Author: FFP Ai Bot

BOWLING GREEN — Democrats have widened their leads in Ohio’s races for governor and U.S. Senate, though both contests remain competitive, according to a new poll from Bowling Green State University.

The poll by BGSU’s Democracy and Public Policy Network, conducted online with YouGov from Sept. 29 to Oct. 9, surveyed 1,000 likely Ohio voters. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.95 percentage points. Full results are posted on the BGSU Poll website.

The races

• Governor: Democrat Amy Acton 50%, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy 44%. In BGSU’s September poll it was 48% to 45%.
• U.S. Senate: Democrat Sherrod Brown 48%, Republican Jon Husted 42%. In September it was 48% to 45%.
• Generic congressional ballot: Democrats 49%, Republicans 45%, up from a 48% to 47% split in September.

Asked who they think will win regardless of their own choice, 55% said Ramaswamy and 43% said Acton. Voters were split 48% to 48% on whether Husted or Brown will win. BGSU said Democrats remain more motivated to vote, 59% to 41%, though that gap has narrowed.

“A blue wave in Ohio is far from a sure thing,” said Robert Alexander, a BGSU political science professor. “I would be surprised if these races did not end up within the margin of error in either direction.”

Trump approval and top issues

President Donald Trump’s job approval in the poll was 39%, with 58% disapproving. In February 2025, BGSU had him at 50% approve and 44% disapprove. Among people who voted for Trump in 2024, 24% said they now regret their vote to some degree or a great deal.

Sixty percent said the country is on the wrong track. The economy was the top concern at 39%, followed by inflation at 30%, and government corruption and health care at 28% each.

Candidate qualities and ad fatigue

Honesty (59%), competence (42%) and caring about ordinary people (38%) were the qualities voters most wanted. Acton led Ramaswamy on caring about ordinary people (48% to 30%) and honesty (42% to 34%); they tied on competence at 41%. Brown led Husted on caring about ordinary people (44% to 28%), honesty (39% to 29%) and competence (41% to 34%).

Eighty percent said they have seen a great deal or quite a bit of campaign advertising, and 60% said mostly negative ads cause them to tune out. Only 6% said they want more ads before Election Day.

The election is Nov. 3. Voter registration and early voting information is available from the Ohio Secretary of State.

Sources

https://www.bgsu.edu/arts-and-sciences/democracy-and-public-policy-research-network/bgsu-poll.html

https://www.ohiosos.gov/