Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 5 Democratic primary)
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← 2024
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| Ohio's 7th Congressional District |
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| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: February 4, 2026 |
| Primary: May 5, 2026 General: November 3, 2026 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times:
6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. |
| Race ratings |
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending 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, 2026 |
| See also |
1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th • 15th Ohio elections, 2026 U.S. Congress elections, 2026 U.S. Senate elections, 2026 U.S. House elections, 2026 |
A Democratic Party primary takes place on May 5, 2026, in Ohio's 7th Congressional District to determine which Democratic candidate will run in the district's general election on November 3, 2026.
| Candidate filing deadline | Primary election | General election |
|---|---|---|
A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Ohio law provides for closed primaries, meaning a voter must be affiliated with a party to vote in that party's primary. However, a voter of any affiliation can choose the ballot they would like to vote on the day of the primary, and their choice may be regarded as registration with that party.[1][2]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
This page focuses on Ohio's 7th Congressional District Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:
- Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 5 Republican primary)
- Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2026
Candidates and election results
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7
The following candidates are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 7 on May 5, 2026.
Candidate | ||
John Butchko ![]() | ||
| Ann Marie Donegan | ||
Michael Eisner ![]() | ||
Ed FitzGerald ![]() | ||
| Keith Mundy | ||
| Brian Poindexter | ||
Laura Rodriguez-Carbone ![]() | ||
Scott Schulz ![]() | ||
= 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. | ||||
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Do you have a photo that could go here? Click here to submit it for this profile!
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "I am a retired United Methodist Minister. I think it is of the utmost importance that we respect people who have different views and work hard to find common ground and purpose."
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "I'm Michael Eisner (call me Mike!), and I'm running for Congress to restore the American Dream for working families here in Ohio's 7th District. I live in Solon with my wife and our blended family of five children. I've taught our kids to be "upstanders," not bystanders—and that's how I've lived my life. For 30 years, I've been a lawyer fighting for everyday people against powerful interests. I've helped over 3,000 people get justice. My philosophy is simple: treat every client like they are the only one, and bring compassion into every case. As a cancer survivor, I'm healthy and strong today because of NIH-funded research and access to healthcare. That experience showed me how critical it is that everyone—not just the privileged—has access to quality, affordable care. Watching this administration cut healthcare access and funding for medical research pushed me to take this fight to Congress. I believe in compassion over cruelty and a strong economy that works for everyone, not just billionaires. Unlike the current seat holder who won't hold town halls, I've already done dozens of unscripted community meetings. I show up. I listen. I learn. As your representative, I will continue to be available, visible, and accountable—fighting for solutions that work for you. I'm running to be A Voice for All. Together, we can restore the American Dream for our families and generations to come."
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "I have many years of public service, including serving as a Special Agent with the FBI focusing on corruption cases, an Assistant County Prosecutor, City Councilman, Mayor, and County Executive. In all my public positions, I have focused on integrity and reform. For the past 12 years, I have been a small business owner, primarily in digital media. My wife Shannon and I raised our four children, and now have two grandchildren. I worry about the kind of country they will inherit, because of the direction our current political leadership is taking. I decided to re-enter politics with that mission in mind."
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "I'm Laura Rodriguez-Carbone, a public servant, strategic communications professional, and small-business owner who has spent more than two decades helping public institutions serve people better. My family lost its farm to corporate agriculture, and later, even while working hard, we lost our home. Those experiences shaped how I see public service: government should protect working people, not powerful interests. I have spent 23 years working across federal departments and agencies helping to run programs everyday people depend on, and I have served my community through local civic leadership, including being elected three times to the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party Central Committee. I'm running for Congress because this district needs someone who understands what families are up against and what it takes to make government actually deliver."
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Ohio
Campaign finance
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Butchko | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Ann Marie Donegan | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Michael Eisner | Democratic Party | $30,566 | $29,778 | $788 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Ed FitzGerald | Democratic Party | $114,623 | $44,027 | $70,596 | As of December 31, 2025 |
| Keith Mundy | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Brian Poindexter | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Laura Rodriguez-Carbone | Democratic Party | $0 | $0 | $0 | Data not available*** |
| Scott Schulz | Democratic Party | $23,350 | $4,910 | $19,310 | As of December 31, 2025 |
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Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," . 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." |
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District analysis
Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.
