Sherrod Brown tries to be comeback kid in Ohio after voters last year kicked him out of U.S. Senate

Former Sen. Sherrod Brown officially kicked off his bid to return to the U.S. Senate on Monday, saying President Trump has sold out Ohio workers.

After losing his reelection battle last year, Mr. Brown, who logged 18 years in the Senate before voters tossed him out, said that after watching eight months of Mr. Trump’s second term, he cannot stay on the sidelines.

“I didn’t plan to run for office again, but when I see what is going on, I know I can do something about it for Ohio,” Mr. Brown said from a factory warehouse in his launch video.

Mr. Brown, 72, is running against GOP Sen. Jon Husted, the 57-year-old former Ohio lieutenant governor. Gov. Mike Dewine, a Republican, picked Mr. Husted to fill out the remainder of the Senate term vacated by J.D. Vance to become vice president.

Alex Latcham, head of the Senate Leadership Fund, which backs GOP incumbents, said Mr. Brown is still far too liberal for the state.

“Ohioans gladly sent him packing last year, and they’ll not hesitate to toss him aside again,” Mr. Latchman said.

Still, Mr. Brown gives Democrats a fighting chance in Ohio.

For years, Ohio was a swing state and national political bellwether before Mr. Trump helped turn it into a Republican stronghold.

As the last statewide Democratic officeholder, Mr. Brown learned that lesson in the fall election when Sen. Bernie Moreno, with the blessing of Mr. Trump, defeated him by more than 3 points last fall.

Known for his gravelly voice and his laser focus on workers hurt by international trade and a changing economy, Mr. Brown is returning with a familiar message.

“Standing up for workers. Treating everyone with dignity and respect. Working as hard as possible for the people of Ohio,” Mr.  Brown said in the video. “I’ve tried to live my life by those principles. But these days that’s not what’s happening in Washington—so I’m running for Senate.”

“For the past eight months, all they have done is made things worse for Ohioans, handing over your hard money to corporations and billionaires,” he said. 

Mr. Brown said the Trump administration is hurting small businesses with tariffs. He said Mr. Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill Act is saddling Ohioans with higher drug prices and will strip health care coverage from hundreds of thousands of them.

“And they have increased the deficit by more than $3 trillion,” he said.

Lauren French, spokesperson for the Senate Majority PAC, the campaign arm for Senate Democrats, celebrated Mr. Brown’s entry in the race.

“He is exactly the type of fighter Ohioans need at a time when families are struggling with the higher prices and cuts to critical health care programs championed by Senate Republicans and Jon Husted,” Ms. French said.