“Josh,” a Democratic operative who spent years working against Mandel told me, “is more emblematic of the Republican Party and of what has happened in American politics than maybe any human being who’s running for office.”…

“I don’t think he’s ever really changed,” said Dennis Eckart, a longtime Democratic strategist in Ohio. “He’s an opportunity-seeking opportunist.”…

“Can you imagine sitting down to have a beer with Josh Mandel?” a former Trump campaign higher-up told me the other day. “He’d probably think, like, ‘Should I drink alcohol? OK, I should — I should drink. It’s OK to drink alcohol. It’s a bar. Well, what kind of beer should I have? It’s gotta be domestic, can’t drink Heineken, you know? Is there an Ohio microbrew I should have? Should I have that? I’d really like a wine, but I can’t drink a wine, obviously.’” He paused. “It’s a hard life to live,” he said, “when that’s your inner monologue.”

“I’ve always looked at his life from afar and said, ‘That looks exhausting,’” said an Ohio Republican consultant who’s known Mandel since college. “He’s always been on the lookout for, like, how do I advance, how do I angle?”