Visual Library
/
Elections & Democracy
/
Measuring Democratic Choice
Explainer

Most Primary Candidate Votes Were Cast in Uncontested Races

WP001 reports that 72.4% of candidate votes cast in the analyzed General Assembly primary contests were cast in single-candidate races.

[ALT TEXT]

What This Graphic Shows

The graphic compares candidate votes cast in contested versus uncontested legislative primary contests and notes that these are contest votes, not unique voters.

Key Takeaway

A majority of candidate votes in the analyzed legislative primaries were cast where the ballot offered only one candidate.

Verification Status:

Verified — Current

Last Verified:

September 23, 2026

Sources

Review the sources used to support this visual.

Ohio Common Ground Research Center

The Uncontested Majority: Competition — or Its Absence — in Ohio’s 2026 State Legislative Primaries

July 6, 2026
View Source →

Related Visuals

Explore closely related graphics and explainers.

Explainer

Four in Five Ohio Legislative Primaries Were Uncontested

WP001 reports that 181 of 223 Republican and Democratic General Assembly party-primary contests in 2026 had only one candidate.

View Visual →
Explainer

Uncontested Does Not Mean No One Voted

Some of Ohio's largest single-candidate legislative primaries still drew tens of thousands of votes.

View Visual →
Explainer

In 75 of 116 Districts, Neither Party Had a Contested Primary

WP001 examines competition at the district level by asking whether either major party offered a contested primary.

View Visual →

Explore More

Continue exploring the issue or return to the complete OCG Visual Library.

Back to Topic →Browse the Visual Library →