Former Democratic Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown faces long odds to reclaim a Senate seat in November 2026, but could also encounter problems right out the gate with a party base hungry for generational change, according to recent polling.
A National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) survey found that Brown has significant vulnerabilities with core Democratic constituencies in a contested primary. The ex-senator — who lost his 2024 reelection bid by about four percentage points — is facing a self-funded primary challenger and could see his standing among party faithful erode due to his long tenure and controversies that dogged his previous campaigns, according to the polling memo obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Brown entered the Ohio Senate contest on Aug. 18 to unseat incumbent Republican Ohio Sen. Jon Husted, after serving three terms in the upper chamber and failing to win a fourth. Husted, who previously served as the state’s lieutenant governor, was appointed by Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine to succeed Vice President JD Vance in the upper chamber in January.
Brown’s net favorability among likely Democratic voters fell 32 percentage points from 85% to 68% when respondents were shown negative messaging about Brown’s record and career. Nearly 40% of those surveyed said they “probably” or “definitely want someone new” after learning more about the Ohio Democrat. Another 11% of respondents are unsure.
Nearly three in ten respondents describe Brown as a “career politician” who is slow to deliver on party priorities and favor new leadership, according to the polling memo. That sentiment is particularly high among young voters (17-34) with 61% of the cohort preferring a new candidate after hearing negative messaging about Brown’s record and career. Female voters are not far behind, as 43% of female respondents indicted they would back a new candidate rather than Brown.
Fred Ode, an Ohio software entrepreneur turned venture capitalist, is vying for the Democratic nomination against Brown. Ode told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer that he’s prepared to spend millions of his personal fortune to defeat Brown and signaled that he will use the ex-senator’s lengthy career as an opening to win over voters that are clamoring for new leadership.
“His principles and goals are valid,” Ode told the outlet. “But someone has to realize that’s the old school. He’s playing by the old rules. Our president [Trump], he made things happen — and people are looking at that, and the Democrats have to make things happen.”
The informed ballot included randomized questions hammering Brown for failing to stand up to Republicans despite decades in office and not delivering on a pathway to citizenship for millions of migrants living in the United States. Respondents were also shown questions criticizing Brown over previous controversies that were levied during his failed reelection bid against Republican Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno.
These included statements blasting Brown for supporting the Krogers-Albertsons grocery merger, which left-wing activists argued would harm union workers. Another message torched the ex-senator over repeatedly failing to pay his taxes on time while voting against tax cuts for Ohioans.
Brown’s tax controversies appeared to get new lifeblood shortly after the ex-senator announced a comeback bid. The Ohio Democrat’s Dignity of Work PAC failed to pay a $50,000 tax bill on time while spending large sums on extravagant hotels and catering, Fox News Digital first reported.
Spoiling Brown’s comeback plans is likely to be a top priority for the NRSC as Democrats plot to retake control of the upper chamber during the midterms.
Brown also faces strong headwinds to winning a general election fight against Husted in a state that has turned increasingly Republican and voted for President Donald Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024.
Brown trails Husted by six percentage points among active registered voters, according to an Emerson College survey published Friday. Just 14% of those surveyed are unsure or have never heard of the Ohio Democrat.
Brown’s apparent vulnerabilities among the Democratic Party’s base come as Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is embracing a strategy of recruiting older, well-known candidates to challenge Republicans in key Senate races. These recruits include Brown, 72, and former Democratic North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, 68. Schumer has also reportedly lobbied Democratic Maine Governor Janet Mills, 77, to take on Sen. Susan Collins, though the incumbent governor has not yet made a decision to enter the race.
Brown would be 80 at the end of a fourth Senate term if Ohioans elect him in 2026.
The multimodal survey of 772 likely Democratic voters was conducted from Aug. 18 to Aug. 20 and has a margin of error of 3.8% at the 95% confidence level.
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