Republican JD Vance’s half brother wants to be Cincinnati's next mayor

CINCINNATI (AP) — Cory Bowman was feeling inspired in January as he headed home after watching his half brother, JD Vance, be inaugurated as vice president.

The 36-year-old Bowman, who shares a father with Vance, was already active in the community, starting an evangelical church in Cincinnati’s West End and later opening a coffee shop. But he hadn’t thought politics was his calling.

Now, suddenly, he did. He decided to launch a campaign for mayor.

“There was nobody that pushed me into it, nobody that told me that this is a pathway I should go,” he said in an interview one recent morning. “But I just thought this would be a great way to help impact the city in another realm as well, because that’s always been the focus.”

Were he to pull an upset in this predominantly Democratic city, Bowman would be the latest family member of a president or vice president to serve in office. That includes the brother of Mike Pence, Trump’s first vice president, elected to Congress during their previous administration. In this case, however, Bowman says his run isn’t tied to national politics as much as a desire to improve the city.

“What I want to run as is I’m somebody that deeply loves Cincinnati," Bowman said. "I do have a background in economics, statistics and administration, and so I can kind of see certain things with the city that we can do better at.”

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval, who is seeking reelection, is viewed as a rising star within the Democratic Party. Pureval, 42, is a lawyer and former special assistant U.S. attorney who previously served as Hamilton County Clerk of Courts and ran for Congress. He won the 2021 mayor's race in Ohio's third largest city with nearly 66% of the vote.

Bowman, a Republican, said he chose to run for mayor partly because it was the seat most immediately up for grabs and partly because it bothered him that Pureval was running unopposed. Another GOP candidate — procurement professional Brian Frank, 66 — jumped into the race around that same time for the same reason, setting up a three-way primary next month.

Cincinnati mayoral races are nonpartisan, so the top two vote-getters on May 6 will face each other in November.

“I think it’s fantastic that I’m not running unopposed,” Pureval said, saying he believes it's important for Cincinnati voters to have different visions from which to choose.

He was standing outside the ribbon-cutting on a new apartment complex downtown that had just opened inside the former Macy’s headquarters. It's the type of transformation Pureval cites among his accomplishments, also pointing to the city's growing population and double-digit drop in violent crime.

Bowman moved to Cincinnati around 2020 and did not vote in the last mayor's race. Pureval made an issue of his opponent's relatively short time as a city resident to suggest "he doesn’t necessarily have a track record or a deep commitment to the city, or relationships in that way.”

Bowman grew up on a farm outside Hamilton, about 25 miles (40.23 kilometers) north. He said his family “always considered Cincinnati our home, this area our home, this (Ohio River) valley.”

He said his family bounced back and forth a lot between Ohio and Florida, because their father, Donald Bowman, who died in 2023, was a custom home builder.

Cory Bowman attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he earned a degree in economics and business administration, then returned to Florida to study the ministry at River University in Tampa. It was there that he met his wife, who's from Oklahoma, and "convinced her to love Cincinnati as much as me.”

They moved back and started The River Church Cincinnati, where they are co-pastors, then opened Kings Arms Coffee two years later. Vance, who was born in Middletown, Ohio, had moved back to the state a little earlier. He and his wife, Usha, bought their house in Cincinnati in 2018.

According to Vance’s best-selling memoir, “ Hillbilly Elegy,” Donald Bowman's other children were more or less strangers to him when he was a child. Vance's biological father had given him up for adoption and his mother even changed his name to erase any memory of the man from their lives.

But Cory Bowman says that Vance eventually remedied the situation. When he was 13, he asked to meet Donald Bowman and his younger brother and sister. Cory remembers fondly the future vice president coming to visit and the two of them playing basketball.

They’ve since developed a strong bond, he said, strengthened through going to college in Ohio at around the same time and getting married and becoming parents in tandem. Both have three children — two boys and a girl, ages 7, 5 and 3. Bowman's wife, Jordan, is expecting their fourth child in June.

Vance, 40, is not taking an active role in the campaign. The vice president's office declined to comment on Bowman's run, and Bowman has acknowledged that he does not have Vance's endorsement — at least not yet.

“As far as the relationship with JD, I tell people he’s my brother, he’s not a political counselor to me,” Bowman said. “He is not somebody that planted me here in this city.”

At campaign events and debates, Bowman opposed Cincinnati's sanctuary city status, promised to keep children safe and pledged to improve snow removal and fill potholes.

Cincinnati voter Desiree Terry, 34, said that she wasn't thinking about local government right now because, in her words, “the world is exploding.”

But if she votes in the mayoral race, she'll probably choose Pureval. Asked about supporting a relative of Vance's, Terry said, “It's a no.”

“I just think he’s helping with the chaos and I don’t want chaos locally,” she said. “It's already all around us, but it’s not hitting at home yet, and I feel like if he’s here it’s going to hit home, because it’s already everywhere else, so I’d rather not.”

