Senator Jon Husted Testifies in ex-FirstEnergy Executives' Corruption Trial

Republican U.S. Senator Jon Husted testified Wednesday that he was present at a 2018 dinner with Ohio’s then-Governor-elect Mike DeWine and two former FirstEnergy Corp. executives who are accused of bribing a top utility regulator, whom DeWine appointed shortly thereafter.

But Husted, who testified remotely, said he recalled little of what was discussed that night and that he was not aware that former CEO Chuck Jones and former lobbyist Michael Dowling planned to meet with DeWine's ultimate choice to lead the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), Sam Randazzo, right afterward. Husted said Randazzo was not FirstEnergy's preferred candidate for the job.

Neither DeWine nor Husted has been accused of wrongdoing. Husted's testimony in the high-profile corruption trial comes as he faces a hot-button retention bid this fall to keep the Senate seat to which he was appointed last year as a successor to JD Vance. He is expected to face Democrat Sherrod Brown, a three-term former senator who lost a reelection bid in 2024.

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