The 2022 Ohio gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the governor of Ohio. Incumbent Republican governor Mike DeWine won a second term in a landslide, defeating Democratic nominee Nan Whaley, the former mayor of Dayton, with 62.4% of the vote. DeWine's 25-point victory marked the continuation of a trend in which every incumbent Republican governor of Ohio since 1994 has won re-election by a double-digit margin.
This was the first time since 1994 in which Trumbull and Mahoning counties have gone to the Republican candidate with over 60% of the vote. Hamilton County also voted Republican in a statewide election for the first time since Ohio's 2016 United States Senate election, which incumbent Republican Rob Portman also won by over 20 points and nearly 60% of the vote.
Republican primary
Incumbent governor Mike DeWine faced backlash from Republicans due to having implemented strict COVID-19 restrictions, such as a statewide stay at home order and mask mandates. Due to this, on April 30, 2021, farmer Joe Blystone became the first candidate to announce a primary challenge to DeWine. On June 9, former U.S. representative Jim Renacci also announced a run, later being followed up by former state representative Ron Hood. As a result, DeWine became the first incumbent Ohio governor to face a primary challenger since Jim Rhodes in 1978 and the first to have multiple challengers since Michael Disalle in 1962. Initial polling showed Renacci in the lead; however, his lead soon evaporated, as DeWine attempted to appeal to conservatives angry with his COVID-19 response by attacking President Joe Biden's policies and signing constitutional carry into law, allowing permitless carry of firearms. Incumbent governors rarely ever lose their primaries. Ultimately, DeWine prevailed in the primary election on May 3; however, he only won with a plurality of the vote, which suggests that he could have lost had his opponents not split the vote.
Candidates
Nominated
- Mike DeWine, incumbent governor of Ohio (2019–present), 50th attorney general of Ohio (2011–2019), former U.S. senator from Ohio (1995–2007), 59th lieutenant governor of Ohio, and former U.S. representative for Ohio's 7th congressional district (1983–1991)
- Running mate: Jon Husted, incumbent lieutenant governor of Ohio (2019–present)
Eliminated in primary
- Joe Blystone, farmer
- Running mate: Jeremiah Workman, Iraq War veteran; Restaurateur Joanna Swallen, Blystone's original running mate, withdrew
- Ron Hood, former state representative from the 78th District (2013–2020), 91st District (2005–2006), 57th District (1995–2000), and candidate for OH-15 in 2021
- Running mate: Candice Keller, former state representative from the 53rd District (2016–2020)
- Jim Renacci, former U.S. representative for Ohio's 16th congressional district (2011–2019) and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2018
- Running mate: Joe Knopp, Christian film producer
Declined
- Warren Davidson, U.S. representative for Ohio's 8th congressional district (2016–present) (ran for re-election)
- Jon Husted, lieutenant governor of Ohio (2019–present) (ran for re-election)
- Jim Jordan, U.S. representative for Ohio's 4th congressional district (2007–present) (ran for re-election)
- Josh Mandel, former Ohio state treasurer (2011–2019), nominee for U.S. Senate in 2012, and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2018 (ran for U.S. Senate)
- Dave Yost, Attorney General of Ohio (2019–2026) and former Ohio state auditor (2011–2019) (ran for re-election)
Endorsements
Mike DeWine
Local officials
- Dennis Clough, mayor of Westlake
- Kevin Corcoran, mayor of North Ridgeville
- Tom Perciak, mayor of Strongsville
Individuals
- Chuck Calvert, former chair of the Medina County Republican Party and former state representative from the 69th district (1999–2006)
- Bryan C. Williams, vice chair of the Ohio Republican Party, chair of the Summit County Republican Party, former acting chair of the Ohio Republican Party, and former state representative from the 41st district (1997–2004)
Labor unions
- National Border Patrol Council
Organizations
- Columbiana County Republican Party
- Franklin County Republican Party
- Ohio Republican Party
- Ohio Restaurant Association
- Ohio Right to Life
- Pike County Republican Party
Jim Renacci
State representatives
- John Becker, former state representative from the 65th district (2013–2020)
- Jennifer Gross, state representative from the 52nd district (2021–present)
- Ron Maag, former state representative from the 62nd district (2013–2016) and the 35th district (2009–2013)
- Seth Morgan, former state representative from the 36th district (2009–2011)
- Nino Vitale, state representative from the 85th district (2015–present)
- Scott Wiggam, state representative from the 1st district (2017–present)
Local officials
- Ron Falconi, mayor of Brunswick
- Bob Meilander, mayor of Kipton
Individuals
- Brad Parscale, campaign manager for Donald J. Trump's 2020 presidential campaign
Organizations
- Butler County Republican Party
- Clermont County Republican Party
- Cuyahoga County Republican Party
- Geauga County Conservative Club
- Lorain County Tea Party
- Ohio Value Voters
- Ohio Women for Trump
- Stand for Health Freedom
- Strongsville Republican Party
Polling
Graphical summary
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominated
- Nan Whaley, former mayor of Dayton (2014–2022) and candidate in 2018
