MILWAUKEE – Sen. JD Vance’s nomination as Donald Trump’s running mate on Monday will leave a vacancy in the US Senate – if the former president wins in November – that Republicans want to see a “conservative” fill.
“I hope we find a strong fiscal conservative, that’s what we need,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), a three-term member of the upper chamber, told The Post on Tuesday when asked who should replace the GOP vice presidential nominee in the Senate.
Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine would be tasked with the Senate appointment should the “Hillbilly Elegy” author wind up in the White House.
The moderate Republican governor told reporters on Monday that he’s already thought about that kind of person he’d like to tap for the seat.
“You want someone who can win,” the Buckeye State governor said. “You want someone who would be a good US senator. Those are the basic criteria.”
One option is Ohio State Sen. Matt Dolan, who is believed by some insiders to be the front-runner for the gig.
DeWine would be “keen” to nominate a lawmaker in his own mold, such as Dolan, two GOP insiders told The Post.
“They’re supporters of strong, robust American foreign policy,” one source said — including support for NATO — noting DeWine’s endorsement of Dolan during the 2022 Senate Republican primary race.
Biotech entrepreneur and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, a Cincinnati native who currently lives in Columbus, has been floated as one possible option.
Ramaswamy, 38, has told reporters that he is indeed interested in the Senate seat, should it open up.
Whereas the pair were both “from the same wing of the Republican Party,” Jane Timken, an RNC national committeewoman who ran against Vance in the 2022 primary, would be seen more as a “bridge” between the MAGA and establishment, the source added.
Dolan spokesman Chris Maloney divulged that the state senator had “been fielding calls of support from across Ohio” — but that he and DeWine were more focused on a “strong Republican” showing in November.
Another source said DeWine was just piqued by all the “public jockeying” for Vance’s potential vacancy.
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday said she thought the next Ohio Senator would need to be someone with similar politics to Vance.
“I think they have to find somebody who can be as strong as a conservative as [Vance] has been,” the former Trump White House press secretary added. “But that’s a question for the state of Ohio.”
But Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) told The Post that it’s “way too early” to discuss replacement options with Election Day still 111 days out.
If Vance, 39, is sworn in as vice president in January, DeWine’s appointment would replace him until a special election is held in November 2026.
The winner of that contest would serve out the remainder of Vance’s term, which ends in 2028.