I don't think so. I don't think it's trending R because of jobs. I think it's culturally a Republican state.
There was some article from a tech company exec who went to middle America and interviewed people anonymously on why they voted for Trump and found that it was surprisingly not because of job related reasons. Even those who said building the wall was a huge factor commonly said it was not for economic reasons but to "preserve U.S. culture."
That said, Ohio wasn't a blowout, so it possibly could help at the margins, but I don't see it flipping over this issue alone.
Racism/whitelash? From a large chunk of voters who voted for Obama twice?
1. Stop looking at anecdotal stuff
2. Everything I've seen in Ohio is economy, folks who feel like the economy may have improved under Obama but it didn't get better in their town
3. It was a blow out in Ohio, largest margin of victory since 1988
Believe it or not, it could actually be easier for a somewhat racist white guy to vote for a black president than to vote for a candidate who encourages them to ask deep, introspective, and uncomfortable questions of themselves.
