CLEVELAND — Vivek Ramaswamy has sent Vice President J.D. Vance’s top political adviser to guide his upcoming run for Ohio governor, a person involved in the planning told NBC News. .
The person, who was granted anonymity to share details of private discussions, said the hiring was based on conversations between Vance and Ramaswamy over the past two weeks.
The hire also shows that Vance’s team, which overlaps in part with President Donald Trump’s, fully supports Ramaswamy, and that Vance himself is willing to lend his advisory resources to Ramaswamy. are. Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur who has known Vance since his days at Yale Law School, parted ways with the new Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) last week, just as the federal spending oversight project was getting off the ground. .
“Vivek is expected to announce his candidacy in mid-February,” the source said.
For Vance, this was an early display of political talent, helping him and Ramaswamy’s home state of Ohio to first become senators and, more recently, vice president.
Andy Slavian and Jay Chhabria, who played leading roles in the strategy of those two campaigns, will join Ramaswamy’s efforts.
Chabria, a longtime Republican in Ohio, will serve as a general consultant for the campaign. Mr. Surabian, a veteran of Mr. Trump’s early campaigns who advised Sen. Bernie Moreno’s successful campaign in Ohio last year and is a senior political adviser to Donald Trump Jr., has worked closely with Mr. Ramaswamy. He will oversee the external political organizations he works with.
Tony Fabrizio, a pollster for Mr. Vance who is running for the Senate in 2022 and has been involved in Mr. Trump’s campaign, and Arthur Schwartz, a close ally of Mr. Vance and Mr. Trump Jr., will also participate. Ramaswamy’s team will also include veterans of the 2024 presidential high command. Performed by: Ben Yoho, Michael Biand, Chris Grant.
Some of those advisers will staff the campaign, while others will work with Slavian at affiliated outside organizations, according to people involved in the plan.
Ramaswamy is preparing for a crowded and competitive 2026 primary to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Mike DeWine.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination last week, hiring Trump campaign veteran Justin Clark as general counsel. Another Republican, state Treasurer Robert Sprague, said he plans to enter the race soon.
Although Mr. Ramaswamy has cultivated a national profile and ties to Mr. Trump, his name only appeared on Ohio’s ballots in the March primary of last year, when he was no longer a presidential candidate. Ta. His brief work on the DOGE project placed him alongside Elon Musk, the billionaire Tesla CEO and owner of Company X who became Trump’s top advisor.
“He intends to leave on good terms with Trump, Elon and the team,” a person familiar with Ramaswamy’s thinking told NBC News on Inauguration Day, when Ramaswamy’s resignation became public. .
