Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose campaigns across the Valley

Ohio's Secretary of State, Frank Larose, announced his candidacy for U.S. senate in July, now he's making his way around the state to campaign.

21 News reporter Leslie Huff caught up with LaRose to talk about the state of the race and whether his hard right turn could hurt him with voters around the state. He is one of three republicans running to unseat democratic senator Sherrod Brown in 2024.  

In a field that includes State Senator Matt Dolan seeking to appeal to moderates and traditional conservatives and Cleveland-area car dealer Bernie Moreno seeking to garner favor with Donald Trump and his voters, LaRose still believes he can stand out.

"I'm the leader in the republican primary for the U.S. senate and it is because Ohioans know me," LaRose said.

LaRose, who was once seen as a moderate, has taken a sharp turn to the right, openly seeking to align himself with the former President. 21 News asked LaRose if, as the state's chief election official, he has any reservations about that support, given Trump's repeated lies claiming the 2020 election was stolen despite repeated investigations finding otherwise. However, he dismissed that concern, only saying that Ohio's elections are safe and secure.

Another area of potential concern among voters could be LaRose's highly-visible campaign to make it harder for citizens to pass constitutional amendments in Ohio, a measure that failed by nearly 60% and was rejected by voters across both parties. LaRose said he doesn't regret the effort and he still believes in it and points to current ballot measures as a reason.

"We see an effort right now to get rid of qualified immunity that protects our police officers. It would make it essentially impossible for anyone to go in to the profession of law enforcement. That's an effort that is underway right now." LaRose said.

21 News asked him about concerns raised over him moving his official state office to the same building as his campaign headquarters. LaRose dismissed the concern and said it's just a coincidence that the law firm his campaign uses is in the same building, but did not give a reason for moving the state office.