U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno will not appear at state Rep. Gary Click’s 2026 campaign kickoff after Click spent weeks promoting the freshman senator as his marquee guest, according to an updated event flyer posted by Click on Facebook.
On February 9, Click announced on Facebook that Moreno would headline his “official campaign kick off” on March 14. “I’m looking forward to having Senator Bernie Moreno join me for my official campaign kick off on March 14!” Click wrote. “He is an amazing senator who has established his leadership on day one and does fantastic work for the great state of Ohio.”
The event never took place on March 14. On March 21, Click posted an updated flyer for a rescheduled kickoff on March 28 at Octagon House in Clyde. Moreno’s name was absent from the flyer entirely.
In his place, Click’s updated guest list features three Ohio Statehouse figures: Ohio Treasurer and Secretary of State candidate Robert Sprague, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, and Ohio House Majority Whip Nick Santucci.
Neither Click’s campaign nor Moreno’s Senate office has publicly addressed the change.
A paid-entry fundraiser, not a public event
The updated flyer also reveals the event is not a public campaign rally. Attendees must pay to enter, with no free admission option. The minimum entry price is $50 per person. Higher-tier “host committee” levels are priced at $250 for “Patron,” $500 for “Host,” and $1,000 for “Chair.”
The flyer directs payments to the “Committee to Elect Gary Click” at 26 Paula Court, Fremont, Ohio 43420.
The paid-access structure is notable in a district where many voters are working-class. The median household income in Seneca County is $65,020, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data — about 17% below the national median.
Kickoff comes during a contested primary
Click has been aggressively promoting the campaign kickoff as he faces a competitive Republican primary against Eric Watson, a Tiffin entrepreneur who has attacked Click’s ties to corporate PACs and Columbus insiders. Watson has pointed to Click’s guest list as evidence that the three-term incumbent has “gone completely establishment.”
Campaign finance records show 65.6% of Click’s $312,985 in total fundraising since 2020 has come from corporate PACs and industry groups, while individual donors within the 88th District account for just 13.9% of his campaign war chest.
Click is also expected to face Democrat Aaron Jones, a U.S. Army veteran, factory supervisor, and Tiffin City Council member, in the November general election. Jones launched his campaign in January, framing his bid around working-class economic issues and contrasting his manufacturing background with Click’s Statehouse tenure.
The Republican primary in Ohio’s 88th House District is scheduled for May 5, 2026, with early in-person voting beginning April 7. The district covers all of Sandusky and Seneca counties.
