COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s U.S. Senate race enters its final 48 hours deadlocked, with Republican Sen. Jon Husted and Democratic former Sen. Sherrod Brown pitching two very different versions of the state’s economy to voters who will decide on Tuesday, November 3, whether Husted keeps the seat or Brown returns to Washington, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
The Suffolk University/USA TODAY Ohio Network survey of likely voters released October 28 showed Brown leading Husted 47% to 44%, inside the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points, The Columbus Dispatch reported. A Fox News survey conducted in October put Brown ahead 52% to 47% among likely voters, according to ElectionTracker’s race summary. Both campaigns call the race a toss-up, and national trackers agree: the Cook Political Report rates Ohio among seven Senate toss-ups, and Decision Desk HQ also rates the race a toss-up.
The seat itself explains the stakes. Gov. Mike DeWine appointed Husted, then his lieutenant governor, to the Senate after JD Vance became vice president, The Columbus Dispatch reported. Because Tuesday’s contest is a special election for Vance’s old seat, the winner serves the remaining two years of the term — and, as the Dispatch noted, could help determine which party controls the Senate for the remainder of President Donald Trump’s time in the White House.
Money has poured in at a record pace. The campaigns and outside groups have spent $500 million on advertising, The Columbus Dispatch reported, a figure that could set new records for ad spending in Ohio. Brown outraised Husted $68.4 million to $19.9 million as of mid-October, according to figures reported in race coverage, reflecting Brown’s national fundraising network.
On the trail, the two men are telling opposite economic stories. Husted told supporters after a campaign event in Vandalia on October 29, “I’m fighting for Ohio values,” The Columbus Dispatch reported, and his campaign touts Ohio’s recent ranking as the best state for business, arguing that years of Republican leadership cut red tape and lowered taxes to lure development. In one spot that began airing October 23, Husted said, “Sen. Sherrod Brown has spent 50 years in office,” the Dispatch reported.
Brown, who lost his seat to Sen. Bernie Moreno in 2024, is framing the race as a referendum on corporate power and the cost of living, according to The Columbus Dispatch. He joined gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton in Cleveland for a rally with former President Barack Obama, while President Trump visited Ohio three times for Husted, including an October 28 rally in Chillicothe, the Dispatch reported. Brown has also appeared with John Legend and members of The National as Husted toured Ohio with top Senate Republicans.
Two minor candidates could matter in a race this close. Libertarian Bill Redpath and independent Greg Levy, a socialist, each drew 1.6% in the Suffolk survey, The Columbus Dispatch reported — a combined 3% in a contest separated by three points. The Dispatch also reported that a GOP-backed organization has spent more than $2.2 million to boost Levy, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Brown led among independent voters in the Suffolk poll, 52% to Husted’s 24%, the Dispatch reported.
What we know — and what we’re still waiting on. What we know: the final public polls show Brown narrowly ahead but within reach of the margin of error; early voting ends Sunday, November 1, at 5 p.m.; and polls are open Tuesday from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. What we’re still waiting on: whether the late advertising wave moved undecided voters, and how the Redpath and Levy votes break in a race where a few points decide everything. No result will be known until ballots are counted Tuesday night.
Ohio’s polls close at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, among the earliest in the nation, which means the Senate race here could be the first major statewide test of election night. Related coverage: federal poll monitors head to Franklin County polls and Vinton County’s final early-voting day.
What happens next: early voting closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, there is no in-person early voting on Monday, and Ohio voters deliver the final verdict on Tuesday, November 3. The winner takes the seat for the remaining two years of the term — and, given the narrow national map, may hold the vote that decides control of the U.S. Senate.
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