2010 Ohio Elections
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The Ohio general elections, 2010 were held on November 2, 2010, throughout
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
. Primary elections took place on May 4, 2010.


Federal representatives


United States Senate

In the Democratic primary on May 4, 2010, current Lieutenant Governor
Lee Fisher Lee Irwin Fisher (born August 7, 1951) is an American attorney, politician, and academic. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 64th lieutenant governor of Ohio under governor Ted Strickland from 2007 until 2011. Fisher previously ...
defeated current Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. On November 2, Republican
Rob Portman Robert Jones Portman (born December 19, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Portman was the 35th director of the Office of Management ...
, who has served in two federal cabinet positions and as a member of the U. S. House of Representatives defeated Fisher as well as Eric W. Deaton of the Constitution Party and Dan La Botz of the Socialist Party. Portman replaced Republican Senator
George Voinovich George Victor Voinovich (July 15, 1936June 12, 2016) was an American politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 1999 to 2011. He previously served as the 65th governor of Ohio from 1991 to 1998 and as the 54th mayor of Clev ...
, who retired from office after his second term expired.


United States House of Representatives

All of Ohio's eighteen seats in the United States House of Representatives were up for election in 2010.


State executive branch


Governor and Lieutenant Governor

Incumbent Democratic Governor
Ted Strickland Theodore Strickland (born August 4, 1941) is an American politician who served as the 68th governor of Ohio from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ( ...
ran for reelection to a second term in office. His running mate was Yvette McGee Brown, the founding president of the Center for Child and Family Advocacy at Nationwide Children's Hospital, and former Judge of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas.
John Kasich John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician and author who was the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, and a Republican candidate for the pre ...
, former U.S. Representative and former Chair of the
House Budget Committee The United States House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Its responsibilities include legislative oversight of the federal budget process ...
, was the Republican nominee. His running mate was Ohio State Auditor Mary Taylor. Ken Matesz was the Libertarian nominee. His running mate was Ann Leech. Dennis Spisak was the Green nominee. His running mate was Anita Rios. Kasich narrowly defeated Strickland with 49% of the vote.


Attorney General

In the
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
race, Democratic incumbent
Richard Cordray Richard Adams Cordray (born May 3, 1959) is an American lawyer and politician who served from 2021 to 2024 as COO of Federal Student Aid in the United States Department of Education. From 2012 to 2017, he served as the first director of the Consum ...
was defeated by Republican
Mike DeWine Richard Michael DeWine ( ; born January 5, 1947) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 70th List of governors of Ohio, governor of Ohio since 2019. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served a ...
, a former two-term United States Senator from Ohio and member of the Senate Judiciary Committee as well as a former county prosecutor. DeWine would go on to defeat Cordray once again in the 2018 race for governor with running mate Jon Husted, the former Secretary of State.


Polling


Results


Secretary of State

Ohio's Secretary of State race featured a contested Republican primary on May 4, 2010, between
Jon Husted Jon Allen Husted ( ; born August 25, 1967) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Ohio since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, Husted served as the 66th lieutenant governor of Ohio from 2019 to 2025 an ...
, an Ohio State Senator and former Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, who defeated Sandra O'Brien, a former county auditor in Ashtabula County who secured the support of the
Tea Party movement The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2007, catapulted into the mainstream by Congressman Ron Paul's presidential campaign. The movement expanded in resp ...
. In the general election, Husted defeated Democrat Maryellen O'Shaughnessy, the Clerk of Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, and Charlie Earl, a Libertarian. Incumbent Jennifer Brunner sought the Democratic nomination for United States Senator instead of running for re-election, but lost to incumbent Lt. Governor
Lee Fisher Lee Irwin Fisher (born August 7, 1951) is an American attorney, politician, and academic. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 64th lieutenant governor of Ohio under governor Ted Strickland from 2007 until 2011. Fisher previously ...
. Husted would later go on to run for Lieutenant Governor on Mike DeWine's ticket which defeated Richard Cordray in the 2018 election.


Polling


Results


Treasurer

In the Treasurer race, Democratic incumbent
Kevin Boyce Kevin L. Boyce (born October 5, 1971) is an Americans, American politician and a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party who currently serves as President of the Franklin County, Ohio, Franklin County Board of Commission ...
was defeated by Republican Josh Mandel, a member of the Ohio State House of Representatives and a two tour veteran of the Iraq War, and Matthew Cantrell, a Libertarian candidate.


Polling


Results


Auditor

Ohio's Auditor race also featured a contested Republican primary on May 4, 2010, between Seth Morgan, a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, and Dave Yost, the Prosecuting Attorney for Delaware County, Ohio and former Delaware County Auditor. Yost beat Democrat David A. Pepper, a Commissioner for the
Hamilton County, Ohio Hamilton County is located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 830,639, making it the List of counties in Ohio, third-most populous county in Ohio. The coun ...
Board of Commissioners, and L. Michael Howard, a
Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...
. Republican incumbent Mary Taylor decided to run for Lieutenant Governor as
John Kasich John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician and author who was the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, and a Republican candidate for the pre ...
's running-mate, instead of running for re-election.


Polling


Results


State legislative branch


State Senate

The 17 odd-numbered districts out of 33 seats in the
Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of t ...
were up for election in 2010.


State House of Representatives

All 99 seats in the
Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...
were up for election in 2010.


State judicial branch

Three seats in the
Supreme Court of Ohio The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a chief justice and six associate justices, ...
are up for election, including the office of Chief Justice. The Supreme Court is a non-partisan office and will not appear on primary ballots. Although the Democratic and Republic parties customarily endorse candidates in the general election, those endorsements are not noted on the general election ballots either. Justices Judith Lanziger and Paul Peiffer are running for re-election. Justice Maureen O'Connor is running for Chief Justice. Judges for Ohio District Courts of Appeal and Ohio Courts of Common Pleas will also appear on the ballot.


Chief Justice


Associate Justice


Ballot initiatives

Two measures were approved in the May 4 election. No ballot measures were approved for the general election.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohio Elections, 2010 2010 elections in the United States by state