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 →

Party Republican Democratic

Incumbent Secretary of State Frank LaRose Republican

The 2026 Ohio Secretary of State election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026, to elect the Secretary of State of Ohio. Incumbent Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election. He is running for State Auditor of Ohio. ^[1]

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

• Robert Sprague, Ohio State Treasurer (2019–present) (previously ran for governor) ^[2]

Publicly expressed interest

• Theresa Gavarone, Majority Leader of the Ohio Senate (2025–present), member of the Ohio Senate from the 2nd district (2019–present), and candidate for Ohio's 9th Congressional District in 2022 ^[3]

Potential

• Jay Edwards, former State Representative from the 93rd district (2017–2025)

Withdrawn

• Niraj Antani, member of the Ohio Senate (2021–2024), member of the Ohio House of Representatives (2014–2020), and candidate for Ohio's 2nd congressional district in 2024 (running for state treasurer) ^[4]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

• Bryan Hambley, oncologist at UC Health ^[5]

Publicly expressed interest

• Chris Redfern, former state representative (1999–2008, 2013–2014) and former chair of the Ohio Democratic Party (2005–2014) ^[6]

Potential

• Chelsea Clark, Forest Park City Councilwoman (2017–present), nominee for Ohio Secretary of State in 2022.

References

1. "Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose announces bid for state auditor". spectrumnews1.com. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
2. 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.
3. "Gavarone considers running for secretary of state". reviewtimes.com. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
4. 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.
5. "Ohio has its first 2026 Democratic candidate for Secretary of State". Ideastream Public Media. January 8, 2025. Retrieved February 1, 2025.
6. "Former Ohio Democratic Party chair is mulling a return to politics". WOSU Public Media. August 27, 2024. Retrieved February 1, 2025.