Ohio's 9th district: 2026 House race
Ohio's 9th district is held by Marcy Kaptur (Democratic). Marcy Kaptur leads in reported fundraising with $4.3M. Forecasters rate it Toss-up.
Candidates and money2 on file
| Candidate | Party | Status | Raised | Spent | Cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marcy Kaptur | DEM | Incumbent | $4.3M | $1.3M | $3.5M |
| Derek Merrin | REP | Challenger | $1.5M | $1.1M | $531K |
Also on the November ballot, with no FEC campaign record on file: Matthew Althaus (Libertarian).
Ballot status: nominees as listed on Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA), matched to FEC records by name.
Reported Source: FEC, through each candidate's latest filing. Open this race on FEC.gov
Other FEC filers (not matched to a November nominee)5
| Candidate | Party | Status | Raised | Spent | Cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Williams | REP | Challenger | $957K | $932K | $25K |
| Alea Nadeem | REP | Challenger | $750K | $750K | $0 |
| Madison Sheahan | REP | Challenger | $272K | $272K | $215 |
| Wayne Charles Kinsel | REP | Challenger | $91K | $58K | $33K |
| Anthony Bruce Campbell | REP | Challenger | $34K | $28K | $6,680 |
They may have lost a primary or withdrawn, or our name match may have missed them. Their records are kept for reference.
Forecasts and ratingsnational odds + who rates this race
Some raters lean Democratic and others lean Republican in this race.
Consensus (median of 4): Toss-up Estimate
| Forecaster | Rating | Date listed | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook Political Report | Toss-up | 2026-01-15 | dated |
| Inside Elections | Tilt R | 2025-10-31 | flip from current holder, dated |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Toss-up | 2026-05-06 | dated |
| Decision Desk HQ | Lean D | 2026-07-14 | dated |
Ratings are each publisher's own, compiled from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). The date is the one listed there; a rater may have changed its call since, and “dated” means more than 45 days old. Open the forecaster for its current rating.
No Polymarket market was found for this race.
Open each forecaster for its current rating and method.
National picture: Democrats 90.5% to control the House on Polymarket Estimate. See all forecasts.
Last time (2024)new map
Ohio redrew its congressional map for 2026. These results are for the district with the same number under the old lines, so they do not describe the new territory.
Marcy Kaptur won by 0.7 points, with 375,195 votes counted.
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marcy Kaptur | Democratic | 181,098 | 48.3% |
| Derek Merrin | Republican | 178,716 | 47.6% |
| Tom Pruss | Libertarian | 15,381 | 4.1% |
Reported Results as compiled in Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), top three shown. Under the district lines used in 2024.
Who lives hereCensus survey data
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Population | 781,702 |
| Median age | 40.5 |
| Median household income | $66,739 ±$1,025 |
| Adults 25+ with a bachelor’s degree or more | 27.8% |
| White, not Hispanic | 74.6% |
| Black, not Hispanic | 11.6% |
| Asian, not Hispanic | 1.4% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 7.7% |
| Homes lived in by their owners | 67.9% |
| People below the poverty line | 14.8% |
| Born outside the U.S. | 3.1% |
Heads up: Ohio drew a new congressional map for 2026. These figures describe the old district lines, so they will not match the people who vote in this race.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2020-2024 5-year estimates, district lines of the 119th Congress, fetched 2026-10-15. These are survey estimates with margins of error; the Bureau publishes the error for each figure.
Public attention in this race2 candidates with an article
| Candidate | Party | Views, 30 days | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marcy Kaptur | DEM | 18,087 | 78% |
| Derek Merrin | REP | 4,995 | 22% |
Reported English Wikipedia page views, 2026-09-14 to 2026-10-13. Only candidates with an article are counted; views show curiosity, not support.
Data on this page4/6 complete
| Data | Status | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Nominees | Have it | listed on Wikipedia, matched to FEC |
| Campaign finance | Have it | FEC filings through 06/30/2026 |
| Forecaster ratings | Have it | 4 forecasters |
| Prediction market | Missing | no market found |
| 2024 result | Partial | old map: the state redrew its districts |
| Financial disclosures | Have it | 2 of 2 candidates read |
So you can see what we have and what we do not. Missing is never treated as zero.