The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 3 general election is Oct. 5. Find more information via the Athens County Board of Elections.
ATHENS COUNTY, Ohio — In November, Athens County residents will cast votes to determine who will become Ohio’s next U.S. senator, governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor and treasurer, and state supreme court justices.
Topics of concern for candidates and voters across the board include healthcare costs and cost of living, corruption within government, and data centers.
Following the primary election in May, which set party nominations, the November general election ballot will appear as follows:
Governor
Dr. Amy Acton, Democrat
Acton is from Youngstown and led the Ohio Department of Health from 2019 to 2020 with Gov. Mike DeWine’s administration. She runs her campaign on being a “doctor, advocate and problem-solver,” according to her campaign website.
“I’m a doctor, not a politician,” Acton said in her campaign announcement in 2025. “I solve problems by bringing people together regardless of party to find solutions. So unlike most of our leaders I know the answer to moving our state forward isn’t giving politicians more power, it’s giving people more freedom.”
Acton’s campaign platform headlines transparency between Ohio corporations and citizens, and reducing healthcare costs. As governor, she plans to support the launch of Ohio Rx, an online platform “[leveraging] Ohio’s purchasing power from its Medicaid single pharmacy benefit manager to drive down drug prices for all Ohioans,” according to her website.
Acton has said that as governor she would work to ban fracking in Ohio, create an Anti-Corruption Task Force to evaluate proceedings in her first 100 days, and instate a Working Families Tax Cut.
David Pepper, former chair of the Ohio Democratic Party, is Acton’s running mate.
Vivek Ramaswamy, Republican
Ramaswamy is a biotech engineer born and raised in Cincinnati. After ending his 2024 presidential run, Ramaswamy launched a bid to lead Ohio as governor.
Ramaswamy’s governor campaign mission focuses on cost of living and “Reviving the American Dream in Ohio,” with goals to increase resident wealth and improve education systems in the state, according to his website.
Ramaswamy’s platform goals are to increase affordability by limiting property taxes, reduce electric bills by expanding natural gas and streamlining energy project permits, to establish “world-class” education, and increase government police support.
Republican Sen. Robert E. McColley, president of the Ohio Senate, is Ramaswamy’s running mate. McColley has been a senator since 2017, and the legislative body’s leader since January 2025. His governor campaign focused on tax reform and improving education, and he previously backed and aided in passing Senate Bill 1, barring public universities from implementing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Don Kissick, Libertarian
Kissick spent six years in the Navy and moved to Ottawa in 2007. He initially was drawn to Ohio because of the lower cost of living, according to his bio.
Kissick’s key topics of interest include prohibiting government use of automated license-plated surveillance devices, including Flock cameras, and preventing state funding mass-surveillance networks.
His campaign supports the End Property Tax amendment and he is in favor of local consumption-based funding.
Kissick’s policy plan would prohibit legislators from becoming lobbyists five years after leaving office, simplify licensing for small businesses, and enact constitutional amendments protecting language for LGBTQIA+ marriage, according to this website.
James L. Mills is Kissick’s running partner.
U.S. Senate
Jon Husted, Republican
Incumbent
Husted once served as Ohio’s former Lieutenant Governor. In 2024, he was appointed to fill Vice President J.D. Vance’s seat in the Senate, and is currently running to maintain that seat. Sen. Husted’s platform prioritizes the economy and a “pro-business environment,” according to his website. He pledges support and funding for the police department and anti-abortion policies.
Sherrod Brown, Democrat
Brown was born in Mansfield and has served in the Ohio House of Representatives, as Ohio’s secretary of state, and in the U.S. House of Representatives. He previously served three terms in the Senate before losing to Sen. Bernie Moreno in 2024, and is running to reclaim his position. Brown’s campaign promises accountability for healthcare companies, lower prescription drug costs for Ohioans, to privatize data center utility costs to bring down utility costs for affected areas, and to target political corruption.
Greg Levy, Other-Party
Levy is an Akron-raised Socialist whose platform includes rallying support in Ohio for a socialist movement. He promises to significantly raise the minimum wage to match the cost of living, combat data center development, and reinstate 2020 legislature mitigating student debt, and expand health insurance/Medicaid and unemployment assistance.
William Redpath, Libertarian
Redpath, born in Findlay and living in Perrysburg, describes his platform as a combination of “conservative stances on economic issues and generally liberal position on social issues,” based in a philosophy of self-autonomy outside of harming others, according to his website.
Redpath is the former chairman of the Libertarian National Committee. He opposes recent tariffs imposed by the federal government, and wants to decrease federal government spending, supports the elimination of the federal departments of education and housing, and turning consensual crime laws over to states including drug and gambling policies.
