Bernie Moreno | |
---|---|
Born | Bernardo Moreno February 14, 1967 Bogotá, Colombia |
Education | University of Michigan |
Occupation | Businessman |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Bridget Moreno |
Children | 4 |
Relatives |
|
Website | Campaign website |
Bernardo Moreno (born February 14, 1967) is a Colombian-American businessman and political candidate. He is the Republican nominee in the 2024 United States Senate election in Ohio, challenging incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown.
Moreno was born in Bogotá, Colombia. His father, Bernardo Moreno Sr., was a physician and held high-ranking positions in the Colombian government. When Moreno was five, the family moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he was raised. [1] His father worked as a surgical assistant, and his mother was a real estate agent. Moreno became a US citizen at age 18. [2]
He attended the University of Michigan, graduating with a degree in business administration. [3]
After college, Moreno worked at General Motors. [4] At 26, he moved to Boston [5] to become the general manager at a car dealership for the General Motors division Saturn. [6]
Moreno is the president of the Collection Auto Group, a car dealership company. [7] He relocated to Ohio in 2005 and bought a Mercedes-Benz dealership in North Olmsted. [8] [9] [10] In 2019, he began to sell a number of his dealerships to focus on his new blockchain-based technology company, Ownum. [11]
Moreno was appointed to the board of trustees for the MetroHealth System in October 2019. [12]
In 2023, Moreno settled over a dozen wage theft lawsuits prior to launching his U.S. Senate campaign. He was ordered to pay over $400,000 to two former employees. He was rebuked by a state judge for shredding documents potentially related to the case. [13]
A 2024 report found that Moreno had faced two lawsuits alleging gender and age-based discrimination; Moreno's campaign responded by saying both employees who sued him now support his Senate campaign. [14]
In April 2021, Moreno entered the race for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate to replace the retiring incumbent Rob Portman. [15] On February 3, 2022, Moreno dropped out of the race after reportedly meeting with former President Donald Trump. [16]
On April 10, 2023, Moreno filed paperwork to run for Ohio's Class I seat in the U.S. Senate up for election in 2024. [17] Donald Trump endorsed Moreno in December 2023. [18] Moreno won the Republican primary on March 19, 2024, defeating Matt Dolan and Frank LaRose. [19]
In the run-up to the Republican primary in March 2024, an Associated Press report found that an account on adult website Adult FriendFinder had been created by someone with access to Moreno's email, soliciting "men for 1-on-1 sex". [20] In a statement provided to the Associated Press by Moreno's lawyer, a former intern said he wrote the post and described it as an "aborted prank". [21]
Moreno opposes abortion, describing himself as "Absolute pro-life. No exceptions." [22] He has also expressed support for exceptions for rape, incest and when the mother's life is in danger. [23] He supports a federal 15-week ban on abortions. [24] Moreno has argued against federal funding of Planned Parenthood. He supports access to contraception. [25] [26]
Before his Senate campaign, he expressed support for the LGBT community, with his business sponsoring Cleveland and Akron's hosting of 2014 Gay Games. In a 2016 interview, Moreno credited the TV series Modern Family as having changed perceptions on gay marriage, noting that his eldest son was gay. During his 2024 Senate run, he accused LGBT activists of advancing a radical agenda of indoctrination. [27]
Moreno has said energy is a top priority, expressing support for using coal, and oil, extracting natural gas, as well as building more nuclear plants. [28]
On immigration, Moreno has expressed support for building a wall on the United States Southern Border, deploying military personnel on the border, and designating Mexican cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). Moreno has also repeatedly called for an end to birthright citizenship. [29] [30] In 2016, he expressed support for a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, saying "we need to help them come out of the shadows", [31] but now supports deporting them. [32]
Moreno has called for an end to U.S. support for Ukraine in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War. He has expressed support for Israel and has said Israel needs to "end Hamas — end it like we ended ISIS." After the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Moreno argued Israel does not need any additional funding from the United States. [33]
Moreno in 2016 described Trump as a "lunatic invading [the Republican Party]" and said he could not support a Republican Party led by "that maniac". [34] He wrote in a tweet that he had written in a vote for Marco Rubio in the 2016 presidential election. [35] During a 2019 radio interview said, "there's no scenario in which I would support Trump." In 2024 Moreno said, "I wear with honor my endorsement from President Trump." [36]
After the 2020 presidential election, Moreno criticized those denying the results of the election, but in 2021 expressed his belief that the election had been "stolen". [35]
Moreno previously expressed support for background checks for gun owners and in a 2019 interview said "What gun do you need with 100 bullets in it?" When asked about these remarks, a spokesperson for his campaign said in 2024 it was "unequivocally" not his position today. [32]
In 2023, Moreno said that reparations should be paid to the descendants of Civil War soldiers who helped to free slaves. [37]
Moreno and his wife, Bridget, live Westlake, Ohio, as of 2024 [update] . The couple has four adult children. [38] His daughter Emily is married to congressman Max Miller. [39]
His brother, Luis Alberto Moreno, is a former Colombian Ambassador to the United States. [2]
Dennis John Kucinich is an American politician. Originally a Democrat, Kucinich served as U.S. Representative from Ohio's 10th congressional district from 1997 to 2013. From 1977 to 1979, he served a term as mayor of Cleveland, where he narrowly survived a recall election and successfully fought an effort to sell the municipal electric utility before losing his reelection contest to George Voinovich.
