- Rumpled and unvarnished â with a fondness for sweatshirts, less so for ties â Mr. Brown would in some ways seem uniquely positioned in a party hoping to win back the Midwestern states that flipped to Mr. Trump. Throughout his political career, he has championed populist platitudes like the âdignity of workâ that have resonated with working-class voters in all corners of Ohio while also supporting liberal social causes like womenâs reproductive rights and L.G.B.T.Q. rights.
- Though he disagrees with Mr. Trump on nearly every policy issue, he is aligned with him on trade, opposing the North American Free Trade Agreement long before the president made that a central part of his own campaign.
- Perhaps more important, Mr. Brown projects a grizzled authenticity that endears his brand of progressivism to even some conservative voters. He talks about how his suits are made just miles from his home in Cleveland and cites scripture at rallies. He wears on his lapel a canary pin that a steelworker gave him years ago and has an enduring passion for the Cleveland Indians. His dog, Franklin, appears frequently on social media and had a starring role in one of the senatorâs campaign ads.