Ohio State Sen. George Lang threatened “civil war” if former President Donald Trump loses in November at a rally in Ohio Sen. JD Vance’s hometown ahead of the Republican vice presidential nominee’s remarks on Monday.

“I believe wholeheartedly Donald Trump and Butler County's JD Vance are the last chance to save our country politically. I'm afraid if we lose this one, it's going to take a civil war to save the country,” Lang said at the Middletown, Ohio, rally at Vance’s high school alma mater. “And it will be saved. It's the greatest experiment in the history of mankind, and if we come down to a civil war I’m glad we got people like… Bikers for Trump on our side.”

Lang apologized shortly after the rally in a brief statement on social media.

"Remarks I made earlier today at a rally in Middletown do not accurately reflect my views. I regret the divisive remarks I made in the excitement of the moment on stage," Lang wrote. "Especially in light of the assassination attempt on President Trump last week, we should all be mindful of what is said at political events, myself included."

In a text message to Spectrum News, Lang said he did not speak to Trump campaign officials before or after his speech regarding his "civil war" comment. He did not respond to additional questions.

“Donald Trump and JD Vance are running a campaign openly sowing hatred and promising revenge against their political opponents. It’s a feature, not a bug, of their campaign and message to the American people. That’s why a Republican official was empowered to predict a civil war while introducing these candidates," Harris campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa said in a statement. “Donald Trump and JD Vance should denounce George Lang’s calls for violence and apologize for platforming this kind of violence.”

The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Bikers for Trump is a group of motorcyclists who support the former president and who Trump has praised in the past. They often provided vigilante-style security at Trump rallies and other events during his first run for president in 2016.

The remark comes less than 10 days after Trump was wounded in an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania and in a national environment where threats of and actual incidents of political violence are on the rise. Lang took the stage after a singer sung the national anthem and as the crowd of Trump supporters at the high school chanted “fight, fight, fight” — referencing what Trump yelled as he was taken away by Secret Service agents, his ear bloodied, in Pennsylvania earlier this month. 

“Fight, fight, fight. We got time. Come on. Hey, we are in the fight for the soul of our nation. We are in a fight for our kids and our grandkids, a fight that we can never imagine,” Lang said as he opened his remarks.

He was the first speaker at the rally, which also included U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson, state attorney general Dave Yost and the Republican Party’s candidate for the U.S. Senate seat in Ohio this November, Bernie Moreno. Davidson’s office, Yost’s campaign and Moreno’s campaign did not immediately return requests for comment.

When he took to the stage, Vance thanked each of the speakers who addressed the crowd before him except for Lang.

Lang represents Middletown and most of Butler County, where Vance grew up, in Ohio’s state Senate. He’s been involved in Republican politics in the state since the 1990s. He attended the Republican National Convention last week.

“Senator George Lang calling for a civil war is disgusting. Political violence has been condemned by Republicans and Democrats alike,” Ohio’s state Senate Democratic campaign team said on social media. “Inciting violence over an election that hasn't even occurred yet is irresponsible and undemocratic.”