Alex Wong/Getty Images Pence heading to Ohio for latest special election scare

Vice President Mike Pence is heading to Ohio on Friday to throw his support behind a Republican candidate in a critical upcoming special election contest.

Pence is slated to host a fundraiser for state Sen. Troy Balderson, who’s competing in an Aug. 7 special election in a district President Donald Trump won by 11 points in 2016, according to a person familiar with the vice president’s plans. The seat was recently vacated by former GOP Rep. Pat Tiberi.


The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with GOP House leadership, also started airing TV ads boosting Balderson in the district last week. The group spent $250,000 on the spots, which focused on tax cuts and the opioid crisis. CLF is also opening a field office in the district, aiming to knock on 500,000 doors before Election Day.

A Monmouth University poll out Monday showed Balderson with a 10-point lead among reigstered voters, which narrowed slightly under different likely-voter models.

Pence has been traveling around the country on behalf of the party ahead of a tough midterm election. On Wednesday, Pence will appear at a fundraiser at the Trump Hotel in Washington benefiting Protect the House, a committee he has set up with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. On Friday, he will host an event for Michigan gubernatorial hopeful Bill Schuette, who’s also received Trump’s endorsement.

Next week, Pence is scheduled to host events for two imperiled House Republicans, New York Rep. John Katko and Pennsylvania Rep. Keith Rothfus. He is also slated to appear at a Republican Governors Association function.

National Republicans are starting to engage in the contest in Ohio, fearful of another special election loss in a red seat. Balderson’s bid against Democrat Danny O’Connor presents another special election challenge for Republicans, still grappling with recent special election losses in Pennsylvania and Alabama, races deep in the heart of Trump country.

Like Rep. Conor Lamb (D-Pa.), O’Connor has positioned himself in contrast to the national Democratic Party, rejecting Nancy Pelosi’s leadership. O’Connor also led Balderson in cash on hand, ahead of the special election primary in May.

Balderson weathered a dramatically divided special election primary in May, which pit the two wings of the House Republican Conference against each other in an expensive showdown. Balderson, backed by mainstream Republicans, defeated Melanie Leneghan, a self-described Trump Republican endorsed by co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). In the final days of the primary, the Club for Growth, a conservative organization, attacked Balderson in TV ads.

