2026 Ohio Secretary of State election

For related races, see 2026 United States secretary of state elections.

2026 Ohio Secretary of State election

←  2022 November 3, 2026 2030 →
Reporting	98% as of 2:42 PM EST
Nominee Allison Russo Robert Sprague Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,287,160 2,129,981 Percentage 50.25% 46.80%
County results Russo:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Sprague:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%     80–90%
Secretary of State before election Frank LaRose Republican Elected Secretary of State Allison Russo Democratic

The 2026 Ohio Secretary of State election was held on November 3, 2026, to elect the secretary of state of Ohio. Incumbent Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose was term-limited and instead ran for state auditor. ^[1] Primary elections were held on May 5, 2026.

Term-limited Republican state treasurer Robert Sprague ran to succeed LaRose, but was defeated by former Ohio House of Representatives minority leader Allison Russo in the general election. ^[2]

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Robert Sprague, Ohio state treasurer (2019–present) (previously ran for governor) ^[3]

Eliminated in primary

• Marcell Strbich, retired Air Force officer and combat veteran ^[4]

Withdrawn

• Niraj Antani, former state senator (2021–2024) and candidate for Ohio's 2nd congressional district in 2024 (ran for state treasurer, later withdrew) ^[5]

Declined

• Jay Edwards, former state representative from the 94th district (2017–2025) (running for state treasurer) ^[6]

Endorsements

Robert Sprague

Labor unions

• Central Midwest Regional Council of Carpenters ^[7]

Marcell Strbich

Executive branch officials

• Michael Flynn, former United States National Security advisor (2017) ^{[a] [8]}

Declined to endorse

Newspapers

• The Plain Dealer ^[9]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [b]	Margin of error	Robert Sprague	Marcell Strbich	Undecided
co/efficient (R) [10]	January 20–22, 2026	819 (LV)	± 3.4%	4%	12%	84%

Results

Primary results by county:

  Sprague

•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%
•   80–90%

  Strbich

•   50–60%

Republican primary ^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert Sprague	543,551	70.2
	Republican	Marcell Strbich	230,584	29.8
Total votes			774,135	100.0

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Allison Russo, former minority leader of the Ohio House of Representatives (2022–2025) and nominee for Ohio's 15th congressional district in 2021 ^[12]

Eliminated in primary

• Bryan Hambley, oncologist at UC Health ^[13]

Endorsements

Bryan Hambley

U.S. representatives

• Mary Jo Kilroy, former OH-15 (2009–2011) ^[14]

Statewide officials

• Dick Celeste, former governor of Ohio (1983–1991) ^[15]

State legislators

• Nickie Antonio, Senate minority leader from SD-23 (2019–present) ^[15]

Local officials

• Tony Cuda, former interim mayor of Cleveland Heights (2025), president of Cleveland Heights Council (2022–present) ^[16]
• Stephanie Howse-Jones, Cleveland City Council Ward 7 (2022–present) ^[15]

Political parties

• Ohio Working Families Party ^[17]

Allison Russo

Organizations

• 314 Action ^[18]
• EMILYs List ^[19]
• Ohio Chamber of Commerce ^[20]

Labor unions

• Greater Cincinnati Building and Construction Trades Council ^[21]
• Ohio Education Association ^[15]

Newspapers

• The Plain Dealer ^[9]

Declined to endorse

Political parties

• Ohio Democratic Party ^[22]

Fundraising

Campaign finance reports as of January 30, 2026
Candidate	Raised	Spent	Cash on hand
Brian Hambley (D)	$886,244 [c]	$175,480	$545,918
Allison Russo (D)	$367,725	$175,773	$192,458
Source: Ohio Secretary of State [23] [24]

Results

Primary results by county:

  Russo

•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%

Democratic primary results ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Allison Russo	487,313	67.4
	Democratic	Bryan Hambley	235,668	32.6
Total votes			722,981	100.0

Libertarian primary

Candidates

Nominee

• Tom Pruss, small business owner and nominee for Ohio's 9th congressional district in 2024 ^[26]

Results

Libertarian primary results ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Libertarian	Tom Pruss	8,633	100.0
Total votes			8,633	100.0

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball [28]	Tossup	October 29, 2026

Post-primary endorsements

Allison Russo (D)

Organizations

• EMILYs List ^[29]

Results

2026 Ohio Secretary of State election ^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Allison Russo	2,287,160	50.25%
	Republican	Robert Sprague	2,129,981	46.80%
	Libertarian	Tom Pruss	134,179	2.95%
Total votes			4,551,320	100.0%
	Democratic gain from Republican

Notes

1. Flynn was a Democrat during his time as National Security advisor, but became a registered Republican in 2021.
2. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
3. $165,000 of this total was self-funded by Hambley.

