Nov 3, 2026 · special election
Ohio - United States Senate
⭐ This is one of seven races that will determine control of the Senate! Get caught up ↓
Sherrod Brown
Democrat - Age: 73
Ohio's senator for 18 years until his 2024 defeat. Now trying to win back a seat for the "dignity of work."
Campaign website →
Jon Husted
Republican - Age: 59
Former lieutenant governor, appointed in 2025 to the seat JD Vance vacated. Running to keep it.
Campaign website →
Who's ahead?
CookTOSS-UPSabatoTOSS-UPDDHQTOSS-UP
Ratings: Cook Political Report (Aug 20), Sabato’s Crystal Ball (Aug 26), Decision Desk HQ (Aug 5). Source →
Brown
46
Husted
45
Where they stand
Tap a topic that's important to you.
BROWN SAYS
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HUSTED SAYS
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Money & campaign finance
Where each candidate stands on campaign-finance questions.
BROWN
HUSTED
Yes
Ban Congress from trading stocks
No
Unknown
Takes corporate PAC money
Yes
Corporate PAC sources: Husted: Chevron and ExxonMobil PACs (FEC records via TiffinOhio)
Fundraising
RAISEDCASH ON HANDUNDER-$200 DONORS
Sherrod Brown
$38.6M$16.2M35% of receipts
Jon Husted
$14.4M$9.4M13% of receipts
Campaign committee totals for the 2025–26 cycle, through June 30, 2026. Under-$200 share is unitemized individual contributions divided by total receipts. FEC filings →
Their big promises
BROWN'S TOP 3
The dignity of work
Raise wages, defend union jobs, and punish companies that ship Ohio work overseas.
Lower health care costs
Extend insurance subsidies, cap drug prices, and protect Social Security and Medicare.
Take on corporate power
Rail safety after East Palestine, ban congressional stock trading, crack down on price gouging.
HUSTED'S TOP 3
Jobs & the innovation economy
Bring chip plants, data centers, and tech jobs to Ohio — his signature as lieutenant governor.
Cut taxes & red tape
Lower taxes on families and small businesses; fewer federal regulations.
Secure the border
Back the administration's immigration enforcement and finish the border wall.
Agree or differ?
Tariffs to protect Ohio steel & manufacturing
Brown has backed trade protections for decades · Husted supports the administration's tariffs
Rail safety rules after East Palestine
Brown co-wrote the Railway Safety Act · Husted says he supports tougher rail rules for Ohio
Extend ACA health-insurance subsidies
Brown: yes, blames Husted for premium spikes · Husted: voted with his party against the extension
Abortion
Brown: supports abortion rights and Ohio's 2023 Issue 1 · Husted: opposed Issue 1, anti-abortion record
Ban congressional stock trading
Brown: co-sponsored a ban · Husted: hasn't backed one
No cuts to Social Security or Medicare
Both say the programs are off the table — they differ on who threatens them
Their stories
SHERROD BROWN
1952Born in Mansfield, Ohio; elected to the Ohio House at 22.
2007Began 18 years in the U.S. Senate — three terms as a pro-labor populist.
2024Lost to Bernie Moreno by 3.5 points as Trump carried Ohio by 11.
2026Won the Democratic primary with 89% for a comeback in the seat Vance left.
JON HUSTED
1967Adopted as an infant; raised in Montpelier, northwest Ohio.
2000sSpeaker of the Ohio House, then two terms as secretary of state.
2019Lieutenant governor under Mike DeWine; led the state's tech-jobs push.
2025Appointed to the Senate when JD Vance became vice president.
The backstory
Positions summarized from campaign websites, voting records, and news reports · July 2026
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