Sherrod Brown Reclaims Ohio Senate Seat After 2-Year Absence

73 is the age of Sherrod Brown, the former Ohio Democrat who CBS News projects will return to the Senate this year. He defeated GOP Sen. Jon Husted to flip the seat for the Democratic Party. This victory marks his return to Washington after a two-year absence from the upper chamber.

Brown lost his 2024 reelection bid by four points to GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno. He had represented Ohio in the House and Senate for more than three decades prior to that loss. In the 2024 presidential election, President Trump won the state by more than 10 points. Democrats identified a path to victory in 2026, citing waning presidential popularity linked to the Iran war and high fuel and cost-of-living prices.

Husted, 59, served as Ohio’s lieutenant governor and secretary of state before being appointed to the Senate last year. He was named to replace Vice President JD Vance. This was his first cycle defending the seat, during which he remained a relative unknown to voters.

The campaign focused on economic issues, particularly energy costs and AI data centers. Brown criticized Husted on these fronts, branding the Republican candidate as the face of data centers. Republicans countered by emphasizing Brown’s long tenure in Washington, attempting to frame the former senator as the incumbent despite his absence since 2024.

Brown’s projected win is historically rare. No senator since 1988 has successfully made a comeback bid to the Senate after losing reelection. The result gives Democrats a major gain as they seek to win control of the chamber.

Republicans entered the midterms confident in their chances, yet competitive races opened in several states that President Trump won by double digits in 2024. Ohio represented the easiest pickup for Democrats among those states, with smaller margins than Iowa, Kansas, and Alaska. However, those other states also appeared to be in play for Democrats heading into election night.