References

1. Leigh, Harri (February 10, 2025). "Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose announces bid for state auditor". Spectrum News . Retrieved February 12, 2025.
2. BeMiller, Haley (November 3, 2026). "Democrat Allison Russo wins Ohio secretary of state race" . The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved November 4, 2026.
3. Balmert, Jessie; BeMiller, Haley (February 5, 2025). "Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague to run for secretary of state, backs Ramaswamy for governor". The Columbus Dispatch . Retrieved February 5, 2025.
4. "Strbich Surpasses $200K Raised in First Six Weeks of Campaign". PR Newswire. July 29, 2025. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
5. Glynn, Erin (February 12, 2025). "Former Ohio Sen. Niraj Antani drops out of secretary of state race to run for treasurer". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
6. Pelzer, Jeremy (April 11, 2025). "Ex-lawmaker Jay Edwards enters crowded GOP primary for Ohio Treasurer in 2026". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
7. "The Central Midwest Carpenters is proud to endorse Vivek Ramaswamy for Ohio Governor, Keith Faber for Ohio Attorney General, and Robert Sprague for Ohio Secretary of State". Central Midwest Carpenters on Facebook. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
8. Pelzer, Jeremy (November 6, 2025). "Ohioans overwhelmingly vote to fund libraries in wake of state funding cuts: Capitol Letter". Cleveland News. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
9. "Endorsement roundup for the May 5, 2026, primary election". The Plain Dealer . April 7, 2026. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
10. "Ohio Secretary of State 2026 Republican Primary". January 22, 2026. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
11. "May 5, 2026 Primary/Special Election Official Canvass". Ohio Secretary of State. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
12. Petcash, Doug (August 21, 2025). "State Rep. Allison Russo announces bid for Ohio Secretary of State". WBNS-TV . Retrieved August 21, 2025.
13. Wilkinson, Howard (January 8, 2025). "Ohio has its first 2026 Democratic candidate for Secretary of State". Ideastream . Retrieved February 1, 2025.
14. HambleyforOhio (October 8, 2025). "I'm pleased to announce that I've been endorsed by former Ohio District 15 (Franklin County) Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy, who shared the following: "Gerrymandered districts are antithetical to democracy. I support Bryan Hambley for Secretary of State because he will make sure that Ohio will have fair elections." Thank you Congresswoman for your support of my campaign! #HambleyForOhio #CareforOhio #Endorsement #SecretaryofState" . Retrieved April 22, 2026– via Facebook.
15. Suddes, Thomas. "Opponents of Ohio property-tax repeal begin organizing against it: Thomas Suddes". Cleveland.com. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
16. HambleyforOhio (October 29, 2025). "Endorsed!" . Retrieved April 22, 2026– via Facebook.
17. Monaco, Charles (April 2, 2026). "Ohio WFP Endorses Slate of Candidates and Ballot Measures". Working Families Party. Retrieved April 4, 2026.
18. "314 Action Fund Endorses Allison Russo for Ohio Secretary of State". 314action.org. January 29, 2026. Retrieved February 11, 2026.
19. "EMILYs List Expands Ohio Electoral Push with Endorsements of Knickerbocker, Brunner, Zayas, and Russo". emilyslist.org. March 5, 2026. Retrieved March 5, 2026.
20. Tobias, Andrew (April 21, 2026). "Ohio Secretary of State Democratic primary pits outsider vs. insider". Signal Ohio. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
21. "Greater Cincinnati Building and Construction Trades Council endorses Allison Russo for Secretary of State". The Chronicle. March 22, 2026. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
22. Tobias, Andrew (April 21, 2026). "In Democratic primary for Ohio secretary of state, a first-time candidate gains traction in race against party veteran". Signal . Retrieved April 22, 2026.
23. "Citizens to Elect Allison Russo". Ohio Secretary of State . Retrieved April 22, 2026.
24. "Hambley for Ohio". Ohio Secretary of State . Retrieved April 22, 2026.
25. "May 5, 2026 Primary/Special Election Official Canvass". Ohio Secretary of State. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
26. Henry, Megan (February 6, 2026). "Here are the candidates running for Ohio statewide office in 2026". Ohio Capital Journal . Retrieved February 8, 2026.
27. "May 5, 2026 Primary/Special Election Official Canvass". Ohio Secretary of State. Retrieved June 5, 2026.
28. Jacobson, Louis (October 29, 2026). "The Outlook for State Attorneys General and Secretaries of State". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 29, 2026.
29. "State and Local Candidates". EMILYs List. Retrieved August 8, 2026.
30. "Ohio Decides - Election Night Reporting - Secretary of State". Ohio Secretary of State. Retrieved November 4, 2026.

External links

Official campaign websites

• Tom Pruss (L)
• Allison Russo (D)
• Robert Sprague (R)