Ohio Republican Senate Candidate JD Vance speaks to supporters at a Save America Rally at the Covelli Centre on Sept. 17, 2022, in Youngstown, Ohio. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images/TNS)

Republican candidate JD Vance defeated U.S. Rep. and Democratic candidate Tim Ryan in Ohio’s senate race Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.

This will be Vance’s first elected position, previously gaining notoriety for authoring “Hillbilly Elegy,” serving in the U.S. Marines and working as a Silicon Valley investor. 

According to The Lantern’s 2022 Ballot Guide, Vance believes that states should be able to make their own laws regarding abortion. Vance wants to cut back government spending, and he also wants to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. Vance supports nuclear power, and advocates for maintaining domestic electric car production. 

Vance is pro-gay marriage, according to the ballot guide. However, he is against legislation that would increase the ability to sue religious organizations that do not follow federal marriage laws. Vance advocates for completion of the border wall, and he is completely against illegal immigration. 

Ryan would have flipped the seat previously held by Republican Sen. Robert Portman, who decided to not run again. According to the ballot guide, Ryan supports codifying Roe v. Wade into law via the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would create legal protection for the right to provide and get abortions. Ryan supports raising Ohio’s minimum wage to $15 by 2025, and he also supports modernizing Ohio’s electrical grid and investing in clean energy. 

According to the ballot guide, Ryan has supported numerous pieces of LGBTQ+ legislation — including legislation to ban conversion therapy, or interventions made to alter “same-sex attractions or an individual’s gender expression” in hopes of promoting heterosexuality. Ryan also advocates for increasing funding for border control. 

Ryan has served as the representative of Ohio’s 13th District in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2013, after representing the 17th District since 2003. 

Vance will take office alongside Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) Jan. 3, 2023.

Elections in the U.S. have been officially called by AP for over 170 years. AP has a 99.9 percent accuracy rate.