Ohio’s 11th Congressional District House Race 2026

Ohio's gubernatorial candidates are staking out sharply different positions on the state income tax ahead of the fall election. Republican Vivek Ramaswamy wants to abolish it entirely, Democrat Amy Acton favors targeted tax credits for parents and lower-income residents, and Libertarian Don Kissick says he'd consider cuts but doesn't see it as urgent. Fundraising reports show Acton outraised Ramaswamy in September, though Ramaswamy's personal loans to his own campaign have reached over $36 million.

The race is drawing national attention as President Trump returns to the Mahoning Valley and Vice President JD Vance rallied in Lima, both aiming to energize Republican turnout for Ramaswamy and U.S. Sen. Jon Husted. Democrats, including Senate nominee Sherrod Brown, are betting that affordability concerns can erode Trump's hold on working-class voters. Down-ballot, Rep. Shontel Brown enters her reelection with a large financial advantage, while Rep. Mike Carey's seat remains a Democratic target despite a tough fundraising gap and Trump-friendly district lines.

Ohio Democrats head into this year's elections with what analysts call their best shot in years to break the GOP's grip on statewide offices, though Republicans retain a clear structural advantage. Separately, a new state law requires mailed absentee ballots to reach county election offices by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day with no grace period, prompting Secretary of State Frank LaRose to urge voters to use drop boxes or deliver ballots in person. The Ohio Auditor's office also took its web systems offline after a cyberattack possibly involving foreign actors, though officials say no financial data appears compromised. LaRose separately sought a federal probe into a voter-registration group's activity in Cuyahoga County.

President Donald Trump held a rally in Youngstown, Ohio, urging supporters to back Republican U.S. Senate candidate Jon Husted against Democrat Sherrod Brown and gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy against Democrat Amy Acton ahead of the November midterms. Speaking at the Covelli Centre, Trump framed the races as a choice to "Put Ohio First" and asked attendees to treat the contests as if he were personally on the ballot. He also announced federal assistance for SOBE Thermal Energy Systems and disclosed that Cleveland will host a new 46,000-square-foot U.S. Navy submarine component repair facility, crediting Husted with securing the project. Jon Gruden introduced Trump, with boxer Jake Paul also appearing.

A new co/efficient poll of 925 likely Ohio voters, taken Oct. 5-6, found both races within the margin of error: Ramaswamy led Acton 45%-43% in the governor's race, while Husted led Brown 44%-43% in the Senate contest, a special election to fill the seat J.D. Vance vacated. Analysts continue to rate both races as toss-ups.

Cleveland is advancing a proposal to apply for up to $1.031 million in federal funding to begin replacing mobile radios installed in police cars, fire trucks and ambulances. The U.S. Department of Justice's fiscal year 2026 project list names Cleveland as invited to apply for the money for "Cleveland Public Safety Radios," a request made by U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown. The city has 778 mobile radios; the funding would replace 151 of them, about 19% of the fleet, with no local match required. Public Safety Director Dornat "Wayne" Drummond told City Council's Safety Committee that replacing the remaining 627 radios would need substantial additional funding, though no estimate was given.

This is separate from a 2024 project, approved via Ordinance 640-2024, that funded $13 million to replace 1,840 aging handheld radios carried by police, firefighters, paramedics and Animal Care and Control staff. The new measure, Ordinance 907-2026, cleared the Safety Committee and now moves to the Finance, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.

Cuyahoga County voters face one contested race for the Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals, which hears appeals from the county's common pleas and municipal courts. Incumbent Democrat Anita Laster Mays is seeking a third six-year term against Republican newcomer Anthony Alto, a Cleveland criminal defense attorney admitted to the bar in 2020. The seat carries a 2027 salary of $196,364.

Laster Mays, first elected in 2014, previously served 11 years as a Cleveland Municipal Court judge and held roles as a deputy clerk of courts, assistant city prosecutor and private attorney. Alto, a Cleveland State law graduate who worked for the county Board of Elections before founding his own firm, ran an unsuccessful write-in campaign for county prosecutor in 2024 and declined an editorial board interview. Alto faces long odds in a court where 11 of 12 judges are Democrats. Four other appeals court seats on November's ballot are uncontested, with all candidates running unopposed as Democrats: Jeffrey Crossman, Ashley Kilbane, Michael Ryan and Emanuella Groves.

