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IrelandJon Ossoff's Australian roots meet talk of the White House
9 News Australia's report pairs his Georgia re-election with a Sydney-born mother, Vegemite memories and a firm denial of presidential ambitions.
9 News Australia
Story of Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 288,752 views a day, 28 times a normal first day on this channel (10,184).
Half-Australian Democrat senator impresses Washington, D.C. at midterm elections | 9 News Australia
"I grew up eating Vegemite," Jon Ossoff says, a distinctly Australian detail in a report about an American senator attracting presidential speculation.
Lauren Tomasi's report for 9 News Australia follows Ossoff's re-election in Georgia, then traces the family connections behind its "half-Australian" description. His mother, Heather, was born and raised in Sydney. Ossoff names Brisbane as his grandmother's home and Footscray as his grandfather's.
The short report has drawn roughly 270,000 views in its first 20 hours, far beyond the channel's usual start for a Short. But its central political question gets a direct answer from Ossoff himself. Asked about the 2028 presidential election during a debate, he says: "I have zero interest in running for president. I'm not running for president."
The report places that denial beside former Obama campaign manager Jim Messina's observation that Barack Obama once said something similar. Archive footage of Obama's Democratic convention speech supplies the comparison, but it remains speculation, not an announcement from Ossoff.
Between the victory speech and the American television panels discussing his prospects, Ossoff offers another connection to his mother's country: its laid-back culture. He contrasts that with a tendency to get wound up in the United States, giving Nine's election profile an Australian thread beyond the family tree.
A Democratic politician who has represented Georgia in the U.S. Senate since 2021.
More on Wikipedia ›The U.S. election scheduled for November 7, 2028, to choose the next president and vice president for four-year terms.
More on Wikipedia ›An American political adviser who managed Barack Obama's successful 2012 re-election campaign. He previously served as Obama's White House deputy chief of staff for operations.
More on Wikipedia ›Published on Trari
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- Channel
- 9 News Australia
- Subscribers
- 1,900,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 16,824,784
- Channel views, pace per day
- 2,446,403 (on a normal day: 2,063,959)
- Video published
- November 6, 2026
- Video views so far
- 268,473 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 288,752
The numbers
The Ossoff report's early views are far above Nine's usual first-day audience for Shorts. Its comment count has also already exceeded the channel's usual first day by a wide margin.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which US state does Jon Ossoff represent in the Senate?
Ossoff represents Georgia, where he won re-election in the race covered by Nine's report.