Incumbent Emilia Sykes (D) and Kevin Coughlin (R) are running in the general election for Ohio’s 13th Congressional District on November 5, 2024.

The University of Virginia’s Kyle Kondik said the district is “…one of the most competitively drawn districts in the whole country. It’s one of a relative handful of true swing seats across the country.”

Sykes was first elected in 2022, winning 52.7% to 47.3%. Before her election, she served in the Ohio House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023 and was minority leader from 2019 to 2021. Sykes is running on her record in Congress, which she says has benefited the district. The New York Times’s Robert Jimison wrote: “At stop after stop, Ms. Sykes highlighted her role in helping to secure nearly $15 million in federal funding for projects in the district through earmarks… and laid out plans to seek more federal dollars during this year’s appropriations process.” Sykes is campaigning on her constituent services which she said “…is the best incumbent protection plan that exists, because this is my job performance.”

In his responses to Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection, Coughlin said, “I’m a small business owner and former State Senator running to put responsible leadership to work for you in the United States Congress.” Coughlin said he is running because “I feel like I’m more in line with the views and the concerns of the 13th congressional district than the person that there’s that is there now, and I have a record that shows that I will be able to do something about it,” The National Republican Congressional Committee has listed Coughlin as one of 26 candidates the group is supporting as part of its Young Guns program for candidates in competitive districts.

Both candidates face criticisms over who’s more in touch with the district. Former Ohio Republican Party chair Robert Paduchik wrote that Sykes “aligns closely with the most radical elements of the Washington Democrats and has increasingly embraced extreme positions that do not resonate with the commonsense voters of the district.” Democrats have criticized Coughlin over issues such as Social Security and abortion, saying he’s out of touch with the district’s voters. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair Suzan DelBene (D) said that Coughlin “…spent his career as a lobbyist and self-serving politician, supporting efforts to ban abortion, gut Social Security and Medicare, and repeal the Affordable Care Act. His out-of-touch agenda would threaten the fundamental freedoms Ohioans have fought hard to protect.”

As of the most recent fundraising reports, Sykes had raised $3.4 million and spent $1.1 million, and Coughlin had raised $864,682 and spent $475,464. To read more about campaign finance reports, click here.

All 435 U.S. House seats are up for election in 2024. Republicans have a 220 to 212 majority with three vacancies. As of June 2024, 45 members of the U.S. House had announced they were not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here.

In the 2022 election in this district, the Democratic candidate won 52.7%-47.3%. Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have defeated Donald Trump (R) 50.7%-47.9%.

Ohio’s 13th is one of 37 congressional districts with a Democratic incumbent or an open seat that the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is targeting in 2024. To read about NRCC targeting initiatives, click here. For a complete list of NRCC targeted districts, click here.