Attorney General
Keith Faber, Republican
Currently serving as Auditor of State, Faber resides in Celina.
Faber’s bid for attorney general emphasizes increased support for law enforcement in Ohio and mitigating opioid and drug related crime by advocating for increased addiction treatment services.
He plans to combat healthcare costs through his proposed Health Insurance Denial Resolution Program, modeled after programs in New York and Maryland. The program is outlined as a way for Ohio individuals and families to navigate medical claim denials, and receive intervention and advocacy from the state when interacting with medical insurance companies.
John J. Kulewicz, Democrat
Kulewicz grew up in Columbus, where he has worked as a litigator for over 40 years and is currently an Upper Arlington city council representative. His campaign focuses on identifying and combatting “price-fixing monopolies,” robocallers, and nursing home and health insurance scams. If elected, he plans to “take on corrupt politicians and restore transparency and accountability to our government,” according to his website.
His campaign includes endorsements from the Ohio Education Association, United Mine Workers of America, and Buckeye Veterans Coalition.
Auditor of State
Annette Blackwell, Democrat
Currently serving a third term as mayor of Maple Heights in Cuyahoga County, Blackwell’s run for state auditor prioritizes fighting corruption in Ohio’s government, protecting taxpayer dollars and local government funds from state entities, and increasing representation awareness in redistricting efforts.
Frank LaRose, Republican
Currently in his second term as Ohio’s Secretary of State, LaRose plans to continue focusing on “election administration and economic development” growth in Ohio. He previously served two terms as a state senator, and his term as secretary of state ends this year.
LaRose’s campaign platform centers on “transparency, efficiency and accountability,” and has previously received endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Secretary of State
Allison Russo, Democrat
Rep. Russo is currently a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing parts of Franklin County. She formerly served as House Minority Leader.
Russo is running for secretary of state on a platform prioritizing bipartisan collaboration. She has championed protecting reproductive rights and increasing funding to grow the mental healthcare workforce, according to her campaign website.
Robert Sprague, Republican
Sprague is from Findlay and formerly served as its auditor and treasurer. He plans to work with Trump to allow the government to access federal citizenship data and increase security measures on ballots, as written on his campaign site.
Tom Pruss, Libertarian
Pruss has said his campaign priorities include protecting ballot opportunities and supporting small businesses. Previously serving on the Toledo Public School Board of Education and Lucas County Clerk of Courts, he hopes to streamline hurdles for Ohio residents and business owners regarding regulation, both in and out of election season.
Treasurer of State
Jay Edwards, Republican
Raised in Nelsonville and a former member of the Ohio House of Representatives, Edwards’ platform champions expanding Ohio Checkbook Program for increased government transparency, investing in community banks and credit unions and eliminating fraud efforts, according to his website.
Seth Walsh, Democrat
Walsh is a Cincinnati City Council member and Xavier University graduate. His platform for treasurer sits on firm plans to cut funding to outside nations, including Israel, and increasing loan capabilities via community banks. Fostering small business growth in downtown areas and developing affordable housing is a central part of Walsh’s goals, as well as strong protections for data center ratepayers.
Investing in Ohio farms and resurgence of public neighborhoods is also part of Walsh’s outline for treasurer.
Ohio Supreme Court
Marilyn Zayas, Democrat
A member of Ohio’s First District Court of Appeals for nine years, Zayas has been appointed to sit on the Ohio Supreme Court four times.
Zayas has been an Ohio resident for over 30 years and earned a law degree from University of Cincinnati. Previously, she was an information technology manager at Procter & Gamble.
“I enter this race as a judge whose record has earned trust across political lines,” Zayas writes on her campaign website.
Daniel R. Hawkins, Republican
Elected to the court in November 2024, Hawkins was born and raised in Columbus, serving as a prosecutor in Franklin County and implemented strategy for preventing abandoned or inhabited properties from attracting criminal activity, according to his bio.
Ohio Supreme Court
Jennifer Brunner, Democrat
Incumbent
Prior to election to the court in 2020, Brunner served as a judge in appellate court and pleas court and founded Franklin County’s adult felony drug court in 2004. She is a JFK Profile in Courage Award recipient.
Colleen O’Donnell, Republican
Previously serving as U.S. immigration judge in Texas, O’Donnell has “never once granted asylum, and consistently ordered the removal of illegal aliens from our country,” according to her campaign website.
Voting information
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, and voter registration closes at 9p.m. Monday, Oct. 5. Find more information via the Athens County Board of Elections.
