Ohio state executive official elections, 2020
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| Ohio state executive official elections |
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| Election details |
| Filing deadline: August 5, 2020 |
| General: November 3, 2020 |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Voting in Ohio |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2020 Impact of term limits in 2020 State government trifectas and triplexes |
| Other state executive elections |
Six state executive offices were up for election in Ohio in 2020:
State Board of Education (6 seats)
Candidates and election results
State Board of Education
District 1
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 1
Diana Fessler won election in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 1 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Diana Fessler (Nonpartisan) | 100.0 | 350,711 |
| Total votes: 350,711 | |||
 = 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. | ||||
District 5
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 5
Christina Collins defeated incumbent Lisa Woods in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 5 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Christina Collins (Nonpartisan) | 51.1 | 225,871 |
 | Lisa Woods (Nonpartisan) | 48.9 | 215,901 | |
| Total votes: 441,772 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
District 6
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 6
Incumbent Antoinette Miranda defeated Alice Nicks in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 6 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Antoinette Miranda (Nonpartisan) | 62.5 | 293,055 |
| Alice Nicks (Nonpartisan) | 37.5 | 175,504 | ||
| Total votes: 468,559 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
District 9
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 9
Michelle Newman defeated Ron Hood in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 9 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Michelle Newman (Nonpartisan) | 64.6 | 270,850 |
 | Ron Hood (Nonpartisan) | 35.4 | 148,353 | |
| Total votes: 419,203 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
District 10
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 10
Brendan Shea defeated Mary Binegar in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 10 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Brendan Shea (Nonpartisan) | 50.4 | 200,391 |
 | Mary Binegar (Nonpartisan) | 49.6 | 197,434 | |
| Total votes: 397,825 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
District 11
General election
General election for Ohio State Board of Education District 11
Incumbent Meryl Johnson defeated Michele Elba and Richard Neale in the general election for Ohio State Board of Education District 11 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Meryl Johnson (Nonpartisan) | 57.0 | 200,654 |
| Michele Elba (Nonpartisan) | 24.7 | 87,109 | ||
| Richard Neale (Nonpartisan) | 18.3 | 64,463 | ||
| Total votes: 352,226 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jedi Hill (Nonpartisan)
Context of the 2020 elections
Party control in Ohio
Ohio Party Control: 1992-2024
No Democratic trifectas • Twenty-six 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
Voter information
How the primary works
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 to 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.
Poll times
In Ohio, all polling places are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Voters who are in line at 7:30 p.m. are permitted to vote.[3]
Registration requirements
- Check your voter registration status here.
To register to vote in Ohio, an applicant must be a United States citizen, a resident of Ohio for at least 30 days before the election, and at least 18 years old by the day of the election. Individuals who are incarcerated for a felony conviction, have been declared by a court to be incompetent for voting purposes, or have been permanently disenfranchised may not register to vote.[4]
Applicants may register to vote online, in person, or by mail. The Ohio Voter Registration and Information Update Form is available online and can be requested by mail. In-person voter registration is available at various locations including the secretary of state and board of elections offices, Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles offices, public libraries and high schools, and other state agencies. A full list of locations is available here.
The deadline to register to vote is 30 days before the next election. An Ohio driver’s license number, state ID card number, or the last four digits of a SSN is required in order to register to vote or update a voter registration.[5][6]
Automatic registration
Ohio does not practice automatic voter registration.[7]
Online registration
- See also: Online voter registration
Ohio has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.
Same-day registration
Ohio does not allow same-day voter registration.[7]
Residency requirements
Prospective voters must be residents of Ohio for at least 30 days before the election.[7]
Verification of citizenship
Ohio requires those registering to vote or updating their voter registration information at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles facility to provide proof of citizenship before being allowed to do so.[8] Individuals registering to vote in other settings do not have to provide proof of citizenship but must attest to their citizenship in a sworn statement.[9]
All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment.[10] Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. One state, Ohio, requires proof of citizenship only when registering to vote at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles facility. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.
Verifying your registration
The Ohio Secretary of State’s Office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.
Voter ID requirements
Ohio requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[11]
The following list of accepted ID was current as of October 2025. Click here for the Ohio Secretary of State page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.
| “ |
All photo IDs must have the following:
An unexpired Ohio Driver License, State ID Card, or Interim Documentation with your former address IS an ACCEPTABLE form of ID when your current address is in the pollbook.[12] |
” |
Ohio voters can obtain a free state ID card from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.[13]
Early voting
Ohio permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.
Early voting permits citizens to cast ballots in person at a polling place prior to an election. In states that permit no-excuse early voting, a voter does not have to provide an excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day. States that allow voters to cast no-excuse absentee/mail-in ballots in person are counted as no-excuse early voting states.
Forty-seven states and the District of Columbia permit no-excuse early voting.
Absentee voting
All voters are eligible to vote absentee in Ohio. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting absentee.[14]
Absentee ballots may be requested for each individual election beginning on January 1, or 90 days before the date of an election, whichever is earlier. The request must be received by the local county board of elections by the close of business on the seventh day before the election. A returned absentee ballot must then be postmarked at least one day before Election Day and received by the elections board no later than 4 days after the election.[14][15]
Past elections
2018
The following elections took place in 2018:
- Ohio Attorney General election, 2018
- Ohio Secretary of State election, 2018
- Ohio Treasurer election, 2018
- Ohio Auditor election, 2018
- Ohio gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018
- Ohio gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 (May 8 Republican primary)
- Ohio gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 (May 8 Democratic primary)
- Ohio state executive official elections, 2018
- Ohio Attorney General election, 2018 (May 8 Republican primary)
- Ohio Secretary of State election, 2018 (May 8 Republican primary)
- Ohio Attorney General election, 2018 (May 8 Democratic primary)
- Ohio Secretary of State election, 2018 (May 8 Democratic primary)
- Ohio State Board of Education election, 2018
See also
| Ohio | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ohio Laws and Administrative Codes, "Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3513.19," accessed September 5, 2025
- ↑ Ohio Laws and Administrative Codes, "Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 3513.05," accessed September 5, 2025
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, “Election Day Voting,” accessed April 12, 2023
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, “Voter Eligibility & Residency Requirements,” accessed April 12, 2023
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, “Register to Vote and Update Your Registration,” accessed April 6, 2023
- ↑ Democracy Docket, “Ohio Governor Signs Strict Photo ID Bill Into Law,” January 6, 2023
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 NCSL, "State Profiles: Elections," accessed August 7, 2024
- ↑ BillTrack50, "Ohio HB54," accessed September 30, 2025
- ↑ Columbus Dispatch, "Advocates sue Ohio over law requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote at BMV," August 26, 2025
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, "Identification requirements," accessed October 8, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ohio BMV, "Securing an Ohio ID," accessed October 8, 2025
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Ohio Secretary of State, "Voting Absentee by Mail," accessed April 6, 2023
- ↑ Democracy Docket, "Ohio Governor Signs Strict Photo ID Bill Into Law," January 6, 2023
