Former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown’s chances of winning an Ohio Senate seat have increased, according to new polling.
According to a new survey by Bowling Green State University Democracy and Public Policy Network, 49 percent of people would vote for Brown in the election next year while 48 percent would vote for his Republican rival, the incumbent Jon Husted.
While Browns’ lead is narrow, and within the poll’s margin of error, it is an increase on previous polling which showed Brown was behind Husted in the polls.
Newsweek reached out to Brown and Husted by email to comment on this story.
Why It Matters
Ohio’s special Senate election will be held in November 2026 to determine the seat holder for the remainder of JD Vance’s final two years of his last term, which expires in 2029.
Husted was appointed to fill Vance’s seat after the latter became vice president following Donald Trump’s victory last November.
Once a swing state, Ohio has increasingly leaned Republican, but the Democratic Party will be hoping to make gains in the midterms particularly as historically, the party in the White House loses seats in the midterms.
What To Know
Brown, who served as the Democratic senator for Ohio from 2007 until 2025, entered the race in August after he lost his seat to Republican Senator Bernie Moreno.
The new polling of 800 registered voters gave Brown a lead on Husted by one percentage point. It was conducted between October 2 and 14 and had a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percentage points.
Previous polls suggested Husted was in the lead. A previous survey by Emerson College Polling published in August put Husted on 50 percent support and Brown on 44 percent.
An earlier poll conducted by Bowling Green State University found that 49 percent of participants favored Husted, while 46 percent said they would back Brown in 2026.
William F. Hall, adjunct Professor of Political Science and business at Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri, told Newsweek that there was a “perceptible shifting of the political pendulum, increasingly toward Democratic candidates and away from Republican candidates currently running for political office.”
He said this was because of issues in the economy “including higher cost of living due to rising inflation, the negative impact of the tariffs, tighter job markets, increases in unemployment” and other issues including the federal government shutdown.
What People Are Saying
In a video released announcing his campaign in August, Brown said: “When I see what’s going on, I know I can do something about it for Ohio.”
Jon Husted said in a January press conference when he became Senator: “It is my honor to accept the appointment to serve the people of the state of Ohio and the U.S. Senate. I … appreciate that you have placed so much trust in me, first of all, as a running mate, and then as lieutenant governor and now as your appointee to the Senate. To my friends and supporters and the people across Ohio, we have worked to make Ohio great again, and I look forward to working with President Trump [and] JD Vance to make America great again.”
What Happens Next
The election takes place on November 3, 2026. The Cook Political Report shifted the race to Lean Republican from Likely Republican following Brown’s announcement. Sabato’s Crystal Ball also classifies the race as Leans Republican.