- District map - A map of the district before and after redistricting ahead of the 2026 election.
- Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
- State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
Below is the district map used in the 2024 election next to the map in place for the 2026 election. Click on a map below to enlarge it.
2024

2026

This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in Ohio.
Post-filing deadline analysis
The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in Ohio in 2026. Information below was calculated on Feb. 4, 2026, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.
Seventy-eight candidates — 46 Democrats and 32 Republicans — ran for Ohio’s 15 U.S. House districts. That’s 5.2 candidates per district. There were 4.1 candidates per district in 2024, 4.5 in 2022, 4.2 in 2020, 5.1 in 2018, 3.7 in 2016, and 2.9 in 2014.
These were the first elections to take place since the Ohio Redistricting Commission voted unanimously to approve a new congressional map for 2026. The state was required to redraw its congressional district boundaries ahead of the 2026 elections due to a constitutional amendment that gave shorter expiration dates to maps passed without bipartisan support.
No districts were open in 2026, meaning all incumbents — five Democrats and 10 Republicans — ran for re-election. There were two open districts in 2024, one in 2022, two in 2018, one in 2016, and none in 2014.
Twenty primaries — 12 Democratic and eight Republican — were contested in 2026. In total, there were 12 contested primaries in 2024, 10 in 2022, 23 in 2020, 22 in 2018, 18 in 2016, and 14 in 2014.
Rep. Max Miller (R-7th) and eight Democrats ran for the 7th district, the most candidates that ran for a district in 2026.
Seven incumbents — three Democrats and four Republicans — faced primary challengers in 2026. There were four incumbents in a contested primary in 2024, six in 2022, 10 in 2020, eight in 2018, four in 2016, and five in 2014.
Candidates filed to run in the Republican and Democratic primaries in all 15 districts, meaning no districts were guaranteed to either party.Partisan Voter Index
Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+5. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 5 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Ohio's 7th the 188th most Republican district nationally.[3]
2024 presidential election results
The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.
| Kamala Harris | Donald Trump |
|---|---|
| 43.9% | 55.3% |
Presidential voting history
- See also: Presidential election in Ohio, 2024
Ohio presidential election results (1900-2024)
- 12 Democratic wins
- 19 Republican wins
| Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winning Party | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | R | D | D | D | R | D | R | R | R | D | R | R | D | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | D | D | R | R | R |
- See also: Party control of Ohio state government
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Ohio's congressional delegation as of October 2025.
| Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Ohio | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
| Democratic | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Republican | 2 | 10 | 12 |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 15 | 17 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Ohio's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.
| Office | Officeholder |
|---|---|
| Governor | |
| Lieutenant Governor | |
| Secretary of State | |
| Attorney General |
State legislature
Ohio State Senate
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 9 | |
| Republican Party | 24 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 33 | |
Ohio House of Representatives
| Party | As of October 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 34 | |
| Republican Party | 65 | |
| Other | 0 | |
| Vacancies | 0 | |
| Total | 99 | |
Trifecta control
Ohio Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas • Twenty-seven years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Ballot access
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Ohio in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Ohio, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Filing fee | Filing deadline | Source |
| Ohio | U.S. House | Major party | 50 | $85 | 2/4/2026 | Source |
| Ohio | U.S. House | Minor party | 25 | $85 | 2/4/2026 | Source |
| Ohio | U.S. House | Unaffiliated | 1% of the vote cast for governor in the district in the last election | $85 | 5/4/2026 | Source |
See also
- Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2026 (May 5 Republican primary)
- Ohio's 7th Congressional District election, 2026
- United States House elections in Ohio, 2026 (May 5 Democratic primaries)
- United States House elections in Ohio, 2026 (May 5 Republican primaries)
- United States House Democratic Party primaries, 2026
- United States House Republican Party primaries, 2026
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2026
- U.S. House battlegrounds, 2026
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ohio Laws and Administrative Codes, "Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3513.19," accessed December 19, 2025
- ↑ Ohio Laws and Administrative Codes, "Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3513.05," accessed December 19, 2025
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