John Richard Kasich Jr. is an American politician and author who was the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, and a Republican candidate for the presidential nomination in 2000 and 2016.
Robert Jones Portman is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Portman was the 35th director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from 2006 to 2007, the 14th United States trade representative from 2005 to 2006, and a U.S. representative from 1993 to 2005, representing Ohio's 2nd district.
Sherrod Campbell Brown is an American politician who is the senior United States senator from Ohio, a seat which he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative for Ohio's 13th congressional district from 1993 to 2007 and the 47th secretary of state of Ohio from 1983 to 1991. He started his political career in 1975 as a state representative.
Joshua Aaron Mandel is an American far-right politician who served as the 48th treasurer of Ohio from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the Ohio State Representative for the 17th district from 2007 to 2011. He was the unsuccessful Republican challenger to Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown in the 2012 U.S. Senate election.
James B. Renacci is an American accountant, businessman, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Ohio's 16th congressional district from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he is a former city council president and two-term Mayor of Wadsworth, Ohio. In 2018, Renacci was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate, losing to Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown by a 7-point margin. He also ran unsuccessfully in the 2022 Republican primary for governor of Ohio, losing to incumbent Mike DeWine. Renacci currently serves as the chairman of the Republican Party of Medina County.
Matthew John Dolan is an American politician and lawyer who is a member of the Ohio Senate from the 24th district, since 2017. He previously was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from 2005 to 2010.
Edward Scott Rigell is an American businessman and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Virginia's 2nd congressional district from 2011 to 2017. He declined to run for re-election in 2016, and he left office in January 2017.
Thomas D. Ganley was an American businessman and politician who was an unsuccessful Republican congressional candidate.
Frank LaRose is an American politician who has served as the 51st Secretary of State of Ohio since January 2019. He was a Republican member of the Ohio State Senate for two terms, from January 2011 to January 2019. He was a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in the 2024 election, challenging incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown. He lost to Bernie Moreno in the primary.
The 2016 Republican National Convention, in which delegates of the United States Republican Party chose the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, was held July 18–21, 2016, at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. The event marked the third time Cleveland has hosted the Republican National Convention and the first since 1936. In addition to determining the party's national ticket, the convention ratified the party platform.
Blake Gates Masters is an American venture capitalist and political candidate. Frequently referred to as a protégé of businessman Peter Thiel, Masters co-wrote Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future with Thiel in 2014, based on notes Masters had taken at Stanford Law School in 2012. He was later chief operating officer of Thiel's investment firm, Thiel Capital, and also president of the Thiel Foundation.
The 2018 United States Senate election in Ohio took place November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was February 7, 2018; the primary election was held May 8, 2018. Incumbent Senator Sherrod Brown—the only remaining elected Democratic statewide officeholder in Ohio at the time of the election—won his reelection bid for a third term, defeating Republican U.S. Representative Jim Renacci in the general election. This was one of ten Democratic-held Senate seats up for election in a state won by Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.
The 2024 United States elections are scheduled to be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. During this presidential election year, the president and vice president will be elected. In addition, all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate will be contested to determine the membership of the 119th United States Congress. Thirteen state and territorial governorships and numerous other state and local elections will also be contested.
James David Vance is an American venture capitalist, author, and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Ohio since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he came to prominence with his 2016 memoir, Hillbilly Elegy.
The 2024 United States Senate election in Ohio will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Ohio. Primary elections took place on March 19, 2024. Incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown is seeking a fourth term in office, while the Republican Party nominated former car dealer Bernie Moreno. This race is one of two 2024 U.S. Senate races in which Democratic senators are seeking re-election in states where Republican Donald Trump won both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. Brown's re-election is considered essential for Democrats' chances to retain the Senate majority in 2024.
The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Ohio were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the 15 U.S. representatives from Ohio, one from each of the state's 15 congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, other elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. Primary elections took place on May 3.
The 2022 United States Senate election in Ohio was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Ohio. Republican writer and venture capitalist J. D. Vance defeated Democratic U.S. Representative Tim Ryan to succeed retiring incumbent Republican Rob Portman.
Max Leonard Miller is an American Republican politician and former aide to Donald Trump. A member of the U.S. House of Representatives, he has been the U.S. representative for Ohio's 7th congressional district since 2023.
The 2024 Ohio Republican presidential primary was held on March 19, 2024, as part of the Republican Party primaries for the 2024 presidential election. 79 delegates to the 2024 Republican National Convention were allocated on a winner-take-all basis. The contest was held alongside primaries in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, and Kansas.