{"id":7117,"date":"2026-08-06T14:00:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T14:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=7117"},"modified":"2026-08-06T14:00:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T14:00:10","slug":"ohio-voters-reconsider-republican-max-miller-amid-domestic-abuse-allegations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=7117","title":{"rendered":"Ohio voters reconsider Republican Max Miller amid domestic abuse allegations"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"6a2e51c1-4012-4c0c-a195-cac4bd206724\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"a man in a suit talks on his phone\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/2bdf86b07b5ca578f33d008874585e494db4792d\/273_0_2875_2301\/master\/2875.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"372.1617391304348\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Congressman Max Miller walks out of a meeting on Capitol Hill on 11 October 2023, in Washington DC.<\/span> Photograph: Andrew Harnik\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"6a2e51c1-4012-4c0c-a195-cac4bd206724\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Congressman Max Miller walks out of a meeting on Capitol Hill on 11 October 2023, in Washington DC.<\/span> Photograph: Andrew Harnik\/AP<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">Ohio voters reconsider Republican Max Miller amid domestic abuse allegations<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1kvrm3n\">\n<p>Voters in the red district are concerned with congressman\u2019s alleged behavior and political future ahead of the midterms<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">David Griffith was a registered Republican for years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">But on Sunday evening, he watched Ohio congressman Max Miller stumble through an<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/i\/broadcasts\/1AKEmmpyzvlKL\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> 18-minute statement<\/a> in which the lawmaker attempted to defend himself against allegations of domestic abuse against his ex-wife and infant child.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">What Griffith saw and heard, he said, was a person that bore no shape or resemblance to the Republican party he once supported.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cWhat I saw was a person who needs help,\u201d said Griffith, seated at a bench in a community park in Wooster, a quiet town of 26,000 people situated at the southern end of the beleaguered Miller\u2019s congressional district.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"6560cf42-8ac6-4249-8a7a-73f9301e859b\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-1oq85qr\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-4 | 4\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1rx5ky9\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-uyoh2p\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/04\/max-miller-resign-domestic-abuse-allegations\" class=\"dcr-f35c0u\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-vvxpdt\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6z6e7\">\n<div class=\"dcr-zh9rih\">Ohio Republican Max Miller faces growing calls to resign over domestic abuse allegations<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-oj13vq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-ef9nua\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Though he has been critical of Donald Trump for years, last May Griffith ended his formal affiliation with the Republican party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cAt this [midterm] election, I\u2019m voting a straight Democratic ticket,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve never done that before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Across Miller\u2019s largely red district, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/republicans\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Republicans<\/a> are deeply concerned with their representative\u2019s alleged behavior and political future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Miller\u2019s ex-wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Republican <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/ohio\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Ohio<\/a> senator Bernie Moreno, has accused Miller of pointing a gun at her head, pouring hot water on her and potentially breaking their two-year-old daughter\u2019s collarbone. Emily Moreno has also alleged Miller physically attacked her attorney and another legal representative, and filed for a restraining order on her lawyer\u2019s behalf. Emily Moreno and Miller are now locked in a bitter custody battle.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">On Sunday, Bernie Moreno took to X to call for Miller to resign after years of silence on the issue: \u201cHe is a danger to my daughter, and I hold my breath every minute he has custody of my granddaughter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Miller, who faces an election this November, has denied any allegations of domestic abuse. In his statement on Sunday, he blamed the so-called leftwing media and his former wife for initiating a campaign to sully his name. On Tuesday, he attempted to defend himself further on Jake Tapper\u2019s evening show on CNN, likening his fight to that of Trump\u2019s when the president also faced sexual assault allegations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe police are not investigating it; ask yourself, why aren\u2019t they investigating these things?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Before specific details of the allegations against Miller were recently made public and prior to Senator Moreno\u2019s calls, Miller was expected to easily retain his seat, with<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cookpolitical.com\/house\/race\/483811\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> pollsters suggesting<\/a> in June the district leans Republican by five points. Miller, 37, who had previously served as a presidential aide during Trump\u2019s first administration, was endorsed by Trump in 2021 during his first campaign. But this week,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2026\/08\/04\/trump-max-miller-moreno-election-house\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> reports emerged<\/a> that the president\u2019s support for Miller may be waning. The final day the Ohio Republican party could replace Miller with another candidate , if it decides to do so, is 12 August.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Bill Heck, vice-chair of the Republican party of Medina county, which lies inside Miller\u2019s district, wouldn\u2019t say if he thinks the congressman should resign.