It was a good Election Night for insiders
Updated 9:27 p.m. In the Republican and Democratic primaries for Ohio Secretary of State, established candidates easily fended off upstart challenges from first-time candidates. State Rep. Allison Russo was leading Bryan Hambley, a physician, 68% to 32% in the Democratic primary at publication time, while Republican state Treasurer Robert Sprague was leading Marcell Strbich, an activist and retired Air Force intelligence officer, 70% to 30%. The Democratic Party-endorsed candidate for attorney general, Upper Arlington Councilman John Kulewicz, also defeated former state representative Elliot Forhan, leading 64% to 36% when we wrote this.
That outcome was in particular relief for the party after a recent Bowling Green State University poll showed the race tied, with a large number of voters undecided. Forhan, who didn’t have a well-funded campaign, has drawn criticism from top Democrats for his personal behavior, most recently landing a party rebuke after he posted a social media video vowing to prosecute and execute President Donald Trump.
Husted campaign takes aim at Brown as general election ramps up
Sen. Jon Husted’s campaign punched back at Democrat Sherrod Brown on Tuesday night.
“Over the next six months, Ohioans will hear a lot from Sherrod Brown about his so-called solutions,” campaign manager Drew Thompson said. “The truth is, after 32 years in Washington, he created the very problems he now blames others for. His record is indefensible. That’s why he can’t talk about it.”
Thompson said Husted’s agenda “puts Ohio first” and focuses on lower costs, a secure border, tax cuts and law enforcement.
‘You can’t buy us,’ Acton says as she turns attention toward November
Updated 8:43 p.m. Amy Acton delivered a message of anti-corruption and affordability Tuesday night, looking past her uncontested primary and toward the general election in November.
She called her opponent a “self-funding billionaire” and promised to “end the corruption in the statehouse that has held us back for far too long.” She painted him as a jet-setting aristocrat, bent on unpopular ideas like reducing Medicaid funding or consolidating or closing Ohio schools.
“You can’t buy us,” she said, leading a crowded downtown Columbus ballroom in a chant.
Allison Russo wins Democratic primary for Secretary of State, AP says
Updated 9:52 p.m. In a victory speech, Russo said she would tear down barriers that stop citizens from voting, while Republicans are the ones who put them there. And she distanced herself from other Republican-backed policies coming out of the Secretary of State’s office like purging voters from rolls or placing misleading language on ballot referendums.
“As Secretary of State, I will bring people to the table, not purge them,” she said. “I will be fair, impartial, and respectful to the will of the voters.”
AP declares Robert Sprague winner of Republican Secretary of State nomination
Updated 8:34 p.m. Sprague had more than 70% of the vote over Marcell Strbich as of 8:34 p.m. Tuesday.
Sherrod Brown opens general campaign with sharp attacks
Updated 8:28 p.m. Speaking to supporters in Cleveland Tuesday night, Democrat Sherrod Brown stood surrounded by signs that read “Workers before billionaires” and blasted rival Republican Sen. Jon Husted as part of the problem.
“Politicians like Jon Husted give handout after handout to corporations and billionaires … the same corporations and billionaires that fund his campaign,” Brown said.
“Jon Husted works for big corporations. Ohio doesn’t have to accept that type of corruption. It’s why we see Ohioans of all backgrounds all over the state showing up to fight for change.”
Husted hasn’t yet spoken or released a statement on his victory for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate.
Democrat Amy Acton points to importance of economic issues for Ohioans
Updated 8:11 p.m. In remarks after capturing the Democratic nomination for Ohio governor, Amy Acton called out the economic struggles faced by many Ohioans, “I am running for governor because people in the state are struggling. They’re doing everything right, they’re working harder than they ever have, but there is no more breathing room.”
Ramaswamy calls victory ‘historic opportunity to lead Ohio’
Updated 8:08 p.m. Speaking shortly after the Associated Press declared Vivek Ramaswamy the winner in the GOP race for governor, he told a crowd in Columbus, “We have a historic opportunity to lead Ohio to be the top state in the country, to raise a young family, to give our kids a world class education, and to be the state where we revive this quaint idea that we call the American dream.”
Races for Ohio governor and U.S. Senate signal a high-stakes November election
Andrew Tobias reports that after a quiet primary night, Ohio heads toward a governor’s and U.S. Senate races that could be among the state’s most consequential November elections in years.
Democrat Sherrod Brown will face Republican Sen. Jon Husted
Ramaswamy vs. Acton for Ohio governor in November
Updated 7:44 p.m.
Vivek Ramaswamy easily won the GOP nomination over YouTuber Casey Putsch. Ramaswamy and his running mate, State Senate President Rob McColley, now face Democrat Dr. Amy Acton and her running mate David Pepper in November.
Amy Acton wins uncontested Democratic primary for governor
Updated 7:31 p.m.
Dr. Amy Acton will likely face Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in a closely watched general election in November.
Jon Husted set for high-profile U.S. Senate race in November
Incumbent Sen. Jon Husted ran unopposed for the Republican nomination after being appointed to fill the seat left vacant by now-Vice President JD Vance. The win sets up a likely high-stakes race between Husted and former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown in what could be a historically expensive campaign.