The Ohio Republican Party has voted to endorse Vivek Ramaswamy for governor, following President Donald Trump’s endorsement.

At its central committee meeting, the party voted for Ramaswamy over state Attorney General Dave Yost and announced the results in an endorsement social media post on Friday.

“INTRODUCING: Ohio’s Endorsed Candidate for Governor,” the Ohio GOP wrote in the post, along with a photo of Ramaswamy.

INTRODUCING: Ohio’s Endorsed Candidate for Governor.@VivekGRamaswamy | @ohiogop pic.twitter.com/GcEdyCdhAK

— Ohio Republican Party (@ohiogop) May 9, 2025

President Trump endorsed Ramaswamy for governor in February.

In a post to Truth Social on February 24, Trump wrote:

VIVEK RAMASWAMY is running for Governor of the Great State of Ohio. I know him well, competed against him, and he is something SPECIAL. He’s Young, Strong, and Smart! Vivek is also a very good person, who truly loves our Country. He will be a GREAT Governor of Ohio, will never let you down, and has my COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT!

Ramaswamy left his role as co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) shortly after Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, reportedly to pursue his gubernatorial campaign. It came shortly after he made controversial comments on X about American culture and his support for H-1B visas for foreign tech workers, which sparked extreme backlash among Trump supporters.

He wrote, “The reality is we have a culture in this country that often celebrates mediocrity over excellence… We celebrate the prom queen and the quarterback and the class clown far more than we celebrate the kid who’s in the library or the garage obsessing over math, or science, or computer code.” He claimed this cultural tendency produced a “national shortage of talent” in fields like engineering and technology, and therefore argued H-1B visas are needed to bring in skilled foreign workers.