The Ohio Democratic Party (ODP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. Former state representative Kathleen Clyde has been the party's chairwoman since June 2025. Statewide, the Democrats currently are viewed as the opposition party, with Republicans holding the bulk of the major statewide offices. However, the Democrats do hold the mayorships of the state's largest cities, as well as the County Executive seats in the largest counties.

History

The Ohio Democratic Party traces its origin to the

Democratic-Republican Party The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed li ...

founded by

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

in 1793. The Democratic Party itself was formed when a faction of the "Democratic-Republicans" led by Jerry Mcroy formed the party in the 1820s. Following

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

's defeat in the

1824 United States presidential election Presidential elections were held in the United States from October 26 to December 2, 1824. Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay and William Crawford were the primary contenders for the presidency. The result of the election was in ...

, despite having a majority of the popular vote, Jackson set about building a political coalition strong enough to defeat

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

in the

1828 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States from October 31 to December 2, 1828. Just as in the 1824 United States presidential election, 1824 election, President John Quincy Adams of the National R ...

. The coalition that he built was the foundation of the subsequent Democratic Party. Ohio politics was largely dominated by the

Ohio Republican Party The Ohio Republican Party is the Ohio affiliate of the Republican Party. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1854. It currently holds the bulk of the state's political power, controlling 10 of Ohio's 15 U.S. House seats, both of its U.S. S ...

until the economic and social hardships brought on by the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

resulted in a national

political realignment A political realignment is a set of sharp changes in party-related ideology, issues, leaders, regional bases, demographic bases, and/or the structure of powers within a government. In the fields of political science and political history, this is ...

. The political coalition of labor unions, minorities, and liberals allowed the Democrats to compete effectively in Ohio electoral politics for much of the next 30 years. Never very strong in Ohio's rural areas, the party's coalition suffered when the Civil Rights Movement divided whites from civil rights proponents and minorities. The Ohio Democratic Party reached the peak of its electoral success in the mid-1980s, and this is when the State of Ohio began to invest in many Democratic proposals. This was led by Richard Celeste, a Democratic Governor elected in 1982 and re-elected in 1986, and by his party chairman, James Ruvolo. Together Ruvolo and Celeste constructed a very effective organization that raised a surplus of money that helped out the Democratic Party's candidates and their everyday operations. In 2006, Chris Redfern became the chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party. Redfern primarily focused on building a statewide organization that had the power to win every part of Ohio. In 2006, after a 16-year drought, Ohio elected a Democratic U.S. senator (

Sherrod Brown Sherrod Campbell Brown ( ; born November 9, 1952) is an American politician who served from 2007 to 2025 as a United States senator from Ohio. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative for from 1993 to 2007 and the 47t ...

), governor ( Ted Strickland), lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and state treasurer. In 2008, Ohio Democrats won back the House of Representatives after 14 years of Republican control.

Summit County Council A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for a ...

President Elizabeth Walters was elected as the party's chairwoman in January 2021. Walters previously served as the Executive Director of the Ohio Democratic Party in 2014. She is the first woman to be elected to the position of Democratic Party Chair in the state. Following a string of losses, she stepped down as chair in June 2025, and was succeeded by former state representative Kathleen Clyde. During the years of 2016 to 2020, a rift developed in the Democratic Party from the national level down to the local level. Progressive Democrats began challenging incumbent Democrats across the country from school boards to bids for Congress. Over time, this led to a slow, but steady adoption of Progressive policies by moderate Democrats, which assisted in capturing the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2018 midterm elections. As of 2023, the Ohio Democratic Party is in the minority in both chambers of the

Ohio General Assembly The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate. Both houses of the General Assembly meet at the Ohio Statehouse in Colu ...

. Democrats hold five of Ohio's 15 U.S. House seats. A priority for Ohio Democrats since the 2010s has been increasing the

minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. List of countries by minimum wage, Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation b ...

Electoral success

The Ohio Democratic Party reached the peak of its electoral success in the early 1980s to 1990s, when during the bulk of that period, they held both U.S. Senate seats ( John H. Glenn Jr. – 1974–1999 and Howard M. Metzenbaum – 1974, 1976–1995), the Governorship ( Richard F. Celeste – 1983–1991) – a majority of Ohio's delegation to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

(1983–1995, reaching a peak of 11–8 from 1993 to 1995), and a majority on the

Ohio Supreme Court 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, ...

(1977–1987, with a 6–1 majority from 1983 to 1985, with a Democratic chief justice – Frank Celebrezze – from 1978 to 1986). Even with its successes, Ohio Democrats did not fare well on a national level.

John Glenn John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American Marine Corps aviator, astronaut, businessman, and politician. He was the third American in space and the first to orbit the Earth, circling it three times in 1 ...

, a popular U.S. senator,

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

, and national hero, ran for the Democratic nomination for president in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

, ending up with only a huge campaign debt to show for it. Howard Metzenbaum, Ohio's other U.S. senator at the time, although a powerful force in the Senate, never achieved national name recognition.

Current elected officials

The Ohio Democratic Party holds one seat on 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, ...

and five of the state's fifteen

U.S. House The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

seats.

