On Tuesday, the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, held their primary election to determine who would earn a spot on November's mayoral ballot.
The city's mayoral race is nonpartisan—no parties appear next to candidates' names on the primary or general election ballots. The top two vote getters in the primary, regardless of their party affiliation, vie for the office.
Tuesday's primary saw three people on the ballot:
- incumbent Democrat Aftab Pureval
- Republican Brian Frank
- Republican Cory Bowman
But only one candidate had an endorsement coming straight from the Trump administration.
Evangelical pastor and coffee shop owner Cory Bowman received the support of Vice President JD Vance midday on Tuesday. Bowman shares a father, Donald Bowman, with James Donald Bowman, a.k.a. James David Hamel, a.k.a. J.D. Hamel, a.k.a. J.D. Vance.
Vance posted on X:
"Hey Cincinnati! My brother Cory Bowman is running for mayor and is on the ballot today for the primary. He’s a good guy with a heart for serving his community. Get out there and vote for him!"
But Vance's endorsement failed to bear fruit—or votes.
Incumbent Democratic Mayor Pureval garnered 82.53% of the vote, compared to Bowman's 12.91% and Frank's 4.6%. Vance can now see what a real landslide victory looks like, having no personal experience with one himself.
MAGA Republican President Donald Trump and Vance won just 48% of the vote versus 42% for former Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
People were no more supportive of either Bowman brother on social media.
Not a good look, JD.
The two winners of the May 6 mayoral primary election will face off in the general election on November 4.
@omahajoe/Bluesky
@pattriottakes/X