In Ohio, Sherrod Brown tests an old model of working-class appeal for Democrats Springboro, Ohio | Updated Oct. 01, 2026, 9:59 p.m. ET | 7 min read Eighty people crowd into a historic house that was once part of the Underground Railroad, necks craned to keep their eyes on Sherrod Brown. Moving across the creaking wood floor, Mr. Brown leans toward them like they’re in private conversation. A former three-term Democratic senator who lost his seat amid the red wave in 2024, Mr. Brown and his brand of pro-union populism are well known throughout this state. “The disdain, the contempt they have for work and for workers tells you everything,” he says in his familiar rasp, laying out his case against Republican Sen. Jon Husted. Corporations are making more and more money while “people are working harder than ever,” he says. “It’s only getting worse.” Mr. Brown embodies an old-school strain of leftist politics that differs from some of the Democratic candidates dominating the spotlight these days. He’s not young, he’s not a new face, and he doesn’t deliver pithy zingers on social media. At a moment when many Democrats are arguing over socialism and ending aid to Israel, Mr. Brown remains squarely focused on the economic issues he’s always championed. To critics, he’s the ultimate career politician, who’s already been rejected by voters and whose party is out of step with the Buckeye State. To supporters, he’s one of the few Democrats who can win here – a known commodity with a long track record of delivering for working people, and an image that’s decidedly more rumpled than hip. If he succeeds, he could even offer a model for other Democrats trying to recapture culturally conservative blue-collar voters who’ve grown disenchanted with President Donald Trump. “He has consistently voted for the same policies and principles,” says Rupa Fritz, a physician from Centerville who’s come to hear Mr. Brown speak in Springboro. “He’s a steady voice of reason.” Sue Ogrocki/AP Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown speaks to the media with his wife, Connie Schultz, after voting Nov. 5, 2024, in Cleveland. After serving for three terms, Mr. Brown lost the election that year to Republican Bernie Moreno. From the Reagan era to today In many ways, the Sherrod Brown of 2026 could just as easily be the Sherrod Brown of 1983, when his ire was aimed at Ronald Reagan. “We are up against a Robin Hood in reverse,’’ he said four decades ago, when he was Ohio’s secretary of state. “We are facing a man who believes in the golden rule of politics … [that] the guy who has the gold makes the rules.’’ Yet while Mr. Brown may not have changed much over the years, everything around him has. Ohio, once a fiercely contested swing state, moved steadily rightward during the Trump era. When Mr. Brown lost to Republican Bernie Moreno in 2024, he was the last Democrat still holding statewide office. Mr. Brown was one of three Senate Democrats who lost their seats that year. All were first elected during the 2006 blue wave – a midterm that has drawn numerous comparisons to the current one, with an unpopular Middle East war (back then, it was Iraq) dragging down the president’s party. Today, voters are angry about the war in Iran and its impact on fuel prices, as well as the high cost of living in general. Polls show Democrats are currently favored to win a majority in the House of Representatives and could win control of the Senate as well. Ohio, where most polls have shown a tight race, will be key to the party’s Senate chances. “In an affordability election, it’s hard to imagine a candidate better than Sherrod Brown,” says Dani Isaacsohn, minority leader of the Ohio House of Representatives. Kevin Wolf/AP/File Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican Sen. JD Vance, both of Ohio, talk before a congressional hearing about the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 9, 2023. During his 18 years in the Senate, Mr. Brown’s voting record was well to the left of most Democrats. He was a reliable liberal vote on cultural issues like abortion and same-sex marriage. But his focus was on workers: He championed legislation to protect coal miners and restore pensions for more than 2 million union members and retirees around the country. He worked with then-Sen. JD Vance to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing when those jobs were moving overseas. In Ohio, he urged workers at plants to organize and was a familiar face in union halls. “He’s the sort of guy who stands for what is right when the chips are down,” says Danny Musacchio, president of BAC Local 23, a bricklayers union that endorsed Mr. Brown. Mr. Musacchio represents members who were able to retire only because of the Butch Lewis Act, the pension legislation spearheaded by Mr. Brown, he says. Data centers, widely opposed by the public but supported by some unions for their job creation, have presented a recent complication. As candidates on both sides of the aisle rushed to endorse restrictions on data centers, Mr. Brown did the same. It was a pivot for him; he’d previously supported bringing such projects to Ohio, as had Senator Husted, who also reversed his position after facing criticism. Still, Mr. Brown carries the bulk of the union endorsements. The Ohio Senate special election is among the most expensive races this cycle, recently drawing an $11 million spend from President Trump’s political action committee. Pro-crypto groups have poured in some $30 million against Mr. Brown, who was the top Democrat on the Senate committee that oversees banking and was openly critical of the crypto industry. Elon Musk’s PAC has also put money into the race, targeting Mr. Brown over his support for transgender rights. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP/File Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown stands next to President Joe Biden as the president shakes hands with a worker at the groundbreaking of a new semiconductor manufacturing facility in New Albany, Ohio, Sep. 9, 2022. That issue was a lightning rod in the 2024 election, putting Democrats around the country on defense. Mr. Brown has said decisions about children’s medical treatments should be up to their families and doctors. He also says he’d leave the matter of transgender athletes’ participation in school sports up to local officials. Democratic strategists say the issue has less salience overall this year, and that Mr. Brown has never been seen as a culture warrior anyway. “I don’t think these things stick to Sherrod in the way they [might] stick to another candidate,” says an Ohio Democratic consultant, who was granted anonymity in order to speak about state campaigns. Steve Sackman, a retired software engineer who attended Mr. Brown’s Springboro event, says he’d like to see the Democratic Party move in the direction of young stars like New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. But he recognizes the value of having a veteran politician like Mr. Brown on the ballot here in Ohio. “His focus is on the middle,” he says. “He’s a proven candidate.” A familiar face, for better or worse That familiarity can be a double-edged sword. Name recognition is an asset in a midterm, when voters are generally less aware of campaigns and less motivated to vote. Mr. Brown – whom one quarter of Ohioans believe is their current senator, according to a recent poll – needs to turn out his base as well as pick up votes from the third of Ohio voters who are registered as unaffiliated. But being seen as a pseudo-incumbent brings baggage, particularly when many voters are unhappy with the national Democratic Party – and view insiders in particular with skepticism. J. Scott Applewhite/AP Republican Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio talks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Sept. 29, 2026. Mr. Husted casts Mr. Brown as played out. “He’s spent 32 years in Washington, and he’s got nothing to show for it,” he said this summer. Mr. Husted, who was appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine to fill Vice President Vance’s seat, doesn’t have a strong public image, and many Republican voters here have little to say about him one way or the other. But many say they’re planning to vote for him, to ensure the seat remains in GOP hands. Mr. Trump is expected to hold a rally in Ohio this weekend. “[Mr. Brown] is the old dog that needs to go,” says Linda McMichael, a Republican from the southeastern part of the state. After the 2024 election, Mr. Brown was criticized by some for having run a media-shy campaign, limiting his exposure to friendly outlets and avoiding debates. This cycle, his campaign again seems to be closely choreographing his press appearances, hovering near reporters even before Mr. Brown arrives, and limiting access at his events. Asked directly about his 2024 loss, the candidate himself declined to offer any introspection. “I don’t know,” he says, speaking to reporters. “Trump was on the ticket and won the state by almost 12 points and I l... Source: https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2026/1001/sherrod-brown-ohio-senate-husted?icid=rss