COLUMBUS, Ohio — With the 2026 primary coming up shortly, we created an election guide on everything you need to know about the May 5 election.
If this guide is missing any candidate, please email Statehouse reporter Morgan Trau at morgan.trau@wews.com with the subject line "2026 PRIMARY GUIDE UPDATE."
Ohio primaries are partisan but open, meaning voters do not have to register as one political party before the election. Ohio only recognizes two major and one minor party: Democrats, Republicans and Libertarians. However, voters who wish to remain unaffiliated can vote on nonpartisan ballot questions and issues.
Not every race has a competitive primary election. If an individual doesn't have a primary opponent, they will appear on the general election ballot in November, as well as the May primary.
Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by last name. Independent candidates will not be on the primary ballot.
(i) indicates incumbent. N/A indicates no qualifying candidate. A * before a race means that there is no competitive primary, yet candidates will still appear on the May ballot.
Statewide races
Governor and lieutenant governor
Democratic: Amy Acton with David Pepper
Republican: Casey Putsch with Kimberly Georgeton, Vivek Ramaswamy with Rob McColley, ****Heather Hill with Stuart Moats
Libertarian: Donald C. Kissick with James L. Mills
****Please note, any votes for Republican candidate Heather Hill, who will be on the ballot, will be void. Her running mate, Stuart Moats, withdrew from the race.
U.S. Senate
Democratic: Sherrod Brown, Ron Kincaid
Republican: Jon Husted (i)
Libertarian: Jeffrey Kanter, William Redpath
Attorney General
Democratic: Elliott Forhan, John J. Kulewicz
Republican: Keith Faber
Libertarian: N/A
Secretary of State
Democratic: Bryan Hambley, Allison Russo
Republican: Robert Sprague, Marcell Strbich
Libertarian: Tom Pruss
*State Auditor
Democratic: Annette Blackwell
Republican: Frank LaRose
Libertarian: N/A
State Treasurer
Democratic: Seth Walsh
Republican: Jay Edwards, Kristina Roegner
Libertarian: N/A
*Ohio Supreme Court: Seat 1
Democratic: Marilyn Zayas
Republican: Daniel R. Hawkins (i)
Libertarian: N/A
Ohio Supreme Court: Seat 2
Democratic: Jennifer Brunner (i)
Republican: Andrew King, Jill Lanzinger, Ronald Lewis, Colleen O'Donnell
Libertarian: N/A
Regional races
U.S. House of Representatives
District 1 – Clinton, Hamilton (part), Warren
Democratic: Greg Landsman (i), Damon Lynch IV
Republican: Holly Adams, Eric Conroy, Steven Erbeck, Rosemary Oglesby-Henry
Libertarian: John D. Hancock, Jr., Jason Stoops (write-in)
District 2 – Adams, Athens, Brown, Clermont, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs, Morgan, Perry (part), Pike, Ross, Scioto, Vinton, Washington
Democratic: Jen Mazzuckelli, Todd Wilson
Republican: Bob Carr, David Taylor (i)
Libertarian: N/A
District 8 – Butler (part), Darke, Hamilton (part), Miami (part), Preble
Democratic: Vanessa Enoch, Madaris Grant
Republican: Warren Davidson (i)
Libertarian: N/A
District 10 – Butler (part), Greene, Montgomery
Democratic: Janice Beckett, David Esrati, Manuel Foggie, Jan Kinner, Kristina Knickerbocker, Tony Pombo
Republican: Michael Turner (i)
Libertarian: Thomas McMasters
District 15 – Clark (part), Fayette, Franklin (part), Highland, Madison, Miami (part), Pickaway
Democratic: Don Leonard, Adam Miller
Republican: Mike Carey (i)
Libertarian: Brennan Barrington
Appellate judges
There will be 21 intermediate appellate court seats open in November.
*1st District Court of Appeals – Hamilton (one seat open)
Judge 1
Democratic: Ginger S. Bock (i)
Republican: N/A
Libertarian: N/A
*4th District Court of Appeals – Adams, Athens, Gallia, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs, Pickaway, Pike, Ross, Scioto, Vinton, Washington (one seat open)
Judge 1
Democratic: N/A
Republican: Peter Abele (i)
Libertarian: N/A
12th District Court of Appeals – Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Fayette, Madison, Preble, and Warren (two seats open)
Judge 1
Democratic: N/A
Republican: Robert Hendrickson (i)
Libertarian: N/A
Judge 2
Democratic: N/A
Republican: Matthew Byrne (i)
Libertarian: N/A
District maps
First things first, you need to figure out what district you live in. The Secretary of State website has a handy tool called "Find my District."
Once you are there, type in your address. You should get a pop-up stating the numbers for your House, Senate, Congressional and school district.
Remember or write those down, and come back to this guide.
State Senate
The odd-numbered seats are up for election this year. Once again, a * means that there is no competitive primary.
*District 5: Butler (part), Darke (part), Miami, Montgomery (part), Preble
Democratic: N/A
Republican: Phil Plummer
Libertarian: N/A
District 7: Hamilton (part), Warren
Democratic: Cara Jacob
Republican: Zac Haines, Kim Lukens
Libertarian: N/A
*District 9: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Catherine Ingram (i)
Republican: N/A
Libertarian: N/A
State House
All 99 seats are up for election.
*District 24: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Dani Isaacsohn (i)
Republican: N/A
Libertarian: N/A
*District 25: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Cecil Thomas (i)
Republican: N/A
Libertarian: N/A
*District 26: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Ashley Bryant Bailey (i)
Republican: Tom Brinkman Jr.
