Fox News poll finds Sherrod Brown ahead of Jon Husted in Ohio, where Republican groups are outspending Democrats this month

By Staff Reporter

WASHINGTON — Former Sen. Sherrod Brown, the Ohio Democrat trying to win back a Senate seat, leads Sen. Jon Husted 52% to 47% among likely voters in a Fox News poll released Wednesday, in a state President Donald Trump carried with 55% of the vote in 2024. The result arrives as Republican-aligned groups pour tens of millions of dollars into October advertising against Brown.

The survey, conducted Oct. 15-19 by Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), interviewed 2,005 registered voters, including 1,592 likely voters; Fox put the margin of sampling error at plus or minus 2 percentage points for both groups. Brown’s five-point edge is just outside that margin.

What the poll found

Brown’s advantage rests on personal standing: 50% of likely voters view him favorably and 48% unfavorably, while Husted, appointed in January 2025 to the seat JD Vance vacated to become vice president, is at 42% favorable and 55% unfavorable. Trump’s job approval in Ohio was 43%, with 57% disapproving, and 52% of voters said they were concerned that Husted is too close to the president. Half said they worried Brown is too liberal.

The poll found an 18-point gender gap, with women backing Brown by 14 points and men backing Husted by 4. Nine percent of Republicans said they would vote for Brown; 2% of Democrats chose Husted. Among the 15% of respondents who said they had already voted, Brown led by 29 points.

In the governor’s race, Democrat Amy Acton led Republican Vivek Ramaswamy 50% to 48%, within the margin of error. Fox noted that the survey was finished before Ramaswamy’s campaign released an ad featuring Acton’s estranged mother.

The money

Independent-expenditure filings with the Federal Election Commission show how heavily Republican-aligned groups have invested in holding the seat. The Inquisitor reported Oct. 16 that more than $56 million had been spent against Brown in October; with filings through early Thursday, groups have now reported about $70.4 million in October spending opposing Brown and about $27.9 million supporting Husted. Groups backing Brown have reported about $7 million supporting him and $26.9 million opposing Husted since Oct. 1.

The FEC figures do not include the candidates’ own advertising. Both campaigns’ pre-general reports, covering Oct. 1-14, are due to the FEC Thursday and will appear on the Brown and Husted candidate pages.

The Fox survey’s other results suggest why both sides are still spending. Voters who view both candidates unfavorably preferred Husted by nearly 20 points, and 83% of Husted supporters, compared with 88% of Brown’s, said they were certain of their vote. Ohioans split 50% to 48% in favor of Democratic control of the Senate.

Senate Majority PAC responded to the request the Inquisitor sent to WinSenate, which asked about WinSenate’s roughly $15.9 million in October spending against Husted and its plans for the race. The response did not address the spending figure or say how much more the group plans to spend; it said the group would stay on the air through Election Day and repeated its criticism of Husted. “Jon Husted has failed Ohio families, and we are on air through election day so families understand the depths of his corruption and self-dealing,” the group said in an email. Husted’s campaign, which was also asked for comment, had not responded by publication.

The Inquisitor sent requests for comment Thursday morning to the Brown and Husted campaigns, the Senate Leadership Fund, Defend American Jobs and WinSenate, using the addresses each committee lists with the FEC. Senate Majority PAC responded before publication, as noted above. The others had not responded by publication.

Correction, Oct. 22, 2026: An earlier version of this story said none of the committees asked had responded by publication. Senate Majority PAC had responded before publication; its statement has been added.

Photo: Sherrod Brown in his official Senate portrait, 2021. United States Senate / Wikimedia Commons, public domain.