At his rally in Wellington, Ohio, former President Donald Trump took an informal, impromptu poll of the support for each declared U.S. Senate candidate running for the seat being vacated by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH).
As Trump listed the names of the four candidates, the attendees responded with various levels of cheers – and jeers – to demonstrate their support.
The crowd seemed to applaud candidates Mike Gibbons and Josh Mandel, while in sharp contrast, the boos that rang from the crowd highlight a level of dissatisfaction from many Trump allies with former Ohio GOP chairwoman Jane Timken.
“I think we’ll get out of this poll stuff, huh?” Trump replied.
He added, “I do love those polls, though. Those polls usually turn out to be very accurate.”
Over the past several months, Timken has found herself at odds with President Trump — even as she increasingly attempts to align herself with the former president on the campaign trail.
Criticism of Timken surfaced due to her close relationship with Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH-16), who Trump traveled to Ohio to campaign against and was one of 10 Republicans that voted to impeach Trump. After his vote, Timken said that Gonzalez had “a rational reason why he voted that way.”
Timken’s husband has also been a strong supporter of Gonzalez. He organized a fundraiser for him in a previous election cycle.
However, frustration with Timken among Trump allies has elevated in recent weeks. She angered individuals close to the former president when her campaign placed a picture of her and Trump together under the “Endorsements” section of her website. Seemingly, Timken was attempting to display an endorsement from Trump that she had not received yet.
Timken’s campaign quickly removed the picture after it gained widespread attention on social media.
Trump has not weighed in on the race at any level.
After Trump’s speech, he granted an exclusive interview to The Star News Network. In the interview, Trump said, “There’s no more important issue than the 2020 election.”
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Cooper Moran is a reporter for the Star News Network. Follow Cooper on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Jane Timken is an establishment Republican through and through. She has unwaveringly supported Governor DeWine, despite his abusive fake “pandemic” decrees and shutdowns. She threatened our elected representatives who opposed DeWine and his policies. Shocking behavior for a supposed conservative. Do not trust this woman.