Buckeye Reporter

Ohio Gubernatorial candidate Jim Renacci along with his running mate, Joe Knopp, are among the first Republicans to formally make the state's Republican gubernatorial primary ballot. The candidates are pleased to be on the ballot officially. 

This was officially revealed in a press release on February 17. 

"This is the first big step to bring conservative, pro-Trump leadership back to Ohio, and the only way to keep a Republican in the governor's office," Renacci said in a press release. 

Renacci's running mate Joe Knopp also commented on the significance of the campaign.

"We are the only candidates who can beat the Democrats in November," Knopp said in a press release. "DeWine will lose and crumble under the liberals, and Ohio will pay the price."

Recacci was also pleased to receive official certification of their candidacy for governor and lieutenant governor. 

"On February 16, 2022, the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office issued Directive 2022-24 certifying statewide candidates to the May 3, 2022 Primary Election ballot," Renacci said in a press release. "County boards of elections will place the names 'Jim Renacci' and 'Joe Knopp' as candidates for the Republican Party nomination for Governor and Lieutenant Governor, respectively." 

The target number for their qualification on the ballot for the gubernatorial election was nearly 3,000 signatures. The goal of Renacci's campaign is to make Ohio a more conservative state, according to a press release. 

DeWine, 74, was handpicked for former governor John Kasich to succeed him. He has held elected office in Ohio for more than four decades, serving in the Ohio Senate, as a U.S. Representative, a U.S. Senator, as Ohio Attorney General and as Ohio Lieutenant governor. 

Renacci is a businessman and former U.S. representative for the 16th congressional district running against DeWine, a fellow Republican, in the 2022 GOP gubernatorial primary May 3.