Billionaire's political contributions make the Epstein files a focus of Ohio's US Senate race

Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's relationship to the rich and powerful has surfaced in congressional contests across the country COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Billionaire Les Wexner has long been a magnet for political campaigns seeking contributions — especially in his native Ohio, where the retail tycoon directed a generous portion of his giving to candidates from both parties. Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender, was Wexner’s former financial adviser.

That relationship and Wexner’s history of political donations has figured prominently in Ohio’s U.S. Senate race, which could end up as the most expensive in the country this year. Wexner, who has disavowed his prior association with Epstein, contributed about $116,000 to support Republican Sen.

Jon Husted from 2001 to 2025, mostly during the two decades he spent in state politics before being appointed to fill Vice President JD Vance’s seat last year. While that’s just a sliver of Husted’s prolific fundraising, his opponent in this year’s race, former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, is turning it into a campaign cudgel.

He’s run at least three different television commercials pounding Husted for receiving more money from Wexner than any other current member of Congress. Epstein’s Ohio connections are expected to surface anew early next month, when a traveling display showcasing the Justice Department files comes to the state. “We want to show these elected officials and the candidates that the public is interested in this topic, and the public is demanding justice for survivors and the public is demanding accountability, no matter how rich and powerful the perpetrators and enablers of these crimes are,” said David Garrett, executive director of the Institute for Primary Facts, the nonprofit that created the exhibit.

Both Senate candidates point to opponent’s Epstein connections Epstein’s decades of associating with some of the world’s most influential people and Congress’ varying attempts to force the Justice Department to release its files on him have flared up in U.S. House and Senate races across the country. In Ohio, it’s been central to a race that will help determine the balance of power in Washington.

Brown’s campaign has promoted a $3,500 donation Wexner gave Husted in July 2025, less than 10 weeks before Husted joined most Senate Republicans in defeating a Democratic effort to force release of the Epstein files. One of his ads featured video of Wexner’s congressional deposition in February, … Then came the Epstein files.Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender, was Wexner's former financial adviser.