State

Secretary of State

Vote for: 1
Term: 4 years
Candidates: 3
Election: Nov 3, 2026

What this office does: The Secretary of State oversees Ohio's elections and county boards of elections, and registers businesses and keeps other public filings.

Candidates Compare by issue

Tom Pruss

Libertarian

Printing business owner

The gist

Opposes unnecessary petition signature hurdles for candidates.
Pledges to make election data easily accessible.
Supports stronger campaign finance reporting accountability.
Opposes last-minute changes to election rules.
Proposes streamlining state business filings.

More about Tom

View sources (2)

Opposes unnecessary petition signature hurdles for candidates.
Vote Pruss for Ohio Secretary of State
Campaign website · Vote Pruss · votepruss.com
“Oppose unnecessary signature hurdles”
Pledges to make election data easily accessible.
In primary contests for Ohio Secretary of State, debate features gerrymandering, election integrity
News coverage · Ohio Capital Journal · Apr 8, 2026 · ohiocapitaljournal.com
“make election data easily accessible”
Supports stronger campaign finance reporting accountability.
Vote Pruss for Ohio Secretary of State
Campaign website · Vote Pruss · votepruss.com
“Increase accountability in campaign finance reporting”
Opposes last-minute changes to election rules.
Vote Pruss for Ohio Secretary of State
Campaign website · Vote Pruss · votepruss.com
“Oppose last-minute rule changes that confuse voters”
Proposes streamlining state business filings.
Vote Pruss for Ohio Secretary of State
Campaign website · Vote Pruss · votepruss.com
“Streamline business filings”

Allison Russo

Democratic

State representative · Upper Arlington

The gist

Introduced bill putting drop boxes at every polling place.
Proposes simpler, nonpartisan statewide ballot language.
Supports more resources for county boards of elections.
Opposed August 2023 Issue 1's 60% amendment threshold.
Supported the 2023 abortion rights constitutional amendment.

More about Allison

View sources (3)

Introduced bill putting drop boxes at every polling place.
Allison Russo, Robert Sprague to face off for Ohio secretary of state
News coverage · The Columbus Dispatch (via Yahoo News) · May 5, 2026 · yahoo.com
“She recently introduced a bill to install drop boxes at every polling place”
Proposes simpler, nonpartisan statewide ballot language.
In primary contests for Ohio Secretary of State, debate features gerrymandering, election integrity
News coverage · Ohio Capital Journal · Apr 8, 2026 · ohiocapitaljournal.com
“how do we simplify this language so that we’re not creating longer lines at the voting booth”
Supports more resources for county boards of elections.
In primary contests for Ohio Secretary of State, debate features gerrymandering, election integrity
News coverage · Ohio Capital Journal · Apr 8, 2026 · ohiocapitaljournal.com
“getting local boards of elections the resources they need”
Opposed August 2023 Issue 1's 60% amendment threshold.
Meet Allison - Allison Russo for Secretary of State
Campaign website · Allison Russo campaign · allisonrusso.com
“Defeated the August 2023 Issue 1”
Supported the 2023 abortion rights constitutional amendment.
Meet Allison - Allison Russo for Secretary of State
Campaign website · Allison Russo campaign · allisonrusso.com
“Enshrined reproductive freedom in the Ohio Constitution”

Robert Sprague

Republican

Treasurer of State

The gist

Proposes requiring photo ID for mail-in voting.
Pledges to eliminate ballot drop boxes.
Proposes paper ballots with an auditable paper trail statewide.
Proposes using federal citizenship data to verify voters.
Proposes making Election Day a state holiday.
Proposes bipartisan post-election reviews of election procedures.

More about Robert

View sources (2)

Proposes requiring photo ID for mail-in voting.
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“Sprague will build upon that success by requiring photo ID for mail-in voting”
Pledges to eliminate ballot drop boxes.
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“As Secretary, Sprague will eliminate them.”
Proposes paper ballots with an auditable paper trail statewide.
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“Under Robert Sprague, Ohio will be a paper ballot state.”
Proposes using federal citizenship data to verify voters.
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“Sprague will work closely with the Trump Administration to obtain access to federal citizenship data”
Proposes making Election Day a state holiday.
In primary contests for Ohio Secretary of State, debate features gerrymandering, election integrity
News coverage · Ohio Capital Journal · Apr 8, 2026 · ohiocapitaljournal.com
“I’d like to see us consider returning back to in-person voting”
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“Sprague will work with the General Assembly to designate Election Day as”
Proposes bipartisan post-election reviews of election procedures.
Election Security - Sprague for Ohio
Campaign website · Sprague for Ohio · spragueforohio.com
“require a bipartisan panel of boards of elections officials to review all processes and chains-of-custody requirements after every election”

Challengers are listed first and incumbents last; otherwise candidates appear in ballot order. The Gist does not rank, rate or endorse candidates. Only positions backed by a cited source are shown; 3 issues covered in this race.