BGSU Poll

The BGSU Poll conducts regular statewide polling in Ohio to better understand citizen views on a variety of issues and political preferences. A team of scholars working in the Bowling Green State University Democracy and Public Policy Research Network are responsible for developing and analyzing each poll. The BGSU Poll partners with the national polling firm YouGov to obtain representative samples for each survey based upon relevant demographic data.

April 2026 Poll Results   

The Democracy and Public Policy Network in the Department of Political Science at Bowling Green State University has released the results of its seventh web-based poll, conducted from April 7-14, 2026, with insight from 1,000 registered Ohio voters.

The poll has a margin of error of +/- 3.9 percentage points. For questions 33-37 relating to property taxes, the sample was split in half (500-500) and the margin of error for those questions is +/- 5.62 percentage points (questions 33 and 34) and +/- 5.37 percentage points (questions 35-37). The weighted sample reflects a +11 recalled vote margin for President Trump in the 2024 presidential race.

The poll was conducted under the direction of Bowling Green State University professors Dr. Robert Alexander, Dr. Melissa Miller, Dr. David Jackson and Dr. Joshua Boston in partnership with YouGov. 

President Trump's approval remains underwater, with concerns over economy, Iran and state of democracy in the United States 

"While Donald Trump has won the state handily three times, we see a lot of trouble brewing for him and his policies in the state. He has had a negative approval rating for a year now, and many of his policies are not popular. That about 15% of his voters now regret their vote to some degree suggests his grip on the state is not absolute.”
- Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

We find a majority of Ohio respondents disapprove of Donald Trump’s performance in office resulting in a -6 net job approval rating. This marks a slight rebound of 4 percentage points from our October poll, which found him at a -10 net job approval rating. We also find that 15% of Trump voters in our sample regret their vote to at least “some degree.” The economy is by far the most important issue on the minds of voters and 56% think the economy has gotten worse over the past year compared to 22% who say it is better. A majority of voters oppose ground forces in Iran (67%), the Iran campaign itself (53%) and Donald Trump’s tariff policies (56%). Most Ohioans do not think checks and balances are currently maintaining accountability in the federal government (63%) and most are dissatisfied with how democracy is working in the country (54%). 

Governor and Senate races are in statistical dead heats

“Every sign is pointing to close races for governor and U.S. Senate in Ohio. President Trump is generally unpopular, Democrats are far more enthusiastic, and the economy is a major concern for voters. Taken together, this midterm likely provides the best opportunity for Democrats to win statewide offices in 20 years.”
- Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

We find both the governor’s race and the Senate race are statistically tied. Republican Vivek Ramaswamy holds a 1-point edge over Democrat Amy Acton for Governor (48% to 47%) and Republican Jon Husted holds a 3-point edge over Democrat Sherrod Brown in the Senate race (50% to 47%). Sixty-one percent of Democrats say they are more motivated than usual to vote in the midterm election compared to just 37% of Republicans in our sample. Republicans hold a slight edge when it comes to who respondents say they will vote for on a generic congressional ballot 48% to 43%. 

Ohio primary voters largely undecided

"Currently, ‘not sure’ is the clear winner in down ballot primaries in Ohio. It will be critical for these candidates to activate their ground games and familiarize themselves to primary voters in the closing weeks in order to win their respective party’s nominations.”
– Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

For governor, we find some support for Vivek Ramaswamy’s Republican challengers Casey Putsch and Heather Hill with both polling at 12%. Just over half of Putsch supporters indicated they would vote for Ramaswamy if Putsch is not the party’s nominee. Amy Acton is running unopposed in the Democrats’ primary. 

Down ballot Ohio primary races do not appear to be on the radar for most Ohio voters. No statewide nominee for either party garners more than 32% support in their party. While several candidates have built leads in both parties, large majorities of prospective primary voters have yet to make up their mind, leaving these races wide open. 

A slight majority of Republican primary voters (45% to 55%) agreed that they consider themselves to be part of the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement. Older respondents and those without a college degree were far more likely to consider themselves to be MAGA.

Support for property tax reductions shows big changes with more information

“If the elimination of property taxes makes the November ballot, voters will be bombarded with information to persuade them to accept or reject the measure. Our findings show how information and context can have significant effects on one’s support or opposition to the issue.”
– Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

We conducted an experiment to test how context and information affect one’s views on property taxes in Ohio. Half of the sample was asked about the degree to which they think property taxes should be decreased or increased. They were subsequently given information about what property taxes generally fund and what could happen if they were eliminated. The other half of the sample was given this information before being asked how they felt about property tax reductions in Ohio.

We find those not given any context prior to answering the questions were far more likely to support a substantial reduction or elimination of property taxes than those who were provided context first (56% to 43%). In short, with more information, support for the elimination or substantial reduction of property taxes dropped 13%. Both groups show concern for increased taxes occurring elsewhere and reductions in local services if property taxes are eliminated. 

By a large margin, Ohioans trust local governments most when it comes to using tax dollars (61% for local government, 28% for state government, and 11% for federal government). Every single local government service we asked respondents about was rated favorably by respondents. This includes positive favorability for fire and emergency services (94%), parks and recreation (85%), public libraries (84%), services for older adults and people with disabilities (82%), police services (78%), roads and bridges (78%), services for children and families (76%), public health departments (76%), mental health and addiction services (73%) and public schools (68%). 

Ohioans show great skepticism when it comes to data centers

“Our respondents are very skeptical when it comes to data centers. This is particularly true when it comes to having them built near their communities. They are a classic example of NIMBY – Not in my backyard – politics.”
– Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

We find respondents show many concerns over data centers in the state. Most believe data centers are bad for home energy costs (60%), the environment (57%) and people’s quality of life near them (53%). Respondents hold unfavorable views about their construction in their local community with a net negative favorability of 38 points. Support for data center construction elsewhere in Ohio is also underwater, with a net negative favorability of 10 points. More than 7 in 10 respondents look favorably on a temporary ban on the construction of new data centers until more information about their effects can be gathered. 

Respondents largely ambivalent when it comes to government consolidation

“Vivek Ramaswamy set off a firestorm with his comments about consolidating Ohio’s public universities. We do not find strong support for consolidating universities, and it is likely opposition would grow given the broad economic benefits universities bring to their communities.” 
– Robert Alexander, professor of political science, BGSU

One in five respondents have strong negative feelings about consolidating those public entities we asked about, while less than 1 in 5 respondents have strong positive feelings about consolidating the various public entities we asked about. There is some support for consolidating fire and EMS services (+12 net favorability), public libraries (+10) and local school districts (+6). Respondents were split almost evenly over consolidation of public colleges and universities in Ohio (-1 net favorability), while they were opposed to consolidation of small towns in Ohio (-10 net favorability).