[30][33]

Rising politician (1897–1919)
Further information: Electoral history of Warren G. Harding
Undated photo of a younger Harding
State senator
Harding tried again for elective office. Though he was a longtime admirer of Foraker, who by then had been elected to the U.S. Senate, he also maintained  good relations with the party faction led by the state's other senator, Mark Hanna, who was McKinley's political manager, and chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC). With the support of Foraker and Hanna, Harding ran for state Senate in 1899, gained the Republican nomination, and was easily elected to a two-year term.[34]
Harding began his tenure in the state senate a political unknown, but ended it as one of the most popular figures in the Ohio Republican Party. He displayed calm and humility, characteristics that endeared him to fellow Republicans even as he overtook them in his political climb. Legislative leaders consulted him on difficult problems, and though it was then usual for state senators in Ohio to serve only one term, Harding was renominated in 1901.