortly after his Monday announcement, receiving key support an Ohio political pundit recently said would prove pivotal in the primary contest.
Trump endorsed Ramaswamy in a Monday night post to Truth Social, where he described the former businessman and presidential candidate as “Young, Strong, and Smart!”
“I know him well, competed against him, and he is something SPECIAL,” wrote Trump. “He will be a GREAT Governor of Ohio, will never let you down, and has my COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT!”
The president’s post followed the prediction from Tom Zawistowski, the president of the Ohio-based We the People Convention, that Trump’s endorsement would prove pivotal as Ramaswamy seeks to edge out Attorney General Dave Yost for the Republican nomination.
“We did see Attorney General Dave Yost announce, he’s basically saying, ‘Hey, Vivek never has been elected to anything. He finished fourth in the presidential race. I’ve been elected to all kinds of offices, so I think people will elect me.’ The problem with that is, it looks very clear that not only does Vivek have JD Vance’s endorsement, but that he has President Trump’s endorsement,” said Zawistowski during a January appearance on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show.
Zawistowski told Michael Patrick Leahy, the editor-in-chief of The Ohio Star, “It’s really simple here in Ohio: if Trump endorses you, you’re going to win,” before noting that Ramaswamy would additionally have the benefit of boasting the net worth necessary to self-fund his campaign.
Sharing a clip from Ramaswamy’s announcement speech in a post to the social media platform X, Musk similarly wrote, “Good luck, you have my full endorsement!”
Good luck, you have my full endorsement! https://t.co/HfuiunGLs4
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 25, 2025
That endorsement followed Ramaswamy’s departure from DOGE, sparking reports of conflict between the men, though Ramaswamy said that he planned to leave DOGE to run to become Ohio’s next governor in a January podcast appearance.
Prior to announcing his candidacy, Ramaswamy also received support from a number of national figures, including U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Mike Lee (R-UT), who announced their endorsements after an internal poll showed the former member of the Trump administration with a 30-point lead over Yost.
Ramaswamy also formally received the endorsement of Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague, who departed the gubernatorial race earlier this month, and will instead run to become Ohio’s next Secretary of State.
“Should he enter the race for governor, I am going to support Vivek and his run for governor because I support his intellect, his drive, [and] outsider mentality to reform our state,” said Yost when announcing his departure from the race for governor.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose also endorsed Ramaswamy on Monday, when he both appeared with Ramaswamy for a rally. He wrote in a post to X that he is “proud to endorse our next Ohio Governor.”
Governor Mike DeWine has yet to make an endorsement, but last year broke with Trump to endorse Matt Dolan for U.S. Senate over Bernie Moreno, who went on to win the three-way primary contest, then the general election by more than 200,000 votes.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
