Veteran Ohio Democrat Weighing Another Shot at Statewide Office

A veteran Ohio Democrat, former Sen. Sherrod Brown, might be looking to return to politics soon.

Politico reported Wednesday that Brown—who lost his seat to Republican Sen. Bernie Moreno in November—has told allies he’s considering a run for governor, but not for the Senate.

Brown’s spokesman vehemently denied that. “The Politico story is untrue. Sherrod is considering all his options and hasn’t ruled anything out,” he said, according to one reporter.

Brown, who served three terms in the Senate from 2007 to 2025, lost to Moreno by 3.5 percentage points in November. 

Now, the 72-year-old has two potential options: a run for governor against likely Republican nominee Vivek Ramaswamy or another bite at the Senate apple in November 2026, this time against GOP Sen. John Husted, who was appointed by the governor to fill the seat vacated by Vice President JD Vance.

Brown, who served seven terms in the House of Representatives before moving up to the Senate and as Ohio secretary of state before that, has been trying to set himself apart from other Democrats in notable ways.

Back in April, Brown broke from the new Democrat orthodoxy, supporting tariffs as economic policy in a New York Times op-ed.

“Tariffs, when used with a clear and consistent strategy, are a necessary part of any economic policy that looks out for workers,” he wrote.

(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

Although he criticized Trump’s blanket approach to tariffs, he also criticized Democrats for increasingly supporting international free trade.

“Too many Democrats are turning to the same corporate crowd that brought us NAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, and the aborted Trans-Pacific Partnership to argue against Mr. Trump’s tariff policy,” Brown wrote.

Brown was one of the earliest Democrats to call for a block against Nippon Steel, a Japanese company, acquiring U.S. Steel—a deal which Trump first opposed, but now has signed off on under stricter conditions.

It remains to be seen whether or not there is a place for a tariff advocate like Brown in the Democratic Party anymore.

In 2024, Ohio Republicans were able to unseat Brown, airing attack ads that reminded voters of his alignment with the Biden administration as well his mostly party-line voting record.

But some polling suggests Brown could be a contender in the 2026 races. 

In a Bowling Green State University poll in April, Brown far surpassed would-be rivals for the party’s gubernatorial nomination, as he was preferred by 59% of Democrat respondents. 

The runner-up, former director of the Ohio Department of Health, Amy Acton, sits at 20% among Democrats, even though she has declared a run for governor, while Brown has not.

Meanwhile, in a prospective Senate matchup, Husted leads Brown 49% to 46%, according to the same Bowling Green State University poll.

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