As back-to-school shopping begins and families return from vacation, the 2026 campaign will really start to ramp up. With an open governor's seat and control of the U.S. Senate at stake, candidates running for major office in Ohio this year are attracting lots of donations.
In the race for the U.S. Senate, Sherrod Brown has done better than Jon Husted. Over the last few months, Brown has raised $14 million, more than triple Husted's $4 million.
In the race for governor, the candidates have raised close to the same amount of money. Vivek Ramaswamy got a head start, but Amy Acton has outraised him since January.
To discuss the latest in the campaign, we turn to the WOSU "Columbus on the Record" panel: reporter Jessie Balmert from the USA Today Ohio Network, Republican strategist Bob Clegg, and progressive activist Morgan Harper.
Snollygoster of the week
It has been a rough couple of weeks for Ontario and the northeastern quarter of the United States. Canadian wildfires have grown to nearly 2 million acres, and smoke from the fires has spread across the Midwest and toward the Northeast. Ohio and many other states have issued unhealthy air warnings about the smoky haze.
Bernie Moreno, channeling the famous "South Park" anthem, blames Canada. He has released a bill that would sanction Canada for failing to contain the fires and polluting American skies.
The name of his bill, the Countering Atmospheric Nuisances Arising from Drifting Airborne Foreign Incendiary Residual Emissions Act, or the CANADA FIRE Act, would sanction Canadian officials and label the Canadian ambassador as persona non grata until the smoke clears.
Persona non grata: "them's fightin' words" in Latin.
Now, the smoke has been bad, especially for people with breathing issues.
But for filing headline-grabbing legislation with a ridiculously long acronym, Sen. Bernie Moreno gets our Snollygoster of the Week award.
Experts say that because of climate change, these frequent fires north and south of the U.S.-Canada border are here to stay.