Ohio U.S. Senate Election 2026: Winner

Ohio's governor race intensified this week as Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy and Democratic rival Amy Acton both proposed suspending the state's gas tax amid a spike in fuel prices, with statewide averages topping $4.52 a gallon and diesel hitting a record $6.77. Ramaswamy, joined by GOP legislative leaders Rob McColley and Matt Huffman, unveiled a plan for a 90-day tax suspension that lawmakers could act on before Election Day, funded initially through ODOT reserves and the state's rainy-day fund. Acton called for an "emergency gas tax holiday" but offered fewer details on duration or funding. It remains unclear whether the GOP-controlled legislature will reconvene early or whether Gov. Mike DeWine, who has raised the gas tax before, would sign such a measure.

Separately, prediction markets continue to show Acton leading Ramaswamy by a wider margin than public polling suggests. Ohio lawmakers are also pursuing a bid to bring the U.S. Space Academy to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, with a decision due to NASA by October 26 and final approval resting with President Trump.

Ohio Sen. Jon Husted addressed the Republican National Convention in Dallas, one of several speakers on the event's first night alongside House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso. The two-day convention, headlined by President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, comes less than two months before the November midterms.

Husted centered his remarks on affordability, citing conversations with Ohioans he says have benefited from tax cuts signed into law last year, including provisions eliminating taxes on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security income. He pointed to workers in Cleveland, Findlay, and Dayton as examples of people using the savings to pay down debt, save for a home, or stay in their houses as they age.

Husted is running to keep his Senate seat against Democrat Sherrod Brown, the former senator who lost to Bernie Moreno in 2024 and is seeking a return to Washington. Brown has recently campaigned in the Cleveland and Canton areas. Election Day is November 3.

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.

Gun rights remain a central flashpoint in Ohio's 2026 elections for U.S. Senate and governor. Republican Jon Husted, who led concealed-carry reform as Ohio House Speaker, faces Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown, criticized by gun-rights advocates for backing assault weapons bans, red-flag laws, and universal background checks. In the governor's race, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy opposes gun registration and red-flag orders, while Democrat Amy Acton, former state health director, frames gun ownership as a public health issue and backs expanded background checks. Republicans have poured over $200 million into the Senate race, with Trump and Vance rallying for Husted amid economic frustrations that analysts say could narrow GOP margins statewide.

Ohio has emerged as the most expensive political advertising battleground in the country ahead of the 2026 midterms, with AdImpact tracking roughly $307 million in TV ad spending and reservations as of September 11 — more than Texas, Michigan, Maine, or any other Senate contest. Republicans have spent about $169 million versus $138 million from Democrats and allied groups, with six weeks still remaining before Election Day.

The spending surge centers on the Senate rematch between former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican Sen. Jon Husted, who was appointed to the seat vacated by JD Vance. Brown's 2024 race against Bernie Moreno was already the nation's most expensive Senate contest that cycle. Ohio's gubernatorial race, featuring Amy Acton and Vivek Ramaswamy, is also drawing heavy ad buys. Local TV stations are nearing saturation, and analysts expect spending to keep rising through September, underscoring Ohio's outsized role in determining Senate control.

A Fox News poll conducted Aug. 6-10 shows former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) leading Sen. Jon Husted (R) 53% to 45% in Ohio's U.S. Senate race, matching the same eight-point margin Fox found in late May/early June. However, other surveys and polling averages show a far tighter contest: RealClearPolling's aggregate has Brown at 47.8% and Husted at 47.2%, an AARP poll in June had Brown up just three points, and a New York Times/Siena poll had Husted ahead by three.

Analysts note methodological differences—such as registered versus likely voters—help explain the variation, and caution against treating any single poll as predictive. The Fox survey found inflation and financial strain as top voter concerns, with Brown leading heavily among those who feel they're falling behind financially. Concerns that Husted is too closely aligned with President Trump have risen since June. The same poll showed Republican Vivek Ramaswamy edging Democrat Amy Acton in the governor's race. Husted, appointed after J.D. Vance became vice president, faces Brown on Nov. 3 to serve the remainder of Vance's term.

