Ohio conservative groups are voicing their support for the possible presidential bid of Butler County native Vivek Ramaswamy.
Monday, Ramaswamy confirmed with The Ohio Star that he is considering a run for president in 2024.
“Yes, I am strongly considering it. If you ask most people in my generation what it means to be an American, you get a blank stare in response. I’m on a mission to deliver an answer to that question. We need to revive the basic ideas that set this nation into motion nearly 250 years ago,” Ramaswamy told The Star.
Ramaswamy, a Republican who decided not to run for an open U.S. Senate seat in 2022, was thought of as a possible opponent for Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH)’s re-election bid in 2024.
However, he has bigger goals in mind. Ramaswamy has reportedly created a campaign staff and arranged stops in Iowa and New Hampshire, the early-voting states.
According to spokesman Tricia McLaughlin, Ramaswamy plans to return to New Hampshire and Iowa on back-to-back days next week.
Ramaswamy has never before sought public office. But he is putting together a campaign team of accomplished political skill. McLaughlin previously worked as the reelection campaign spokesman for Ohio Governor Mike DeWine last year. If Ramaswamy decides to run for office in the future, he has also engaged Ohio’s well-known Republican political consulting firm Strategy Group for Media to manage his campaign.
Ohio Parents Right in Education Director Lisa Breedlove Chaffee applauded Ramaswamy’s possible presidential run. Chaffee told The Ohio Star that he will be a great asset for the nation.
“I think that is a great idea. I have met him and I think his business acumen combined with his core values will be an incredible asset to our country,” Chaffee told The Star.
Ohio Republican Council of Clubs President Shawn Parker echoed Chaffee and told The Star that Ramaswamy is a good conservative who can help get America back on track.
“Vivek is a solid free market conservative with a deep sense of core values. Washington is in desperate of these values and Ohio is overdue for a son or daughter to return the country to its path of leadership. We have many good choices from our state to America back on track and Vivek is one of those choices,” Parker told The Star.
37-year-old Ramaswamy is the son of Indian immigrants. He graduated from St. Xavier High School and then continued to Harvard and Yale. He established a pharmaceutical research company Roivant Sciences, and an investment firm that aims to convince businesses to put business before politics Strive Asset Management. The company has received support from Peter Thiel, the conservative Silicon Valley billionaire, and JD Vance, a former investment manager who was elected to the U.S. Senate in November as a Republican. Ramaswamy and his family are currently residents of Columbus.
Ramaswamy became well-known on the national arena after the release of his book “Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam,” which challenges the “modern woke-industrial complex” in business and economics.
He has also been challenging the current ESG movement, which refers to how environmental, social, and governance factors affect corporate operations and investment decisions. ESG principles have become increasingly common in determining whether a company deserves investment capital. Ramaswamy said that politics should stay out of the market.
If Ramaswamy decides to run for president, he’ll likely have a tough fight on his hands.
Former President Donald Trump has already declared his intention to compete for reelection, and other well-known contenders, such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, are anticipated to enter the race.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Vivek Ramaswamy” by Vivek Ramaswamy. Background Photo “White House” by AgnosticPreachersKid. CC BY-SA 3.0.
