Ohio GOP may censure own for supporting Trump impeachment

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Republican Party is set to decide Friday whether to censure the 10 GOP congressional members who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump in February.

The decision will be made by the State Central Committee.

Seven of the 10 representatives who supported Trump’s impeachment have already been censured or rebuked by local or state parties, while efforts against two others failed. That leaves Ohio Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, of Cleveland, as the last who has not yet faced action.

The party has not commented on why they are choosing to consider censure of all 10 of the Republicans who voted to impeach, as opposed to only Gonzalez.

Former Republican Chair Jane Timken faces criticism from rivals in the GOP primary for U.S. Senate for initially defending and not rebuking Gonzalez. Timken has since called for his resignation and touted her loyalty to Trump.

Gonzalez, a former college and professional football player from Cleveland, has stood by his decision in favor of impeachment in the face of fierce pushback from his party’s conservative wing.

Trump has endorsed a primary challenger to Gonzalez. The rival, Max Miller, is a veteran of the Trump White House and of the former president’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns.