HILLSBORO — Early voting is under way in Highland County, where voters are deciding a Nov. 3 general election ballot topped locally by a contested race for county commissioner and a contested seat on the Fourth District Court of Appeals. The Highland County Board of Elections, at 1575 North High Street in Hillsboro, is open for early in-person voting from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday this week.
One thing Highland County voters will not find on their ballots this fall is a countywide tax levy. The county’s sample ballots carry no county levy question, so the local decisions are about people rather than taxes — the commissioner who helps set the county budget, the judges who hear county cases, and the legislators who represent the county in Columbus and Washington.
The most competitive county race on the ballot is for county commissioner, for the full term beginning Jan. 1, 2027. Howard Zody and Republican Brad Roades are both listed, giving voters a two-candidate choice for a seat on the three-member board that serves as the county’s taxing, budgeting and purchasing authority.
The courthouse races are mostly uncontested. Republican Alex J. Butler is the only candidate for county auditor, John W. Judkins is the only candidate for judge of the Court of Common Pleas’ general division, and Denny Kirk is the only candidate for the court’s juvenile and probate division, both judicial terms beginning Feb. 9, 2027.
One judgeship is genuinely contested. On a supplemental ballot for the Fourth District Court of Appeals, Democrat Todd L. Grace faces Republican Jayme Hartley Fountain for the full term beginning Feb. 9, 2027, while Republican Peter B. Abele is unopposed for the district’s other open seat. The appeals court hears cases arising from Highland County trial courts, making the race one of the most consequential on the local ballot.
District races are competitive up and down the ballot. Republican Mike Carey faces Democrat Don Leonard and Libertarian Brennan Barrington in the 15th Congressional District, Republican Shane Wilkin faces Democrat A. Brian Deer in the 17th Ohio Senate District, and Democrat Amy Wright faces Republican Bob Peterson in the 91st Ohio House District. Township, village and school questions vary by precinct, and voters can check their own sample ballot through the board of elections lookup before voting.
Above the local races, Highland County voters will also help decide Ohio’s statewide contests — governor, attorney general, auditor, secretary of state and treasurer, two seats on the Ohio Supreme Court, the U.S. Senate race between Republican Jon Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown, and statewide Issue 3, the proposed constitutional amendment that would require voters to present photo identification in order to vote.
Early voting hours expand in the final week: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 26, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27, and 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, Oct. 28 to 30, with weekend hours on Saturday, Oct. 24 and Saturday, Oct. 31, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and a final Sunday session on Nov. 1 from 1 to 5 p.m. Voters must bring an accepted photo ID, such as an Ohio driver’s license, a state ID card or a U.S. passport. On Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, polls across Highland County will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.