Delaware County

Open seat: Commissioner Barb Lewis, a Republican, did not run again. Vaughan beat Sunbury Mayor Joe St. John in the May Republican primary, 57% to 43%. Neither candidate has a record we could judge, so this is a toss-up and the pick goes to the candidate closer to center-left.

County Auditor (George Kaitsa, Republican, auditor since 2009; he beat Don Rankey in the May primary).

The one contested judicial race is Common Pleas Court, General Division, for the rest of a term ending in 2030: Nickolas K. McCoy, a magistrate in the county's probate and juvenile court, and Emma Mirles-Jones, a court-appointed defense lawyer and former public defender (judges run without party labels in November). Unopposed: Matthew George for the 5th District Court of Appeals, Marianne T. Hemmeter for Common Pleas, General Division, and David Hejmanowski for Probate/Juvenile. We haven't profiled judges yet.

Fills the rest of JD Vance's term, through January 2029. Husted was appointed to the seat in January 2025. Stephen Faris, Anthony Holliman and Timothy Telymonde are registered write-in candidates.

Open seat: Gov. Mike DeWine is term-limited. Governor and lieutenant governor are elected together as a ticket. Four write-in tickets are also registered: Timothy Grady / Andrea Neutzling, Renea Turner / Jalen Turner, Ron Ula / Michael C. Lehnerd, and Heather Hill / Patrick Manley.

Open seat. Dave Yost resigned in June 2026, and Gov. DeWine appointed Andy Wilson to serve out the term; Wilson is not on the ballot.

Open seat: Frank LaRose is term-limited and running for auditor. The secretary of state runs Ohio elections.

Open seat: Keith Faber is running for attorney general.

Open seat: Robert Sprague is running for secretary of state. Both candidates carry a question mark; we lean toward Walsh.

Since 2022 Ohio prints a party label next to Supreme Court candidates and nominates them in party primaries. Republicans wrote that law to help their candidates, and Republican nominees run on it, so we count the Republican label against a justice. We don't hold the label against Democrats, who opposed the change and have to run under it.

Same rule as the race above: we count the Republican party label against a justice, not the Democratic one. Brunner sued to overturn the party-label law.

We describe what the issue does and don't make recommendations. It is Ohio's only statewide issue this year, put on the ballot by the Republican-led legislature.

• Issue 3, photo ID to vote: Writes Ohio's existing photo ID requirement for voting into the state constitution. In-person voters would need an unexpired Ohio driver's license or state ID, a U.S. passport, or a military or VA ID. Mail voters could use a photo ID or, where state law allows, a signature plus another identifier. It changes nothing right away, but repealing or loosening the rule would then take another statewide vote. A yes vote adds it to the constitution; a no vote leaves photo ID as an ordinary state law.

Jordan is "bad" by our rules. Neither challenger has a record we could judge, so this is a toss-up between them and the pick goes to Kolasinski as the candidate closer to center-left.

Open seat: Sen. Andrew Brenner is term-limited. Covers Delaware, Knox, Holmes and Coshocton counties. Charland replaced Janet Wagner, who won the Democratic primary, on the ballot. Rivers beat state Rep. Beth Lear in the Republican primary. Neither has a record we could judge, so this is a toss-up and the pick goes to Charland as the candidate closer to center-left.

Western and southern Delaware County, including the city of Delaware, Powell and part of Dublin, per the Ohio House.

Open seat: Rep. Beth Lear ran for state Senate. Covers the rest of Delaware County plus eastern Knox County. Stevens beat term-limited state Sen. Andrew Brenner in the Republican primary.

A new 0.2% sales tax with no end date for Delaware County Transit, which now has no local tax money and runs on grants, fares and contracts. The agency plans more on-demand microtransit and, later, commuter express service to Columbus; the tax adds 20 cents to a $100 purchase. On the ballot in much of the county. 1808 Delaware; ballot list.

Countywide. A new 1.8-mill, five-year levy for the Delaware County Board of Developmental Disabilities ($63 a year per $100,000; about $25.4 million a year), and a five-year renewal plus 0.5-mill increase for the Delaware-Morrow Mental Health & Recovery Services Board, to 2 mills in all ($50 per $100,000). Ballot list.

A charter amendment put on the ballot by citizen petition that would ban building any data center in Sunbury that draws more than 25 megawatts. 1808 Delaware; ballot text.

For voters in the Delaware County part of Columbus. Two competing charter amendments. One, put on the ballot by petition, would have each council member elected only by voters in the district they represent. The other, put on by City Council, also makes district seats district-only but adds four at-large members elected citywide, growing council to 13 and redrawing district lines. Franklin County numbers them Issues 8 and 9. ABC6 explainer.

Renews 4.85 mills and adds 2.5 mills for five years, 7.35 mills in all ($176 a year per $100,000). Ballot list.

A new 2-mill, four-year Village of Galena operating levy ($70 per $100,000); fire levy renewals in Berlin and Harlem townships; road levies in Concord (renewal), Orange (a new 1 mill) and Oxford (renewal) townships; an Orange Township parks renewal; an Elgin Local Schools renewal; a Delaware Area Career Center renewal at a lower rate (0.75 mill); and Sunday or liquor sales questions for single businesses in Columbus, Delaware, Orange Township, Scioto Township and Sunbury precincts. Full list.