Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted has testified remotely in Akron, Ohio, in the high-profile corruption trial of two former FirstEnergy Corp. executives. As a defense witness for former CEO Chuck Jones and former lobbyist Michael Dowling, Husted confirmed his presence as lieutenant governor-elect at a key dinner with Jones, Dowling and then-Gov.-elect Mike DeWine held in 2018, shortly before DeWine appointed Sam Randazzo the state's new top utility regulator. Husted said FirstEnergy’s preferred candidate wasn't Randazzo, who prosecutors allege Jones and Dowling bribed in exchange for his help with a $1 billion nuclear plant bailout. He later acknowledged he wouldn't have known what the two men discussed privately.