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Ohio school board elections, 2025

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State ballot measures • Local ballot measures • School boards • Municipal • Recalls • All local elections by county • How to run for office
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Elections

The table below contains links to all school board elections covered by Ballotpedia in 2025 in this state. This list may not include all school districts with elections in 2025. Ballotpedia's coverage includes all school districts in the 100 largest cities by population and the 200 largest school districts by student enrollment.

Editor's note: Some school districts choose to cancel the primary election, or both the primary and general election, if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which primary or general elections were canceled. Please click through to each school district's page for more information.

2025 Ohio School Board Elections
District Primary General Election General Runoff Election Regular term length Seats up for election Total board seats 2022-2023 enrollment
Berea City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 5,551
Canal Winchester Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 3,801
Cincinnati Public Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 4 7 35,585
Columbus City Schools 5/6/2025 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 7 45,338
Dublin City Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 16,525
Euclid City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 4,748
Gahanna-Jefferson City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 4 5 7,961
Groveport-Madison Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 6,242
Hamilton Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 3,082
Hilliard City Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 16,082
Maumee City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 2,160
New Albany-Plain Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 5,101
Olentangy Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 2 5 23,281
Pickerington Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 11,370
South-Western City Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 21,766
Sylvania City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 7,662
Toledo Public Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 21,814
Washington Local School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 6,877
Westerville City School District N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 14,571
Worthington Schools N/A 11/4/2025 N/A 4 3 5 10,810


Recalls

See also: Recall campaigns in Ohio and School board recalls

Ohio does not allow for the recall of school board members. Click here for a list of states that do.

Battleground elections

Mentor Exempted Village School District

See also: Mentor Exempted Village School District, Ohio, elections (2025)

Ballotpedia identified the November 4, 2025, nonpartisan general election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.

Incumbent Maggie Cook, Robert Haag, Daniel Hardesty, Robert Izzo, Linda O’Brien, and Don Schutz are running in the nonpartisan general election for three at-large seats on the Mentor Exempted Village School District school board on November 4, 2025.

The candidates are divided into two slates: the first including two Democratic-affiliated candidates (Cook and Haag) and one nonpartisan candidate (Hardesty), and the second including three Republican-affiliated candidates (Izzo, O'Brien, and Schutz, also known as Team ISO).[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

Heading into the election, one Democratic-affiliated, two Republican-affiliated, and two nonpartisan officeholders served on the board. The two nonpartisan officeholders had either been endorsed by progressive organizations in previous elections or taken progressive stances during past school board votes, effectively giving the board a 3-2 progressive majority.[9]Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag[10][11][12] Two of the five board seats, held by Rose Ioppolo (Republican-affiliated) and Lauren Marchaza (nonpartisan), are not up for election this year. If the Cook, Haag, and Hardesty slate wins election, there will continue to be a progressive majority on the board. If the Team ISO slate wins election, there will be a conservative majority.

While Cook, Haag, and Hardesty do not have a joint campaign website or platform, the three have appeared together at charity events and Meet & Greets. Shared priorities include academic excellence, safety, and excluding what they say are "personal political agenda[s]" from school board meetings.[2][13][7][14][15][16]

  • Cook is a speech language pathologist at Chardon Schools. She was elected to the school board in 2021 and has been board president since 2024.[17] Cook says she "believes in academic achievement for all learners, career exploration and training to prepare students for careers of their choice, and safe school practices that apply to both mental health and physical safety."[15]
  • Haag is retired but says he has 30 years involvement with the school district as a student, teacher, principal, and board office administrator.[1][14] He says, "Let’s build schools where curiosity leads, focus guides, and experience delivers," which includes supporting "project-based learning, creative classrooms, and the thoughtful use of AI ... [and] focusing on what we’re elected to do: set policy, oversee budgets, and make sure every student can learn and grow."[14]
  • Hardesty is a claims supervisor with Progressive Insurance.[2] He says, "If elected, my focus will be threefold: academic excellence, student safety, and fiscal responsibility. ... I bring a collaborative, results-driven mindset that focuses on solutions. I’m committed to working respectfully with all members of the board and the community, keeping our students’ best interests at the forefront."[18]

The Team ISO slate says it will "Return to: Common Sense Decisions, Respect for Taxpayer Dollars by Cutting Waste, [and] Higher Standards in Academics, Safety and Discipline."[8] This includes ensuring "decisions are in alignment with the values of our community, not outside influences ... cutting bloated contracts and excessive administrative salaries - not services that directly impact students ... [and applying] uniform discipline policies that treat all students equally."[8]

  • Izzo is chief deputy of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. He says, "I am the only candidate for this position with expertise in school safety and security and the background in working with a large scale publicly funded budget. ... I will use that perspective to ... help the board be good stewards of the valuable taxpayer dollars which support our schools."[4]
  • O'Brien is retired and previously worked as a management change consultant/officer at Progressive Insurance. She says she would prioritize "Academic Excellence by focusing on the Basics, Character Skill building by balancing accountability and rewards, Preparing Students for Success by broadening the curriculum. teaching to individual learning style and providing an engaging and fun environment."[5]
  • Schutz is retired, having previously taught and coached at West Geauga Local Schools and Mentor Exempted Village School District. He says, "I will support strong administrative leadership to enforce existing [disciplinary] policies and create a culture that values order, respect, and learning for all students. ... I believe in top-to-bottom collaboration and a renewed focus on staff morale. When educators feel supported, students thrive. ... I bring proven, hands-on experience to lead real change."[6]

To read Ballotpedia's 2023 coverage of the Mentor Exempted Village School District school board election, click here.


