Rep.-elect Max Miller, R-Ohio, arrives for new member orientation check-in and program registration with Emily Moreno in Washington, Nov. 13, 2022. (AP Photo/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades, File)

2026-08-02T15:44:30Z

WASHINGTON (AP) — Ohio Rep. Max Miller pledged to remain in his race for re-election in a live video on X Sunday, defending himself against allegations of abuse from his ex-wife before a Wednesday deadline to replace him on the ballot.

Democrats have seen a new opportunity in Miller’s northeast Ohio congressional seat as the Republican incumbent has faced mounting pressure over domestic abuse allegations in a bitter and drawn-out custody dispute with his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, who is the daughter of U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno.

Accusations against Miller, who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump and was a White House adviser during Trump’s first term, have been public for years but have recently drawn increased scrutiny as back and forth in the case has escalated.

“I’m not dropping out of this race and I’ll win in November,” said Miller, who denied abusing his former wife and his daughter.

Emily Moreno has said that Miller scalded, hit and threatened her while they were married. He denied those allegations in the video, as he has in the past. Moreno did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Miller also said he had nothing to do with a broken collarbone on their 2-year-old daughter that led Moreno to contact authorities. The pair, who were married in 2022 and finalized their divorce last year, have presented different theories about how the injury occurred, according to court filings and police reports detailed in an article in the magazine Mother Jones that first revealed the child’s injury.

Democrats have recently called on Miller to resign, requested a congressional ethics investigation and suggested more help could be directed in the fall toward his Democratic opponent, union ironworker Brian Poindexter.

JULIE CARR SMYTH





Smyth covers government and politics from Columbus, Ohio, for The Associated Press. She was part of the AP team honored as a finalist for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in breaking news.















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