Sherrod Brown plans comeback Senate campaign in Ohio after huge loss
After losing to Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) last year by over 200,000 votes, Democrat Sherrod Brown has decided to try for a comeback in 2026 and will attempt to unseat Sen. John Husted (R) in 2026, according to Cleveland.com and national outlets Politico and Axios.
Brown has not officially announced his plans. He had been considering whether to run for Senate or go for the governor's seat.
He has an uphill battle to unseat Husted, but the former Senator's presence in the campaign will force Republicans to spend a lot of resources to defend it.
Democrats think Brown is their best hope to take back the Senate, which isn't saying much.
"Electoral transformation"
More than $440 million was spent on the race between Moreno and Brown in 2024, making it the most expensive Senate campaign that year.
A memo by the National Republican Senatorial Committee sounded confident in Brown's continued defeat.
“Ohio has experienced an electoral transformation thanks to President Trump, as evidenced by Sherrod Brown’s failed reelection in 2024,” the memo stated. “We will defeat him by an even wider margin the second time around with a proven winner in Senator Husted.”
“As Ohio reddens and conservative momentum grows, Sherrod Brown’s waning legacy will be that of a two-time loser – and Husted is well positioned to defeat him again,” it continued.
Never lost
To date, Husted has never lost a statewide race. He was appointed to fill Vice President J.D. Vance's seat until the special election in 2026.
The winner of that contest will have to run again in 2028 when Vance's term would have ended.
For his part, Brown has been the only Democrat elected to statewide office in Ohio in the last decade.
Trump carried the state in 2016, 2020, and 2024. In 2024, he had 55% of the vote while then-Vice President Kamala Harris had 44%.
It is important that Republicans hold onto the Senate majority, maybe even more so than the House.
This is because the Senate votes to confirm Trump appointments for his cabinet, high-ranking officials, and judges.
