Campaign finance requirements govern how much money candidates may receive from individuals and organizations, how often they must report those contributions, and how much individuals, organizations, and political entities may contribute to campaigns.
While campaign finance is not the only factor in electoral outcomes, successful fundraising can provide a candidate with advantages during a campaign. Fundraising can also indicate party momentum.
This article lists top fundraisers in the Ohio State Senate, overall and by party. It is based on campaign finance reports that officeholders in and candidates for the State Senate submitted to the Ohio Secretary of State. It includes activity between July 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2022.
Top fundraisers in the Ohio State Senate by party
The top fundraisers in Ohio State Senate elections are shown below. Individuals are presented with the office that they were on the ballot for in 2022, if applicable.
In the Democratic Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Patricia Goetz (District 27) – $250,398
- Tina Maharath (District 3) – $230,801
- Nickie Antonio (District 23) – $148,900
- William DeMora (District 25) – $120,871
- Kent Smith (District 21) – $104,368
In the Republican Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Kristina Daley Roegner (District 27) – $2,284,139
- Michele Reynolds (District 3) – $1,273,915
- Nathan Manning (District 13) – $1,164,278
- Michael Rulli (District 33) – $664,318
- Matt Huffman – $433,109
Fundraising totals
Overall, Democratic officeholders and candidates raised $1.1 million in this period. Republican officeholders and candidates raised $8.5 million. Combined, all State Senate fundraisers in the July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022, filing period raised $9.6 million.
The five largest Democratic fundraisers were responsible for 76 percent of all Democratic State Senate fundraising. The five largest Republican fundraisers were responsible for 68 percent of all Republican State Senate fundraising.
The table below provides additional data from the campaign finance reports from the top 10 fundraisers during this period.
| TOP 10 FUNDRAISERS – OHIO STATE SENATE (July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Party Affiliation | Raised | Spent |
| Kristina Daley Roegner | Republican Party | $2,284,139 | $391,315 |
| Michele Reynolds | Republican Party | $1,273,915 | $192,636 |
| Nathan Manning | Republican Party | $1,164,278 | $281,211 |
| Michael Rulli | Republican Party | $664,318 | $274,633 |
| Matt Huffman | Republican Party | $433,109 | $265,464 |
| Robert McColley | Republican Party | $425,919 | $351,207 |
| Patricia Goetz | Democratic Party | $250,398 | $451,175 |
| Tina Maharath | Democratic Party | $230,801 | $210,210 |
| George Lang | Republican Party | $213,267 | $63,329 |
| Shane Wilkin | Republican Party | $203,069 | $270,716 |
Campaign finance reporting periods
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that candidate committees submitted to the Ohio Secretary of State. Candidate committees represent individuals who have run for state or local office at any point, including past and present officeholders. This article does not include non-candidate committees. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines.
This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.