Who's running in Ohio's 4th congressional district
3 candidates are on the ballot. Below is what each one says they stand for, what they have actually done in office or in public life, and the arguments published for and against them — each quoted from a named source rather than summarised by us.
3 candidates · ballot order · Jim Jordan currently holds this seat
Medium confidenceMedium confidenceThe candidate's stated positions and basic record are documented, but coverage is thin — often little independent reporting, or criticism from only one side.What would raise it: More independent reporting, a documented voting record, or published criticism from a named opponent would raise this.
What they say they stand for
Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.
Congressional oversight of the Justice Department and federal law enforcement, as Judiciary Committee chairman.
Cutting federal spending, as a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus.
Immigration enforcement and border security.
Second Amendment rights.
Opposition to federal regulation of speech and technology platforms.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
U.S. Representative for the 4th District since January 2007; re-elected in 2024 with 68.5%.
Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee; founding member and former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus.
Ohio state representative 1995 to 2000 and state senator 2001 to 2006.
Assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State University from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s.
Was deposed under oath in July 2025 in the federal litigation over sexual abuse by the late Ohio State team doctor Richard Strauss.
Endorsed for re-election by President Trump on May 5, 2026.
Arguments in favor
President Trump endorsed his re-election, and the state Republican party backed the Trump-endorsed slate.
— President Donald Trump; Ohio Republican Party
Arguments against
Former Ohio State wrestlers say he knew about sexual abuse by the team doctor Richard Strauss while he was an assistant coach and did not act. A former team captain told an Ohio House committee that Jordan called him crying and begging him to contradict his brother's account. Jordan denies it, saying he never saw or heard of any abuse, and was deposed under oath about it in 2025.
— Former Ohio State wrestling captain Adam DiSabato, testifying to the Ohio House Civil Justice Committee, and other former wrestlers
What we couldn’t verify
His campaign also makes a case for him based on his own experience and seniority — his campaign points to the Judiciary Committee chairmanship and his founding role in the House Freedom Caucus as giving a rural Ohio district influence over federal law enforcement oversight and spending fights — but that is the candidate describing himself rather than an argument made by anyone else, so it is recorded here and in his record rather than presented alongside the criticism of him.
The wrestlers' allegations are contested. Jordan has consistently denied knowing of the abuse; no finding against him has been made, and the federal litigation in which he was deposed was ongoing when this was written. The allegation is recorded as what his accusers say, not as established fact.
The allegations first surfaced in 2018 and 2020; the 2025 deposition is the most recent development.
A second criticism of him from this cycle, from his opponents or from Ohio reporting, could not be found.
Affordability: housing, fuel, health care, education and food.
Infrastructure investment across the district.
Ending for-profit incarceration.
Protecting public schools from voucher programmes.
Limiting U.S. military intervention abroad.
Immigration reform and oversight of immigration enforcement.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
Owner of Flex Biomedical LLC, a medical equipment company based in Columbus.
Resident of Delaware, Ohio since 2012; has not held elected office.
Unopposed for the Democratic nomination in the May 5, 2026 primary.
Arguments in favor
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
Arguments against
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
What we couldn’t verify
No published criticism of Kolasinski by name could be found. Searched: his name with 'criticism', with 'opponent', against National Republican Congressional Committee material, against Jim Jordan's campaign, and against Columbus Dispatch and district coverage. Because no case against him exists on the record, no case for him is presented either.
His campaign website was showing an under-construction placeholder when checked.
His endorsements and fundraising were not established from sources read; the district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+18.
Non-partisan representation; she says the country may be divided but the state does not have to be.
Local decision-making rather than direction from Washington.
Community revitalisation in Springfield and similar towns.
Small business, drawing on twelve years running her own.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
Assistant mayor of Springfield, Ohio; two years on the Springfield City Commission.
Owner of the Sip & Dipity Paint Bar for twelve years.
Filed as a non-partisan candidate for the November 3, 2026 general election.
Arguments in favor
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
Arguments against
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
What we couldn’t verify
No published criticism of Tackett by name could be found. Searched: her name with 'criticism', against both major-party campaigns, and against Springfield News-Sun and district coverage. Because no case against her exists on the record, no case for her is presented either.
No campaign website for her could be located; a domain matching her name was unregistered when checked.
Her positions on federal legislation were not established from sources read; her platform as reported is about approach rather than specific federal policy.
Positions and criticism are quoted from the named sources, not our assessments. This is built to help you start getting informed — confirm the official candidate list with your election authority before you vote.
Ohio held its primary on May 5, 2026, under the new congressional map adopted in October 2025. Three candidates are on the November ballot: Republican incumbent Jim Jordan, Democrat Joshua Kolasinski and non-partisan candidate Tracey Tackett, the assistant mayor of Springfield. Both major-party primaries were uncontested. The district runs from the Columbus exurbs through Marion and Lima into north-central Ohio and Mansfield, and has not elected a Democrat in nearly twenty years. A fourth candidate, businesswoman Tamie Wilson — the Democratic nominee here in 2022 and 2024 — announced an independent run in April 2026, but the Clark County Board of Elections did not approve her petitions and she is not on the ballot. Roster confirmed against Ballotpedia and Lima News reporting. Criticism of Kolasinski and Tackett by name could not be found, so their entries carry no arguments in either column.
This is one contest on a longer ballot
A Ohio ballot also carries state legislative districts, county offices, judicial seats and often local questions — and which of them you vote on is decided by your street address, not your city or ZIP code.