Alaska's U.S. Senate race has drawn attention because two candidates named Dan Sullivan appear on the ballot: incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who grew up in Ohio, and a retired schoolteacher sharing the same name. The state Supreme Court ruled in June that both can remain on the ballot, with labels distinguishing the "Registered Republican" incumbent on the ranked-choice ballot. President Trump has directed the Justice Department to sue to block certification if Sullivan loses his tight race against Democrat Mary Peltola. The episode highlights how name recognition and ballot confusion can shape elections, a dynamic also seen in local judicial races elsewhere.

Cuyahoga County Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to place a charter amendment on the Nov. 3 general election ballot that would formally divide legal responsibilities between Prosecutor Michael O'Malley's office and the county law department under County Executive Chris Ronayne. Eight of eleven council members were present and voted in favor, meeting a Sept. 4 filing deadline with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.

The measure would codify a division of labor the two offices have followed informally for more than a decade under negotiated agreements. A 2025 opinion from then-Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost found that certain duties assigned to prosecutors by state law could not simply be delegated through such agreements, prompting the push for a permanent charter fix. Under the proposal, the law director would advise the council and executive on contracts, labor, records requests and other non-litigation matters, while the prosecutor would retain control over litigation. Talks between O'Malley and Ronayne's administration nearly collapsed in August amid accusations of bad faith before a last-minute compromise was reached. Voters will now decide whether to write the arrangement into the county charter.

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections has certified 106 issues for the Nov. 3 general election, producing what officials call an unusually long ballot. Most issues, including tax levies, school questions, charter amendments and liquor permits, are local and will vary by community, but every voter across the county's 59 communities will see at least a three-sheet ballot covering six countywide issues.

Those include statewide Issue 3, which would amend the Ohio Constitution to require photo ID to vote, with an exception process for religious objections. The remaining five are Cuyahoga County measures: a new developmental disabilities levy, a renewed and increased health and human services levy, and three charter amendments addressing council approval of board removals, dividing legal duties between the law director and prosecutor, and restructuring Charter Review Commission appointments. Officials warned the extended ballot could mean longer wait times and urged voters to review sample ballots in advance. Early and mail voting begins Oct. 6, with tens of thousands of absentee requests already filed.

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections held a public demonstration of its absentee ballot security measures as part of its "Know Before You Vote" series, with early voting underway ahead of Election Day.

Director Anthony Perlatti showed how drop boxes are monitored around the clock with security cameras, including a livestream viewable on YouTube, and detailed access controls at the board's Cleveland headquarters, including staff ID badges and a bipartisan lock system restricting entry to areas where ballots are stored.

Perlatti noted that rules for early and absentee voting mirror those used in the May primary, but emphasized a key deadline: ballots must be returned by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, November 3, since postmarks no longer determine eligibility for counting. The demonstrations come as officials anticipate one of the busiest election days in county history, with voters deciding races for Ohio governor, U.S. House and Senate seats, and numerous local school levies and ballot issues.
Cuyahoga County officials showcase ballot drop box security and absentee voting deadlines ahead of a high-turnout Election Day.

Ohio is preparing nearly 40,000 poll workers for the November election, with new mandatory training on verifying voter identification. The state has allocated $1 million across its 88 counties, with a minimum grant of $1,000 per county, tied to a requirement that all poll workers—regardless of experience—complete updated training on recognizing acceptable and unacceptable forms of photo ID under Ohio law.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose called poll workers "the backbone of Election Day operations" and had earlier directed counties to recruit at least 15% more workers than legally required to offset staffing shortfalls. Cuyahoga County is requiring in-person training through October 25, giving workers hands-on experience with ballot scanners and ADA-compliant machines not available online.

Officials emphasized that Ohio's absentee voting process remains unchanged despite confusion stemming from a federal executive order on mail ballots. Voters can request absentee ballots now; they will be mailed starting October 6 and must be returned by November 3.