Rachel Crooks, who accused Trump of sexual misconduct, wins Dem nomination for Ohio legislature

Rachel Crooks, who accused President Trump of forcibly kissing her years ago, advanced in her Ohio legislative campaign. (Reuters/Andrew Kelly)

Rachel Crooks, who accused President Trump of sexually harassing her more than a decade ago, won the Democratic primary in an Ohio state legislature race.

Crooks, a 35-year-old university administrator, won the uncontested primary Tuesday and will face incumbent Republican state Rep. Bill Reineke in the state House race in November.

During the 2016 election, Crooks claimed Trump forcibly kissed her “directly on the mouth” against her will back in 2005. At the time, she was working as a receptionist at Trump Tower.

After The Washington Post ran her story on its front page, Trump denied the allegations on Twitter.

“A woman I don’t know and, to the best of my knowledge, never met, is on the FRONT PAGE of the Fake News Washington Post saying I kissed her (for two minutes yet) in the lobby of Trump Tower 12 years ago,” Trump said in the February 2018 tweets. “Never happened! Who would do this in a public space with live security cameras running. Another False Accusation.”

TRUMP DENIES FORCIBLY KISSING WOMAN IN TRUMP TOWER

During her campaign for the state House seat, Crooks hasn't shied away from the allegations. She spoke about the alleged encounter in an ad featured on her campaign website, saying the “experience shaped her future for years to come.”

“Mine was a story all too common for women so I had a choice to make,” Crooks said in a video. “I could either keep quiet or speak up. I spoke up. I said, 'Me Too.'”

She called Trump’s presidency “demoralizing for a moment.”

“Then the people got to work. The women got to work,” Crooks said as the video panned to the Women’s March.

Ohio’s 88th congressional district is in northwest Ohio, just outside of Toledo. While the district went blue for former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, voters in the district changed course and picked Trump in 2016, according to Politico.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.