While there weren’t any statewide races in Ohio, the leader of the state’s Democrats said she thinks local results suggest positive things for next year.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat from Toledo, has represented the Northwest Ohio district since 1983. She’s one of 13 Democrats representing districts won by President Donald Trump in 2024. Kaptur won her 2024 reelection bid by 0.64 percentage points. Trump carried her district in the same election by 6.7 percentage points over Kamala Harris.

Voters overwhelmingly selected the Democratic-endorsed candidates to help lead the Columbus City Schools board, the state's largest district.

Many Democrats are upset with their legislative leaders after they went along with majority Republicans on a new Ohio congressional map.

Rep. Emilia Sykes, a Democrat from Akron, argues Democrats still have paths to victory with Ohio's new congressional map. Sykes' district became more Democratic-leaning as other Ohio districts shifted toward Republicans.

The Dispatch covered the biggest races of the night, including the contest for a Columbus City Council seat and for three positions on the school board.

Canton area congressional district had been seen as a target for Republicans in 2026, but instead it was made slightly more Democratic.

Ohio's top politicians approved a new congressional map with bipartisan support − a compromise to avoid worst-case scenarios for both parties.

Catherine Turcer, executive director of the voting rights advocacy group Common Cause Ohio, called the process a clear “sham” and “dog-and-pony show,” saying commission members on both sides of the aisle went against the constitutionally-mandated process by not deliberating and engaging the public as the process went along.

Ohio's Republican-led redistricting commission has unveiled a new U.S. House map that could give Republicans a chance to win two more seats in next year's elections