- Running mate: Cheryl Stephens, Cuyahoga County Council vice president
Eliminated in primary
- John Cranley, former mayor of Cincinnati (2013–2022) and nominee for OH-01 in 2000 and 2006
- Running mate: Teresa Fedor, state senator from Ohio's 11th senatorial district
Withdrawn
- Ted Williams, voice-over artist
Declined
- Tim Ryan, U.S. representative for Ohio's 13th congressional district (2003–2023) and candidate for U.S. President in 2020 (ran for U.S. Senate)
- Emilia Sykes, Minority Leader of the Ohio House of Representatives (2019–2021) and state representative (2015–2023) (successfully ran for Rep of the U.S. House in Ohio's 13th congressional district)
Endorsements
John Cranley
State senators
- Eric Kearney, former state senator from the 9th district (2005–2014)
- Rhine McLin, former state senator from the 5th district (1995–2001); former mayor of Dayton (2002–2010)
- Ray Miller, former state senator from the 15th district (2003–2010)
- Cecil Thomas, state senator from the 9th district (2015–present)
State representatives
- Nick Celebrezze, former state representative from the 15th district (2012–2019)
- Sedrick Denson, state representative from the 33rd district (2019–present)
- Dan Dodd, former state representative from the 91st district (2007–2010)
- Jessica Miranda, state representative from the 28th district (2019–present)
- Michael O'Brien, state representative from the 64th district (2015–present)
Individuals
- Gloria Steinem, feminist political activist
Newspapers
- The Plain Dealer, Cleveland
- The Toledo Blade
Nan Whaley
U.S. senators
- Sherrod Brown, U.S. senator from Ohio (2007–present), former U.S. representative for OH-13 (1993–2007)
State senators
- Nickie Antonio, state senator from the 23rd district (2019–present)
- Tina Maharath, state senator from the 3rd district (2019–present)
State representatives
- Willis Blackshear Jr., state representative from the 39th district (2021–present)
- Kristin Boggs, state representative from the 18th district (2016–present)
- Janine Boyd, state representative from the 9th district (2015–present)
- Juanita Brent, state representative from the 12th district (2019–present)
- Rich Brown, state representative from the 20th district (2017–present)
- Randi Clites, former state representative from the 75th district (2019–2020)
- Paula Hicks-Hudson, state representative from the 44th district (2019–present) and former mayor of Toledo (2015–2018)
- David J. Leland, state representative from the 22nd district (1983–1984, 2015–present)
- Michele Lepore-Hagan, state representative for Ohio's 58th district (2015–present)
- Mary Lightbody, state representative from the 19th district (2019–present)
- Beth Liston, state representative from the 21st district (2019–present)
- Adam Miller, state representative from the 17th district (2017–present)
- Joe Miller, state representative from the 56th district (2019–present)
- Dan Ramos, former state representative from the 56th district (2011–present)
- Phil Robinson, state representative from the 6th district (2019–present)
- Allison Russo, state representative from the 24th district (2019–present) and Minority Leader of the Ohio House of Representatives (2022–2025)
- Michael Sheehy, state representative from the 46th district (2013–present)
- Michael J. Skindell, state representative from the 13th district (2019–present)
- Kent Smith, state representative from the 8th district (2015–present)
- Monique Smith, state representative from the 16th district (2021–present)
- Lisa Sobecki, state representative from the 45th district (2019–present)
- Bride Rose Sweeney, state representative from the 14th district (2018–present)
- Casey Weinstein, state representative from the 37th district (2019–present)
Local officials
- Andrew Ginther, mayor of Columbus
- Dan Horrigan, mayor of Akron
- Frank G. Jackson, former mayor of Cleveland
- Wade Kapszukiewicz, mayor of Toledo
Individuals
- Joe Rugola, executive director of the Ohio Association of Public School Employees (OAPSE)
Unions
- Industrial Division of the Communication Workers of America
- Ohio Association of Public School Employees
Organizations
- 314 Action
- EMILY's List
- The Matriots PAC
Declined to endorse
Independents
Disqualified
- F. Patrick Cunnane
- Running mate: Mary Cunnane
- Niel Petersen, pastor
- Running mate: Michael V Stewart
Write-in candidates
Declared
- Timothy Grady, college student
- Running mate: Dayna Bickley
- Craig Patton
- Running mate: Collin Cook
- Renea Turner
- Running mate: Adina Pelletier
- Marshall Usher
- Running mate: Shannon Walker
Endorsements
Timothy Grady
General election
Post-primary endorsements
Nan Whaley (D)
Polling
Aggregate polls
Graphical summary
Results
According to a survey conducted by NORC for Fox News and the Associated Press, most white people (68% to 32%), Latinos (64% to 33%), and other minorities (60% to 36%) voted for DeWine, while most African Americans voted for Whaley (73% to 27%).
By county
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Hamilton (largest city: Cincinnati)
- Lorain (largest city: Lorain)
- Lucas (largest city: Toledo)
- Mahoning (largest city: Youngstown)
- Summit (largest city: Akron)
- Trumbull (largest city: Warren)
By congressional district
DeWine won 13 of 15 congressional districts, including three that elected Democrats.
Analysis
Voter demographics
Voter demographic data was collected by CNN. The voter survey is based on exit polls. There were 3,772 total respondents.