CINCINNATI (AP) - Former Ohio secretary of state and pro-Donald Trump conservative Ken Blackwell is supporting Republican Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor's bid for governor.

Blackwell calls Taylor and her running mate, Nathan Estruth, part of a "new generation of strong conservative leaders." Estruth was a longtime executive for Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble Co.

Blackwell is a former Cincinnati mayor who served on Trump's presidential transition team after the 2016 election. He was the unsuccessful GOP nominee for governor in 2006.

After changes this month in the 2018 field of candidates for governor, the Taylor-Estruth ticket faces GOP Attorney General Mike DeWine and running mate Jon Husted (HYOO'-sted) on the Republican side. Five Democrats are vying for their party's nomination for governor.

Second-term Republican Gov. John Kasich (KAY'-sik) is term-limited.

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