COLUMBUS — Ohioans will be among those casting the first ballots in midterm elections and races seen as indicators of how much influence Republican former president Donald Trump and progressive Democrats have over their respective parties.
Polls in Ohio open 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m.
Voters across a dozen states are set to decide primary elections this month that will determine the people and priorities leading the GOP into the fall midterms and beyond.
What to bring when you vote:
- Photo ID -OR- other government document
-OR any of the following:
- Military ID
- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Government check
- Paycheck or receipt from direct deposit.
Source: Ohio Secretary of State
Congress: Can Trump sway voters?
Republicans in Ohio will vote Tuesday in one of the most contentious and closely watched Senate primaries in the nation.
Author and venture capitalist JD Vance is seen as the GOP front-runner in the race to replace retiring Sen. Rob Portman after receiving former President Donald Trump’s endorsement. The winner is likely to face 10-term Democratic congressman Tim Ryan in what is expected to be a brutal November for Democrats.
A rematch pitting one of the left’s rising stars against a new U.S. House incumbent backed by the more moderate Democratic establishment will provide another key litmus test of the progressive movement’s Rust Belt clout.
Cleveland Democratic congresswoman Shontel Brown is again facing progressive activist and former state lawmaker Nina Turner.
Brown topped Turner in a special election just last summer.
“Primary 1.0”: Why state legislative races don’t appear on the ballot.
Governor: Challenge from the right
Incumbent Republican Gov. Mike DeWine is facing a test of the far right’s pull in his party, but he appears well positioned to secure the GOP nomination for another term.
DeWine remains the favorite in Tuesday’s primary despite losing the backing of some conservative groups who were angry over his aggressive pandemic policies.
He’s up against three far-right challengers in the primary, including former congressman Jim Renacci.
Democrats are deciding between former Cincinnati mayor John Cranley or former Dayton mayor Nan Whaley as their nominee for governor.
Democrats haven’t won the governor’s office in nearly 16 years.
GOP elections chief faces conservative foe in primary
Ohio’s Republican primary for secretary of state features a matchup between incumbent elections chief Frank LaRose and conservative challenger John Adams, who has questioned the 2020 presidential election results.
The winner will face Democrat Chelsea Clark in November’s general election.
Despite Adams’ open questioning of the 2020 results, Trump’s endorsement of LaRose was expected given LaRose’s 2016 support for Trump and his role on a team that handled logistics for Trump’s 2017 inauguration.
LaRose also brings the strength of incumbency to his campaign and adopted some of Trump’s talking points about voter fraud ahead of Trump’s endorsement.