NEW POLL: Democrats Leading In Ohio’s Crucial Senate And Gubernatorial Races

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, candidate for Ohio governor in 2026, speaks during a town hall at The River Church Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Friday, Sept. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

A new poll out of Ohio shows the state’s two major races both being led by Democrats in the solid red state, which President Donald Trump carried by over 11 points in 2024.

The new survey from AARP, conducted by the bipartisan Fabrizio/Impact pollsters, found Democrat Amy Acton edging out Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in the state’s gubernatorial race and former Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) beating out incumbent Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH).

Brown leads Husted 48 to 45 percent, while Acton edges out Ramaswamy 47 to 44 percent. While both races remain very competitive and near the poll’s margin of error, the poll’s crosstabs carry some particularly worrisome news for Ramaswamy on the question of favorability.

Both Acton and Ramaswamy carry a 36% favorable rating in the poll, but Ramaswamy’s strong negatives are noticeably higher, with 40% viewing him unfavorably to Acton’s 33%. Notably, Ramaswamy also has 16% of Republican voters viewing him unfavorably, as well as 69% of Democrats.

Acton’s spread is much smaller, with only 5% of Democrats viewing her unfavorably, along with 55% of Republicans. She holds a 9-point lead with Independents in the poll as well.

In the Senate race, Brown and Husted carry very similar numbers when it comes to the “very unfavorable” rating, landing at 38 and 37% – respectively. The big difference between the two candidates is that Brown has a 46% favorable rating, while Husted is only at 31%. Brown, who has been a longtime leader in the state, only has 3% of respondents registering “no opinion” about him, while 12% answered “no opinion” about Husted – who only took office in January 2025, replacing JD Vance after he became vice president.

The poll also found a slight edge for Democrats on the generic congressional ballot, leading the GOP 48 to 45 percent. Trump’s favorability rating in the state is 13 points underwater, with 55% of respondents disapproving of his job performance to only 42% approving.

The poll was conducted between June 14th and 16th among 800 likely voters and carries a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.

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