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Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2020

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Ohio's 7th Congressional District
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: December 18, 2019
Primary: April 28, 2020
General: November 3, 2020
Pre-election incumbent:
Bob Gibbs (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Voting in Ohio
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2020
See also
Ohio's 7th Congressional District
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Ohio elections, 2020
U.S. Congress elections, 2020
U.S. Senate elections, 2020
U.S. House elections, 2020

All U.S. congressional districts, including the 7th Congressional District of Ohio, held elections in 2020.

Incumbent Bob Gibbs won election in the general election for U.S. House Ohio District 7.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
December 18, 2019
April 28, 2020
November 3, 2020


Heading into the election the incumbent was Republican Bob Gibbs, who was first elected in 2010.

As of the 2010 redistricting cycle, Ohio's 7th Congressional District was located in the north-central portion of the state and included Ashland, Coshocton, Holmes, and Knox counties and parts of Huron, Lorain, Medina, Richland, Stark, and Tuscarawas counties.[1]

Post-election analysis

The table below compares the vote totals in the 2020 presidential election and 2020 U.S. House election for this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.

Presidential and congressional election results, Ohio's 7th Congressional District, 2020
Race Presidential U.S. House
Democratic candidate Democratic Party 33.2 29.2
Republican candidate Republican Party 65.3 67.5
Difference 32.1 38.3

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Ohio modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

  • Absentee/mail-in voting: Absentee ballot applications could be submitted by fax or email for the general election.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

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Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Incumbent Bob Gibbs defeated Quentin Potter and Brandon Lape in the general election for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Bob Gibbs
Bob Gibbs (R)
 
67.5
 
236,607
Image of Quentin Potter
Quentin Potter (D) Candidate Connection
 
29.2
 
102,271
Image of Brandon Lape
Brandon Lape (L) Candidate Connection
 
3.3
 
11,671

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 350,549
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Quentin Potter advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on April 28, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Quentin Potter
Quentin Potter (Write-in) Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
2,356

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 2,356
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Incumbent Bob Gibbs advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on April 28, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Bob Gibbs
Bob Gibbs
 
100.0
 
55,009

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 55,009
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Brandon Lape advanced from the Libertarian primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on April 28, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Brandon Lape
Brandon Lape Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
261

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 261
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Nine of 88 Ohio counties—10.2 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Ashtabula County, Ohio 18.80% 12.78% 13.54%
Erie County, Ohio 9.48% 12.29% 13.86%
Montgomery County, Ohio 0.73% 4.62% 6.22%
Ottawa County, Ohio 19.51% 4.30% 6.24%
Portage County, Ohio 9.87% 5.52% 8.99%
Sandusky County, Ohio 22.58% 2.71% 4.64%
Stark County, Ohio 17.17% 0.47% 5.46%
Trumbull County, Ohio 6.22% 23.00% 22.43%
Wood County, Ohio 7.99% 4.84% 7.13%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Ohio with 51.7 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 43.6 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Ohio cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 93.3 percent of the time (28 out of 30 elections), more than any other state in the country. In that same time frame, Ohio supported Republican candidates for president more often than Democratic candidates, 60 to 40 percent. Between 2000 and 2016, Ohio voted for the winning presidential candidate in every election.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Ohio. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[2][3]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 39 out of 99 state House districts in Ohio with an average margin of victory of 35.7 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 33 out of 99 state House districts in Ohio with an average margin of victory of 34 points. Clinton won seven districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 60 out of 99 state House districts in Ohio with an average margin of victory of 17.4 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 66 out of 99 state House districts in Ohio with an average margin of victory of 28.3 points. Trump won seven districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

District analysis

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+12, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 12 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Ohio's 7th Congressional District the 115th most Republican nationally.[4]

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.09. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.09 points toward that party.[5]

Campaign finance

This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.[6] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.[7] The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Bob Gibbs Republican Party $791,888 $453,928 $491,574 As of December 31, 2020
Quentin Potter Democratic Party $13,896 $13,896 $0 As of December 18, 2020
Brandon Lape Libertarian Party $3,348 $2,713 $635 As of December 31, 2020

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2020. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.


Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[8]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[9][10][11]

Race ratings: Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2020
Race trackerRace ratings
November 3, 2020October 27, 2020October 20, 2020October 13, 2020
The Cook Political ReportSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every week throughout the election season.

District election history

2018

See also: Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Incumbent Bob Gibbs defeated Ken Harbaugh in the general election for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Bob Gibbs
Bob Gibbs (R)
 
58.7
 
153,117
Image of Ken Harbaugh
Ken Harbaugh (D)
 
41.3
 
107,536

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 260,653
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Ken Harbaugh defeated Patrick Pikus in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on May 8, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ken Harbaugh
Ken Harbaugh
 
80.2
 
24,042
Image of Patrick Pikus
Patrick Pikus
 
19.8
 
5,937

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 29,979
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7

Incumbent Bob Gibbs defeated Patrick Quinn and Terry Robertson in the Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on May 8, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Bob Gibbs
Bob Gibbs
 
77.9
 
42,274
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Patrick Quinn
 
11.4
 
6,211
Image of Terry Robertson
Terry Robertson
 
10.6
 
5,765

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 54,250
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Bob Gibbs (R) defeated Roy Rich (D) and Dan Phillip (I) in the general election. Gibbs defeated Terry Robertson in the Republican primary on March 15, 2016. Rich was unopposed in the Democratic primary.[12]

U.S. House, Ohio District 7 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngBob Gibbs Incumbent 64% 198,221
     Democratic Roy Rich 29% 89,638
     Independent Dan Phillip 7% 21,694
Total Votes 309,553
Source: Ohio Secretary of State


U.S. House, Ohio District 7 Republican Primary, 2016
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngBob Gibbs Incumbent 74.7% 80,853
Terry Robertson 25.3% 27,453
Total Votes 108,306
Source: Ohio Secretary of State

2014

See also: Ohio's 7th Congressional District elections, 2014

The 7th Congressional District of Ohio held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Bob Gibbs (R) won an uncontested general election.

U.S. House, Ohio District 7 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngBob Gibbs Incumbent 100% 143,959
Total Votes 143,959
Source: Ohio Secretary of State

2012

The 7th Congressional District of Ohio held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. The incumbent from the 18th District, Bob Gibbs, won the election in the district.[13]

U.S. House, Ohio District 7 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Joyce Healy-Abrams 43.6% 137,708
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngBob Gibbs Incumbent 56.4% 178,104
Total Votes 315,812
Source: Ohio Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Steve Austria won election to the United States House. He defeated Bill Conner (D), John D. Anderson (L), and David W. Easton (Constitution) in the general election.[14]

U.S. House, Ohio District 7 General Election, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSteve Austria incumbent 62.2% 135,721
     Democratic Bill Conner 32.2% 70,400
     Libertarian John D. Anderson 4.3% 9,381
     Constitution David W. Easton 1.3% 2,811
Total Votes 218,313

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Ohio Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed August 9, 2012
  2. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  3. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
  4. ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
  5. ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
  6. ↑ Fundraising by primary candidates can be found on the race's respective primary election page. Fundraising by general election candidates can be found on the race's general election page.
  7. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
  8. ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  9. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  10. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  11. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  12. ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, "Ohio 2016 March Primary Candidate List," accessed March 11, 2016
  13. ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Ohio," accessed November 11, 2012
  14. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013


Ohio's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Jon Husted (R)
Bernie Moreno (R)
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
Bob Latta (R)
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
Republican Party (12)
Democratic Party (5)


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