POLITICO profiled Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) yesterday, the Democratic candidate for the state’s open Senate seat. The piece highlights his efforts to distance his campaign from the Democratic establishment and cast himself as a “prolabor Democrat,” centering his rhetoric on “unions and working class Americans.” Ryan has denounced demands to “defund the police,” for instance, while emphasizing his support for public safety and local police — even attempting to reframe the discourse on law enforcement violence in workers’ rights terms.

The contest in Ohio may prove decisive in determining partisan control of the Senate. Ryan presently maintains a narrow polling edge and considerable fundraising advantage over his Republican opponent, J.D. Vance. It will be interesting to see the extent to which his blue-collar aesthetic and worker-oriented messaging — a strategy long embraced by the state’s senior senator, Sherrod Brown (D-OH) — resonates with voters and help him defy political gravity in an increasingly conservative state.

Remaining in the Midwest for a moment, nearly 2,500 Boeing employees, represented by the Machinists, are set to strike next week at three plants in the St. Louis area. On Sunday the unit rejected a proposal that would have undermined their retirement benefits and, in doing so, authorized a strike. “We cannot accept a contract that is not fair and equitable, as this company continues to make billions of dollars each year off the backs of our hardworking members,” the union declared in a statement.

Lastly, in organizing news, 80 employees at Mom’s Organic Market, a grocery chain in the Washington, D.C. area, have voted to join the Teamsters.