Academic performance

See also: Public education in Ohio

BP-Initials-UPDATED.png The sections below do not contain the most recently published data on this subject. If you would like to help our coverage grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia.


Education terms
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For more information on education policy terms, see this article.

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NAEP scores

See also: NAEP scores by state

The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The table below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Compared to three neighboring states (Indiana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania), Ohio had the second highest share of eighth graders who scored at or above proficient in reading.[19]

Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013
Math - Grade 4 Math - Grade 8 Reading - Grade 4 Reading - Grade 8
Ohio 48% 40% 37% 39%
Indiana 52% 38% 38% 35%
Michigan 37% 30% 31% 33%
Pennsylvania 44% 42% 40% 42%
United States 41% 34% 34% 34%
Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables"

Graduation, ACT and SAT scores

See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Ohio and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[19][20][21]

In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.[22]

Ohio schools reported a graduation rate of 82.2 percent, second lowest among its neighboring states.

In Ohio, more students took the ACT than the SAT, earning an average ACT score of 21.8.

Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013
State Graduation rate, 2013 Average ACT composite, 2013 Average SAT composite, 2013
Percent Quintile ranking** Score Participation rate Score Participation rate
Ohio 82.2% Third 21.8 72% 1,635 17%
Indiana 87% First 21.7 38% 1,470 70%
Michigan 77% Fourth 19.9 100% 1,782 4%
Pennsylvania 85.5% Second 22.7 18% 1,480 71%
United States 81.4% 20.9 54% 1498 50%
**Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally.
Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express
ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores
The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013

Dropout rate

See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Ohio was higher than the national average at 4.4 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 4.6 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[23]

State profile

State profile

Demographic data for Ohio
 OhioU.S.
Total population:11,605,090316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):40,8613,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:82.4%73.6%
Black/African American:12.2%12.6%
Asian:1.9%5.1%
Native American:0.2%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
Two or more:2.5%3%
Hispanic/Latino:3.4%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:89.1%86.7%
College graduation rate:26.1%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$49,429$53,889
Persons below poverty level:19.6%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Ohio.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Ohio

Ohio voted Republican in five out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, nine are located in Ohio, accounting for 4.37 percent of the total pivot counties.[24]

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Ohio had eight Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 4.42 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Ohio coverage on Ballotpedia

Pivot Counties

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.[25][26]

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.

Additional elections

See also: Ohio elections, 2025

What's on your ballot?
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Historical analysis

See also: School board election data analysis, 2024

Ballotpedia did not cover school board elections in school districts in Ohio in 2024. Click here to read the full report on school board election analysis across the country in 2024.

See also

Ohio School Boards News and Analysis
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Footnotes

  1. 1.0 1.1 The News-Herald, "Robert Haag, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 The News-Herald, "Daniel Hardesty, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  3. The News-Herald, "Maggie Cook, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  4. 4.0 4.1 The News-Herald, "Robert Izzo, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  5. 5.0 5.1 The News-Herald, "Linda J. O’Brien, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  6. 6.0 6.1 The News-Herald, "Don Schutz, candidate for Mentor School Board, November 2025," September 19, 2025
  7. 7.0 7.1 Facebook, "Dan Hardesty for Mentor Schools," October 3, 2025
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Team ISO For Mentor School Board, "Home," accessed October 7, 2025
  9. The News-Herald, "Candidate profile: Virginia Jeschelnig for Mentor School Board, November 2021," October 13, 2021
  10. The News-Herald, "Mentor School Board candidate November 2023: Lauren Marchaza," October 17, 2023
  11. The News-Herald, "Mentor School Board candidate November 2023: Rose Ioppolo," October 17, 2023
  12. The News-Herald, "Mentor School Board votes 3-2 not to support Ohio’s Title IX resolution," March 16, 2023
  13. Facebook, "Dan Hardesty for Mentor Schools," September 11, 2025
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 Friends of Robert Haag, "Robert Haag," accessed October 7, 2025
  15. 15.0 15.1 Maggie Cook For Mentor Board Of Education, "Issues," accessed October 7, 2025
  16. Dan Hardesty Mentor School Board, "Home," accessed October 7, 2025
  17. Maggie Cook For Mentor Board Of Education, "Meet Maggie," accessed October 7, 2025
  18. Dan Hardesty Mentor School Board, "About Daniel," accessed October 7, 2025
  19. 19.0 19.1 United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables," accessed May 13, 2014
  20. ACT, "2012 ACT National and State Scores," accessed May 13, 2014
  21. Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT Scores by State 2013," October 10, 2013
  22. StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
  23. United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data File, School Year 2010-11, Provision Version 1a and School Year 2011-12, Preliminary Version 1a," accessed May 13, 2014
  24. The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
  25. Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  26. Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017