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThere is so much stuff flying around that we have not been able to decipher what\u2019s real and what\u2019s not. What we\u2019re trying to determine right now is how much of this is credible and how much he can refute and recover from,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">But he did concede that Republican voters in Miller\u2019s district are worried.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cI think a lot of our members and our steadfast Republicans are concerned,\u201d he <a href=\"http:\/\/said.ys\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">said.<\/a> \u201cI\u2019m sure the president does not want to lose that seat. With 92 days left [to the election] it\u2019s going to be really difficult for anybody to come in and take over the position \u2013 if appointed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">A<a href=\"https:\/\/cuyahoga.gop\/republican-clubs\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> host of<\/a> other Republican party county organizations and groups across Miller\u2019s district, including the women\u2019s branch of the Republican party of Cuyahoga county, asking if they thought the congressman should resign, did not respond to requests for comment on the situation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">While Miller as the incumbent won his 2024 congressional election by a 15% margin, a Democrat and independent candidate split the vote between them. In November, Miller faces Democrat<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/apr\/18\/brian-poindexter-ohio-congress-candidate\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> Brian Poindexter<\/a>, a union ironworker from Brook Park, a Cleveland suburb.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe district leans Republican, but it is not so overwhelmingly Republican that a Democrat could never win,\u201d says Justin Buchler, an associate professor of political science at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIf you combine a midterm election moving everything nationwide towards the Democrats with a weak Republican candidate, that could be enough for the seventh district to flip. Miller is weakened at the moment, so if he tries to stay in the race, that helps Poindexter, and if Miller withdraws, then without a strong replacement, that still helps Poindexter.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"he-hasnt-engaged-with-our-community\" class=\"dcr-8418j6\">\u2018He hasn\u2019t engaged with our community\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">A former Marine Corps reserve, Miller, who is seeking a third congressional term, has a long history of allegations of violence towards women, including from former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who<a href=\"https:\/\/spectrumnews1.com\/oh\/columbus\/news\/2026\/07\/08\/max-miller-stephanie-grisham-defamation\" data-link-name=\"in body link\"> accused him<\/a> of pushing her against a wall and slapping her when the two were dating. (Miller has denied the allegation.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In northeastern Ohio, the Miller family is known as one of the most powerful and respected in the region. Max\u2019s grandfather, Sam, who died in 2019, was an esteemed Cleveland real estate mogul and philanthropist.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Sixty miles south of Cleveland, Wooster, the county seat of largely rural Wayne county, was once a heartbeat of the industrial midwest. The collapse of the local jobs market in the early 2000s and accompanying economic decline that followed over the past two decades has fueled resentment locally that Trump has long since tapped into.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In the 2024 presidential election, Trump won 70% of the vote in Wayne county. Wooster hasn\u2019t elected a Democratic mayor for decades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIf the [Republican] party followed the standards we did, then I\u2019d say he should resign,\u201d says Bill Bailey, a former judge and the chair of the Wayne county Democratic party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIn my view, the Republican party is more concerned about retaining votes than they are about enforcing any kind of standards.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">He says he doesn\u2019t believe Miller\u2019s claims of innocence, nor do many typically Republican voters. In Wayne county\u2019s primary elections held last May, Bailey says about 1,600 registered Republican voters chose independent candidates and another 500 Republicans picked Democrats.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cHe hasn\u2019t engaged with our community,\u201d says Bailey of Miller. \u201cI doubt that the average person would recognize him on the street.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">For Griffith, who runs a local Facebook group called Defending Democracy and believes that the Republican party should support the US\u2019s allies overseas, Miller represents everything that\u2019s gone wrong with the party.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cI have to believe that people get involved in public service because they want to do good, regardless of party,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cMax Miller is not one of those people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/ohio\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Ohio<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/republicans\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Republicans<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/house-of-representatives\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">House of Representatives<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/society\/domestic-violence\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Domestic violence<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-congress\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US Congress<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-midterm-elections-2026\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US midterm elections 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Ohio%20voters%20reconsider%20Republican%20Max%20Miller%20amid%20domestic%20abuse%20allegations&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/06\/ohio-voters-reconsider-republican-max-miller?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Faug%2F06%2Fohio-voters-reconsider-republican-max-miller&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/aug\/06\/ohio-voters-reconsider-republican-max-miller\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1kq7f60\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Congressman Max Miller walks out of a meeting on Capitol Hill on 11 October 2023, in Washington DC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":7119,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7117"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7120,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7117\/revisions\/7120"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7119"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}