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

This combo of images shows incumbent Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval, from left, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, Sunday, April 20, 2025, and Cincinnati mayoral candidate Brian Frank, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

An image of President Donald Trump is displayed as incumbent Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval, left, and Brian Frank participate in a candidate forum hosted by the Cincinnati NAACP, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cincinnati mayoral candidate Brian Frank participates in a candidate forum with incumbent Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval hosted by the Cincinnati NAACP, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Incumbent Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval participates in candidate forum with Brian Frank hosted by the Cincinnati NAACP, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Incumbent Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval participates in a candidate forum with Brian Frank hosted by the Cincinnati NAACP, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cincinnati mayoral candidate Brian Frank talks with a person in the audience after participating in a candidate forum with Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval, hosted by the Cincinnati NAACP, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cincinnati.(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Parishioners stand to worship with Pastor Cory Bowman at River Church Cincinnati's Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. Cory . (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ronald Lunsford, holds his childern Parker Scroggins, right, and Maleachi Yancey, standing left, as River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during River Church Cincinnati Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, left, prays with Rebecca Perez during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Children wear easter bunny ears as River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. Bowman, Vice President JD Vance's half-brother, is running for Cincinnati Mayor. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cory Bowman, half-brother of Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, top right, is pictured on stage with Vance, left, during the Republican National Convention, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Cory Bowman, Vice President JD Vance's half-brother, from right, speaks with Usha Vance and others on stage during the Republican National Convention, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

River Church Cincinnati founding pastors Cory and Jordan Bowman preach during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. Vice President JD Vance's half-brother Cory Bowman is running for Cincinnati Mayor. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, and RJ Symes, left, pray during Easter morning service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cory Bowman, half-brother of Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, right, hugs Vance during the Republican National Convention, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, right, prays for healing over Ja'Sani Baltimore, 5, second from right, Kevon Winfield, 6, with Terra Williams during Easter worship service at the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, prays during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Cory Bowman, half-brother of Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, from right, is pictured on stage with Usha Vance and JD Vance during the Republican National Convention, Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

River Church Cincinnati pastor Cory Bowman, who is Vice President JD Vance's half brother and Cincinnati mayoral candidate, preaches during Easter worship service in the Hays Porter Elementary School gym Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A jury has convicted a former Navy SEAL with neo-Nazi beliefs of transporting fireworks across state lines with plans to shoot explosives at police during last year's “No Kings” protest in San Diego, federal prosecutors said.

Following his conviction on Monday, Gregory Vandenberg was ordered held in custody until his sentencing hearing, which has not yet been scheduled. He faces up to 10 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

During a five-day trial in Albuquerque, New Mexico, prosecutors outlined Vandenberg's intention to travel from El Paso, Texas, to California to injure law enforcement officers at the June 14 rally.

Investigators found messages on his phone indicating he was angry with President Donald Trump because he believed the U.S. government is controlled by Israel and the Jewish people, according to prosecutors. His home screen on his phone displayed a picture of the Taliban flag.

FBI agents testified that they found clothing and paraphernalia in Vandenberg’s car with anti-Israel slogans and neo-Nazi symbols, including a flag for the militant group the Caucasian Front and a message in Latin saying “Judea must be destroyed."

Vandenberg, 49, stopped at a travel center near Lordsburg, New Mexico, on June 12 and purchased six large mortar fireworks as well as 72 M-150 firecrackers, which are designed to sound like gunfire. He told the store clerk that he had significant knowledge of explosives and prior special operations forces experience, and he outlined his intentions to harm police at the upcoming demonstration, prosecutors said.

Vandenberg, who had no stable employment and lived in his car, urged the clerk to join him, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office. While in the store, he wore a T-shirt with the word “Amalek” on the front, which he said he designed specifically to mean “destroyer of Jews,” the statement said.

Store employees wrote down his license plate and contacted authorities. Vandenberg was arrested June 13 while sleeping in his car at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. He told FBI agents he was traveling for work, despite being unemployed, and visiting friends in Phoenix, prosecutors said.

Vandenberg was convicted of transportation of explosives with intent to kill, injure or intimidate and attempted transportation of prohibited fireworks into California. A phone message was left Tuesday seeking comment from his attorney, Russell Dean Clark.

Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison said in a statement that the verdict shows that the government will prosecute those who intend to use violence to express political beliefs.

“People in this country are free to hold their own beliefs and to express them peacefully,” Ellison said. “What they are not free to do is use explosives to threaten or terrorize others. Vandenberg intended to turn explosives into a tool of intimidation.”

This photo provided by U.S. Attorney's Office shows a hat with Al-Qaeda flag that was found in former Navy SEAL Seal Gregory Vandenberg vehicle by authorities. (U.S. Attorney's Office via AP)

This photo provided by U.S. Attorney's Office shows clothing displaying antisemitic, anti-Israel, and extremist symbols that were found in former Navy SEAL Seal Gregory Vandenberg vehicle by authorities. (U.S. Attorney's Office via AP)