Cuyahoga County voters head to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 3, for a special U.S. Senate election that could help determine which party controls the chamber.

Republican Sen. Jon Husted faces Democrat Sherrod Brown, along with Libertarian Bill Redpath and independent Greg Levy, according to NBC4. The winner will complete Vice President JD Vance's term, which runs through January 2029.

Nonpartisan forecasters Cook Political Report, Decision Desk HQ and Inside Elections all rate the contest a toss-up, NBC4 reported. The race has drawn more than $400 million in advertising spending and reservations, according to political advertising analytics company AdImpact.

Local ballot and turnout

The Senate race is not the only contest facing southwest Cuyahoga County voters. Strongsville City School District has a five-year, 6.7-mill levy for general fund expenses on the ballot, Cleveland 19 reported.

Early voting across Cuyahoga County has been brisk. As of Oct. 26, 100,642 county voters had returned absentee ballots, up 14.7% from the same point in 2022, cleveland.com reported. Statewide, more than 1.5 million Ohioans had already cast ballots as of the weekend, WKYC reported.

The U.S. Department of Justice plans to send federal election monitors to Cuyahoga and Medina counties on Election Day, according to WKYC. Cuyahoga County Board of Elections Director Tony Perlatti said DOJ monitors have been coming to the county during even-year general elections for more than a decade to check compliance with federal bilingual voting requirements.

The candidates

Husted, 59, was appointed to the seat on Jan. 17, 2025, by Gov. Mike DeWine after Vance became vice president. He served in the Ohio House, including four years as speaker, then as secretary of state and lieutenant governor, according to NBC4. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary and holds endorsements from President Donald Trump and the National Border Patrol Council.

Brown, 73, represented Ohio in the U.S. Senate from 2007 to 2025. The Mansfield native lost to Republican Bernie Moreno by about 3.6 percentage points in 2024, then won this year's Democratic primary with 89.4% of the vote, NBC4 reported. He is endorsed by the Ohio Democratic Party, Ohio AFL-CIO and Teamsters.

Where they differ

Affordability has been the central dispute. Husted credits the 2025 tax law with providing relief on tips, overtime pay and a new deduction for older Americans. Brown argues that tariffs, the Iran war and incentives for energy-intensive data centers have undercut that relief, according to NBC4.

Data centers have emerged as a defining issue. Brown has criticized Husted's record of supporting tax breaks for data center developers while he was lieutenant governor, 10TV reported. Husted introduced the Ratepayer Protection Act, which would require state utility commissions to consider strategies making data centers pay for their own energy use, 10TV reported in a separate interview. That bill passed the House but not the Senate.

A Scioto Analysis report found Ohio's 257 data centers generated nearly 100,000 jobs and $62 billion in net social benefit between 2013 and 2026, but further economic returns shrink with each new facility, Spectrum News 1 reported.

Polls show a tight race

A New York Times/Siena College poll released Nov. 1 showed Brown leading 49% to 44% among likely voters, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 points, according to the Siena Research Institute. A Fox News survey conducted Oct. 15–19 placed Brown ahead 52% to 47%, while a Coefficient survey found Husted ahead by less than one point, NBC4 reported.

An ActiVote poll released Oct. 31 put Brown's lead at 0.4 percentage points among 400 likely voters, with an expected error of 4.9 points.

Big money pouring in

Through Sept. 30, Brown's campaign reported raising $61.7 million and spending $56.8 million. Husted's campaign reported raising $19.2 million and spending $10.3 million, according to NBC4.

Outside spending has been massive. A tally of Federal Election Commission filings through Oct. 19 found $198.5 million in outside spending benefiting Husted and $94.7 million benefiting Brown, NBC4 reported. The cryptocurrency industry alone has spent about $54 million supporting Husted, Spectrum News 1 reported, topping the $40 million it spent in 2024 to help defeat Brown. Elon Musk has funneled more than $7 million to independent groups seeking to help Husted, the Ohio Capital Journal reported.

Polls open across Cuyahoga County on Tuesday, Nov. 3.