Democratic Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown is running within the margin of error against all three of his declared Republican challengers, the first poll of his 2024 race shows.
Brown, currently serving his third term in the upper chamber, is the only statewide elected Democrat in Ohio. The poll, conducted by East Carolina University, showed him leading businessman Bernie Moreno 46-42, state Sen. Matt Dolan 45-44 and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose 44-42. All three matchups were within the poll’s four percent margin of error.
East Carolina University polled 805 registered voters from June 21-24, reaching 402 by landline and 403 through an online panel. (RELATED: Dem Senator Dismisses Opposition To Immigration As A ‘Far-Right’ Concern)
Both Dolan and Moreno ran in the 2022 GOP Senate primary to replace retiring Sen. Rob Portman. Dolan finished third, behind JD Vance and Josh Mandel, while Moreno dropped out early. Dolan, whose family is worth $5.2 billion, is expected to spend large sums of his own money throughout the 2024 cycle. He shelled out $10.6 million during the 2022 campaign.
🚨 2024 OHIO SENATE POLL
(D) Sherrod Brown: 45% (+1)
(R) Matt Dolan: 44%
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(D) Sherrod Brown: 44% (+2)
(R) Frank LaRose: 42%
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(D) Sherrod Brown: 46% (+4)
(R) Bernie Moreno: 42%ECU | 805 RV | June 21-24 | E: ±4%https://t.co/JOoU773JH0 pic.twitter.com/BYq2Ug5Afk
— InteractivePolls (@IAPolls2022) June 29, 2023
Brown took office in 2007, when Ohio had a Democratic governor and an 11-7 congressional delegation split in favor of the GOP. The state currently has a Republican governor and a 10-5 delegation split in favor of Republicans. GOP Gov. Mike DeWine won reelection in 2022 by 25 points, while state Attorney General Dave Yost and LaRose both won by 20 points.
The East Carolina poll found LaRose leading the GOP primary with 17 percent, followed by Dolan with 14 percent and Moreno with seven percent.