*As of 7:30 am EST.
Donald Trump Takes Ohio and the Race
Ohio ultimately went for Republican Donald Trump by more than 11 points, improving on his 8-point wins in 2016 and 2020, with Trump winning 55.23% to 43.88% for Vice President Kamala Harris. With early morning calls in Wisconsin and Maine, Trump joins Grover Cleveland in serving split terms in the White House. The races in Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, and Alaska are still uncalled.
Trump will be joined by Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as vice president. Vance is the third Ohioan to serve as vice president – the last vice president from Ohio was Charles Dawes, who was vice president under Calvin Coolidge from 1925-1929.
Preliminary Ohio voter turnout numbers show that turnout was slightly lower this election than in 2020. Turnout is currently estimated at 5.68 million ballots, or 69.69% of registered voters, down from 71.35% in 2020.
Ohio, once a swing-state, has voted for the Republican presidential candidate by comfortable margins in the last three elections. Ohio broke its then longest in the nation streak of voting for the winning candidate in presidential elections, 1964-2016, when it voted for Trump in 2020.
Republican Challenger Bernie Moreno Unseats Senator Sherrod Brown; Republicans Retake Senate Majority
Republican Bernie Moreno has defeated Ohio’s senior Senator, Democrat Sherrod Brown. One of the most expensive Senate races in the country, the contest between incumbent Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown and Republican Bernie Moreno was essentially a dead heat ahead of the election and widely considered to be one of the tightest of toss-up races in the country.
Moreno is a Cleveland-area former car dealership owner, whose family immigrated from Colombia to Florida when he was a young child. Moreno ended up with 50.19% of the vote to Brown’s 46.42%.
Overall, Republicans have won back control of the Senate, having gained at least 52 seats with 6 races still to call. Republicans were favored to take control of the Senate chamber thanks to a 2024 election map that had Democrats defending seven seats in conservative or swing states.
U.S. House Incumbents Have Fared Well, but Two Races Remain Uncalled; Control of House Unclear
Two races remain uncalled in Ohio – incumbents Marcy Kaptur (D) and Emilia Sykes (D) have slight leads at this hour over their Republican challengers. Kaptur, the longest-serving woman in congressional history and the dean of the Ohio delegation, currently has a 1,193-vote (48.14%) lead over her opponent, state Representative Derek Merrin (47.82%), within the automatic recount range. Sykes has a more comfortable 51.05% lead over challenger Kevin Coughlin’s 48.95%.
All other incumbent Ohio House members were able to keep their seats. Additionally, Republican David Taylor was able to keep retiring Republican Congressman Brad Wenstrup’s seat in the 2nd Congressional District. Should the current leads hold, Ohio’s delegation will remain the same, 10 Republicans and 5 Democrats serving in the U.S. House.
- 1st District: Greg Landsman (D)*
- 2nd District: David Taylor (R)
- 3rd District: Joyce Beatty (D)*
- 4th District: Jim Jordan (R)*
- 5th District: Bob Latta (R)*
- 6th District: Michael Rulli (R)*
- 7th District: Max Miller (R)*
- 8th District: Warren Davidson (R)*
- 9th District: Marcy Kaptur (D)*/Derek Merrin (R) – too close to call
- 10th District: Mike Turner (R)*
- 11th District: Shontel Brown (D)*
- 12th District: Troy Balderson (R)*
- 13th District: Emilia Sykes (D)*/Kevin Coughlin (R) – too close to call
- 14th District: David Joyce (R)*
- 15th District: Mike Carey (R)*
It is too early to determine which party will lead the House in the next Congress at this point. Republicans currently enjoy a very slim majority – 220 Republicans; 212 Democrats; 3 vacant (1R, 2D). Democrats would only need to pick up four seats to regain the majority.
Republicans Lose a Seat in Ohio House but Maintain Comfortable Supermajority; Democrats Gain a Seat in the Ohio Senate
Republicans will maintain a 65-34 supermajority in the Ohio House despite the loss of one seat in Lucas County. Democrat Erika White prevailed over Republican challenger Josiah Lienbach in the open 41st House District. Redistricting shuffled three of the seats in Lucas County, and with Representative Derek Merrin’s departure due to term limits, one of the four seats in the county was open. All incumbents that were running prevailed in their races last night. All wins are outside of the automatic recount margin.
In the Senate, Democrats were able to pick up one seat, with Representative Beth Liston (D) prevailing in the 16th Senate District in suburban Franklin County – a seat currently held by term-limited Senator Stephanie Kunze (R). Democrats had hoped to flip the 24th Senate district as well, but Representative Tom Patton (R) was able to hold the seat and will be returning to the Senate. All incumbents prevailed in their races. Despite the loss of a seat, Republicans will maintain a strong supermajority of 25 to 8.
Republicans Take Firm Control of Ohio Supreme Court
Heading into the election, the court had a 4-3 Republican majority, but with wins in all three races, Republicans now have 6-1 majority. Republicans have held a majority on the court since 1986.
Justice Michael Donnelly (D) was defeated by Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas Judge Megan Shanahan (R). Shanahan previously served as a municipal court judge and prosecutor prior to her appointment and subsequent election to the common pleas bench.
Justice Joseph Deters (R) from Hamilton County has bested Justice Melody Stewart (D). Deters was appointed to the court by Governor DeWine in 2023 to finish out the term of then-Justice Sharon Kennedy, who was elected the Chief Justice in 2022. Deters chose to challenge Stewart rather than run for his own seat. Prior to joining the court, Deters was the longest-tenured prosecutor in Hamilton County. He also served as the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts and as a two-term Ohio Treasurer.
Judge Dan Hawkins (R) has won the seat currently held by Justice Deters by defeating Judge Lisa Forbes (D). Hawkins is a judge on the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. He also spent time in the Franklin County prosecutor’s office and as a judge on the Franklin County Municipal Court.
Issue 1 for New Redistricting Commission Fails
Issue 1, a citizen-initiated ballot initiative to create a new independent 14-member commission made up of Ohio voters representing communities across the state to draw future districts, was defeated by a vote of 53.78% of the voters. If it had passed, the amendment would have banned current or former politicians, political party officials and lobbyists from sitting on the Commission and required “fair and impartial districts by making it unconstitutional to draw voting districts that discriminate against or favor any political party or individual politician.” This marks a win for the opposition – primarily the Republican officeholders that serve on the current Redistricting
Commission.
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