State executive race · November 3, 2026
Secretary of State
Ohio's chief elections officer, who works with the 88 county boards of elections, maintains the statewide voter registration system, registers businesses, and holds one of seven seats on the Ohio Redistricting Commission.
4-year term. Open seat: no incumbent is running. Incumbent Frank LaRose (R) is term-limited and is running for Auditor of State. Issue 3, a proposed constitutional amendment on voter identification requirements, is on the same ballot.
The candidates
Listed alphabetically by last name.
Tom Pruss
Owner, NorthCoast Print Mail MarketingTom Pruss, the Libertarian nominee, is a Toledo-area printing business owner and was his party's 2024 nominee for Ohio's 9th Congressional District. His campaign focuses on ballot access for minor parties, ranked-choice voting, voter ID paired with free state identification, and transparency in election administration.
Allison Russo
State Representative (District 7), Ohio House of RepresentativesAllison Russo, a Democrat, has represented the Upper Arlington area in the Ohio House since 2019 and was House Minority Leader from 2022 to 2025. Her campaign focuses on ballot access, limiting partisan influence over election administration and ballot language, redistricting, and protecting personal data held by the state.
Robert Sprague
Ohio Treasurer of StateRobert Sprague, a Republican, has been Ohio Treasurer of State since 2019 and represented the Findlay area in the Ohio House from 2011 to 2018. His campaign centers on election security, including verifying citizenship before voter registration, requiring photo ID for mail ballots, eliminating ballot drop boxes, and a return toward primarily in-person voting.
Compare on the issues
Summaries of each candidate's stated positions. See each profile for sources and details.
| Issue | Tom Pruss Libertarian | Allison Russo Democratic | Robert Sprague Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economy & Jobs | Says he would streamline business filings, improve online systems and reduce red tape. | Pledges to modernize the office's business services and better protect personal information held by the state. | Proposes an optional artificial intelligence tool to help newly registered businesses find public and private grants. |
| Elections & Democracy | Says he will enforce ballot laws equally, oppose unnecessary signature requirements and lower barriers for minor-party candidates. Supports ranked-choice voting. Supports voter ID as long as free state identification is available, along with transparent counting and auditable voting systems. Supports transparent maintenance of accurate voter rolls and opposes last-minute election rule changes. Says election data should be easily accessible and campaign finance reporting more accountable. | Opposes removing ballot drop boxes, saying they are monitored and can be opened only by a Republican and a Democrat together. Opposes Issue 3, the voter ID constitutional amendment, saying photo ID is already required by state law for in-person voting. Supports allowing Ohioans to register and vote on Election Day. Supports making Election Day a state holiday and co-sponsored legislation to do so. Says she will seek fair, easy-to-understand ballot language and reduce partisan influence over election administration. Has made redistricting a central campaign issue; voted against maps during her time on the Ohio Redistricting Commission before joining a unanimous 2023 vote, which she says was meant to end that round of mapmaking. | Supports eliminating ballot drop boxes, saying Ohio's 30 days of early in-person voting make them unnecessary. Supports Issue 3 to place voter ID requirements in the state constitution, and would require photo ID for mail-in voting. Opposes same-day voter registration, citing a lack of verification, and supports verifying citizenship against government records before a person is registered. On voter rolls, proposes an internal audit team, use of federal and credit-bureau data to update registrations, removal of records for noncitizens, former residents and deceased people, and an annual maintenance report to the legislature. Says every voting machine should produce a verifiable paper record, and proposes bipartisan post-election reviews of chain-of-custody procedures. Supports making Election Day a state holiday to encourage in-person voting. |