Republican Sen. Jon Husted and Democratic challenger Sherrod Brown sparred over top voter concerns ahead of Ohio's Nov. 3 U.S. Senate election, with inflation, crime and immigration dominating the debate.

Brown blamed rising prices on an unfair economic "system," linking costs to ongoing war spending and tariffs, and pledged to end the war, roll back tariffs and restore an expanded child tax credit if reelected. Husted argued prices will fall only by boosting domestic energy and farm supply, calling for more drilling, pipelines, refineries and power plants to lower input costs.

On crime and immigration, Husted accused Brown and local leaders, including those in Cincinnati, of supporting sanctuary policies and failing to enforce border security, pointing to Ohio's high rate of repeat violent offenders. Brown countered that he supports deporting criminals, enforcing sentencing laws and tightening gun access for people with mental health issues.

The race is among the most closely watched Senate contests nationally, with control of the chamber potentially hinging on the outcome.

A New York Times/Siena College poll shows Democrats with narrow leads in Ohio's marquee 2025 races, though both contests remain within the margin of error. Democrat Sherrod Brown led Republican Jon Husted 49%-46% in the Senate race, while Democrat Amy Acton led Republican Vivek Ramaswamy 49%-45% for governor. The poll surveyed 616 voters from Sept. 22 to Oct. 1, with a margin of error of plus-or-minus 4.5 percentage points.

Both races are rated toss-ups by the Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball. Brown and Acton held stronger net favorability than their opponents, drawing more support from younger and non-white voters, while Husted and Ramaswamy performed better among men and white voters. Voters cited the economy as their top concern, followed by inflation and immigration, and a plurality said Ohio is headed in the wrong direction. The same pollster showed Brown and Kamala Harris ahead in Ohio in October 2024, before Republicans won both races that November, underscoring the uncertainty around the latest numbers. Election Day is Nov. 3, with early voting underway.

A newly formed super PAC called Enough Promises Ohio spent nearly $400,000 on mailers promoting independent socialist Senate candidate Greg Levy and opposing Democrat Sherrod Brown ahead of Ohio's Nov. 3 special election. The mailers, urging voters to "Join the Revolution" and "Send a Worker to the Senate," touted Levy's support for Palestinians, universal health care, free child care and education, and a $30 minimum wage.

Levy's campaign disavowed any connection to the mailers, calling them a deceptive, "racist caricaturing" of Levy, who is Black, and said it is weighing legal action. FEC records show the PAC, registered Sept. 29 in Reynoldsburg, paid a printing vendor tied to Whistlestop Strategies, a direct-mail firm linked to Republican consulting group Big Dog Strategies, which has advised Trump's MAGA Inc. super PAC and Bernie Moreno's 2024 campaign against Brown. A separate GOP-aligned super PAC, Sentinel Action Fund, used the same vendor to back Republican Sen. Jon Husted. Analysts note third-party candidates can siphon marginal votes in tight races; polling shows Husted and Brown within single digits of each other, with Libertarian Bill Redpath also running.

A super PAC with ties to Republican vendors, Enough Promises Ohio, has expanded its spending to roughly $1.8 million supporting independent candidate Greg Levy and attacking Democrat Sherrod Brown in Ohio's U.S. Senate special election. Federal filings show about $753,000 for media through Outbound Messaging LLC and $1.04 million for mailers via Seven Farms, a vendor linked to operatives who previously worked on Bernie Moreno's 2024 campaign against Brown. Levy's campaign has disavowed the mailers and condemned them as voter deception. A separate GOP-aligned PAC, Sentinel Action Fund, spent over $280,000 backing Republican Jon Husted. Analysts say boosting a minor candidate can siphon votes in a tight race ahead of the Nov. 3 election to fill J.D. Vance's former seat.