U.S. President Donald Trump has nominated Doug Mastriano, a Republican Pennsylvania state senator, to serve as U.S. ambassador to Slovakia.

Mastriano, a retired U.S. Army colonel and prominent Trump ally, has represented south-central Pennsylvania’s 33rd Senate District since 2019. He drew national attention during his unsuccessful 2022 gubernatorial campaign against Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is Jewish. Mastriano lost by nearly 15 percentage points.

During that race, Mastriano faced criticism for remarks about Shapiro’s children attending a Jewish day school, which he described as a “privileged, exclusive elite school,” and for advertising on Gab, the far-right social media platform whose founder, Andrew Torba, has made antisemitic remarks.

He also drew backlash for comparing some gun-control proposals to Nazi Germany and likening abortion to the Holocaust.

Mastriano later distanced himself from Torba and said, “I reject antisemitism in any form.”

In recent years, he has backed legislation aimed at combating antisemitism and expanding Holocaust education in Pennsylvania schools, including measures targeting colleges accused of tolerating antisemitic activity. In 2024, he described rising antisemitism as “shameful.”

A staunch supporter of Trump, Mastriano was active in efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election.

In a statement on Monday, Mastriano said he was “deeply honored and humbled” by the nomination.

“I look forward to representing our nation abroad, strengthening the friendship between our two countries and advancing the interests of the American people,” he said.

Mastriano’s nomination requires Senate confirmation. Though he has no diplomatic experience, he served more than 30 years in the Army, including deployments in Europe near the former Czechoslovak border. Pennsylvania is home to one of the nation’s largest Slovak populations, according to the World Population Review.

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