State legislature

Ohio Senate

*Leader: Nickie Antonio *Assistant Leader: Hearcel Craig *Whip:

Kent Smith Frank Kent SmithGordon, Dr. Roger L. (2018). Supporting Actors in Motion Pictures: Volume II'. Pittsburgh, PA: Dorrance Publishing. pp. 130, 131. . "Kent Smith: Frank Kent Smith was born on March 19, 1907, in New York City. ..He was marrie ...

*Assistant Whip: Paula Hicks-Hudson

Ohio House of Representatives

*Floor Leader: Allison Russo *Assistant Floor Leader: Dontavius Jarrells *Whip: Jessica Miranda *Assistant Whip: Tavia Galonski

Supreme Court of Ohio

* Jennifer L. Brunner

Federal

U.S. Senate

· None

U.S. House

Municipal

The following Democrats hold prominent mayoralties in Ohio: * Columbus: Andrew J. Ginther (1) *

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

Justin Bibb Justin Morris Bibb (born April 26, 1987) is an American politician and former non-profit leader serving as the 58th mayor of Cleveland, mayor of Cleveland, Ohio since January 2022. Prior to serving as mayor, Bibb worked with public officials, bus ...

(2) *

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Aftab Pureval Aftab Karma Singh Pureval (born September 9, 1982) is an American attorney and politician serving as the 70th List of mayors of Cincinnati, mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio, since January 4, 2022. On January 14, 2021, he declared his candidacy for the 2 ...

(3) * Toledo: Wade Kapszukiewicz (4) *

Akron Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 census. The Akron metropolitan area, covering Summit and Portage counties, had ...

: Shammas Malik (5) *

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

: Jeffrey Mims (6) *

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

: Tim DeGeeter (7) * Canton: Thomas Bernabei (8) * Lorain: Jack Bradley (9) *

Youngstown Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with a population of 60,068 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Mahoning ...

: Jamael Tito Brown (11) * Cuyahoga Falls: Don Walters (15) * Lakewood: Meghan George (17) *

Euclid Euclid (; ; BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician active as a geometer and logician. Considered the "father of geometry", he is chiefly known for the '' Elements'' treatise, which established the foundations of geometry that largely domina ...

: Kirsten Holzheimer (19) * Warren: William D. Franklin *

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

: Sharetta Smith * Barberton: William Judge *

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

: Steve Patterson * Chillicothe: Luke Feeney *

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

: Sean Dunne *

Tiffin Tiffin is a South Asian English word for a type of meal. It refers to a light breakfast or a light tea-time meal at about 3 p.m., consisting of typical tea-time foods. In certain parts of India, it can also refer to the midday luncheon or ...

: Lee Wilkinson

Prominent Ohio Democrats of the past

* Vern Riffe: speaker of 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 ...

from 1975 to 1995 * James M. Cox:

Governor of Ohio A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

, Democratic nominee for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

(1920),

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

, publisher of the ''

Dayton Daily News The ''Dayton Daily News'' (''DDN'') is a daily newspaper published in Dayton, Ohio. It is owned by Cox Enterprises, Inc., a privately held global conglomerate headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, with approximately 55,000 employee ...

'', founder of

Cox Communications Cox Communications, Inc. (also known as Cox Cable and formerly Cox Broadcasting Corporation, Dimension Cable Services and Times-Mirror Cable), is an American digital cable television provider, telecommunications and home automation services comp ...

* Dick Celeste: Ohio state representative,

Lieutenant Governor of Ohio The position of lieutenant governor of Ohio was established in 1852. The lieutenant governor becomes Governor of Ohio, governor if the governor resigns, dies in office or is removed via impeachment conviction. Before 1852, the president of the Oh ...

, Governor of Ohio, U.S. ambassador to India, President of

Colorado College Colorado College is a private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Founded in 1874 by Thomas Nelson Haskell in his daughter's memory, the college offers over 40 majors a ...

* John J. Gilligan:

, Democratic nominee for

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

(1968),

. Gilligan later served as a member of the Cincinnati school board from 1999 to 2007. * Michael DiSalle: mayor of Toledo, Governor of Ohio, candidate for Democratic nomination for

(1960) * Frank Lausche: Governor of Ohio, U.S. senator *

Martin L. Davey Martin Luther Davey (July 25, 1884March 31, 1946) was an American U.S. Democratic Party, Democratic politician from Ohio. After serving in the US House of Representatives , U.S. House of Representatives, he served as the 53rd governor of Ohio. ...

: U.S. representative, Governor of Ohio * A. Victor Donahey: Ohio State Auditor, Governor of Ohio, U.S. senator * Allen G. Thurman * Paul Leonard: Lt. Governor of Ohio *

Atlee Pomerene Atlee Pomerene (December 6, 1863 – November 12, 1937) was an American Democratic Party politician and lawyer from Ohio. He served as Lieutenant Governor of Ohio for a few months in 1911 and then represented Ohio in the United States Senate from ...

* Stephen M. Young * Howard Metzenbaum: U.S. senator *

: U.S. senator * Ted Strickland: U.S. representative (1997–2007), Governor of Ohio (2007–2011) * Bill O'Neill: Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Ohio (2012–2018)

Party symbols

Ohio Democrats use the same symbols as the national Democratic party, such as the

donkey The donkey or ass is a domesticated equine. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a separate species, ''Equus asinus''. It was domes ...

. In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in Midwestern states such as Indiana and Ohio was the rooster, as opposed to the Republican eagle.

References

External links

*
Ohio Democratic Party
{{Authority control Democratic Party (United States) by state Democratic Party