Libertarian: N/A
*District 27: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Rachel Baker (i)
Republican: Elizabeth Maier
Libertarian: N/A
*District 28: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Karen Brownlee (i)
Republican: Jill Cole
Libertarian: N/A
*District 29: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Jonathan Bradner
Republican: Cindy Abrams (i)
Libertarian: N/A
*District 30: Hamilton (part)
Democratic: Caleb Price
Republican: Mike Odioso (i)
Libertarian: N/A
District 40: Butler (part), Montgomery (part), Preble
Democratic: Timothy Hornbacker (write-in)
Republican: Rodney Creech (i), Jeffrey Todd Smith
Libertarian: Joshua Umbaugh
*District 45: Butler (part)
Democratic: Jayson Ameer Rasheed
Republican: Jennifer Gross (i)
Libertarian: N/A
*District 46: Butler (part)
Democratic: Benjamin McCall
Republican: Thomas Hall (i)
Libertarian: N/A
*District 47: Butler (part)
Democratic: Jordan Haire
Republican: Diane Mullins (i)
Libertarian: Jason Purviance
*District 55: Warren (part)
Democratic: Paul Kurtz
Republican: C. Michelle Teska (i)
Libertarian: Philip L. Pirdy
*District 56: Warren (part)
Democratic: Laalitya Acharya
Republican: Adam Mathews (i)
Libertarian: N/A
District 62: Clermont (part)
Democratic: Ian Schwartz
Republican: Dillon Blevins, Jean Schmidt (i)
Libertarian: Ron Grethel
*District 63: Brown (part), Clermont (part)
Democratic: Debbie Davidson
Republican: Adam Bird (i)
Libertarian: N/A
*District 90: Adams, Brown (part), Scioto
Democratic: Collin Docterman
Republican: Justin Pizzulli (i)
Libertarian: N/A
*District 91: Fayette, Highland, Pike, Ross (part)
Democratic: Amy Wright
Republican: Bob Peterson (i)
Libertarian: N/A
Ballot issues
There are no statewide ballot issues this election; there are plenty of local ones.
There are 549 local ballot issues across the state, most of them tax levies. Of those, 74 come from school districts. Thirty-six districts have a property tax levy, 33 have an income tax levy, four have bonds, and one has a combination proposal. Three library districts also have tax levies.
Public safety needs make up the majority of the requests for money.
Some of our stories (which will continue to be updated)
Southwest Ohio
- Little Miami school levy
- Mount Healthy, New Richmond, Fairfield and North College Hill school levies
- Reading police and fire levy
- Delhi Township fire levy
- Batavia Township fire levy
- Butler County disability services levy
Due to the vast number of races across a state of about 12 million people, we are limiting our local races in this guide.
Municipalities differ in who is on the ballot, but most should have state central committee members and common pleas judges.
Voting
Election Day is May 5. Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. If not returned by mail, absentee ballots must be received by your board of elections by 7:30 p.m.
Early voting started on April 7. You MUST vote at your county board of elections if you are voting early.
You had to have been registered to vote by April 6 in order to vote in the primary.
If you do not know your county's website, click or tap here. This contains their addresses, emails and phone numbers.
Click here to check your registration status.
Election Schedule
April 7: Early in-person and mail-in voting begins for the general population (military and overseas began earlier)
April 28: Your board of elections must receive your absentee ballot applications by 8:30 p.m.
May 5: Mailed absentee ballots (except military) must be received by 7:30 p.m.
May 9: Military ballots must be received.
Early voting hours
April 28: 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
April 29 to May 1: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
May 2: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
May 3: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
There is no early voting on May 4.
Where to vote
Click here to find your polling location for May 5. Once again, you MUST vote at your county board of elections if you are voting early.
Voter identification
You need to bring a photo ID when voting in person. Acceptable forms are a valid Ohio driver's license, a U.S. passport or a military ID. You may no longer use bank statements or utility bills.
RELATED: What you need to vote at the polls in Ohio
Other acceptable forms of ID are a state of Ohio ID card, an interim ID form issued by the Ohio BMV, a U.S. passport card, an Ohio National Guard ID card and a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ID card.
Other unacceptable forms of ID are a driver’s license or photo identification card issued by a state other than Ohio; a Social Security card, birth certificate, insurance card, government check, paycheck or other government document; or any registration acknowledgment notice from the county board of elections.
The IDs must have an expiration date that has not passed, a photograph of the voter, and the voter’s name, which must substantially conform to the voter’s name as it appears in the Poll List or in the Poll Book.
If you do not have any of the approved forms of identification, you are allowed to cast a provisional ballot. To have your vote counted, you must return to the BOE within four days of the election to provide a photo ID.
Clothing
If you're looking for a smooth voting process in Ohio, don't wear political attire to the polls.
State rules prohibit voters or poll workers from wearing anything that can be seen as supporting or opposing a candidate, party or issue.
You will still be allowed to vote, but you will be asked to either turn a shirt inside out or take off a hat.
Nonpartisan voter helpline
If you have any questions or concerns about voting, a nonpartisan helpline has been created.
Call or text 1-866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) to speak with a trained Election Protection volunteer in English.
The hotline also comes in different languages.
Spanish: 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)
Asian languages: 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683)
Arabic: 844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287)
This guide touches on statewide, congressional, Statehouse and some major local races. If you believe this guide is missing any candidate or race, please email Statehouse reporter Morgan Trau at morgan.trau@wews.com with the subject line "2026 PRIMARY GUIDE UPDATE." This guide will consistently be updated as we continue to report on election-related topics.
*Please note that not every local race will be added.
