Former Dem Rep. Allison Russo announces run as ‘nonpartisan’ secretary of state

A former state lawmaker who abandoned her post earlier this year is running for secretary of state next year.

In June, then-Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, announced she would step down from her role, opening the way for new leaders to chart a path forward.

In announcing her campaign, Russo took several expected Democratic positions, such as claiming a lack of transparency, and suggested that the secretary of state should be nonpartisan.

Big news! Today I’m excited to announce my candidacy for Ohio Secretary of State! I’m running to restore your power in your government. Let’s take back our state together!💪🗳️ pic.twitter.com/ZRbnj9Vs7J

— Allison Russo (@Russo4Ohio) August 21, 2025

“Other than governor, I think the statewide office that is most important here in Ohio is the secretary of state’s office,” Russo told Statehouse News Bureau. “And that is because its primary responsibility is ensuring that our citizens have access to the ballot.”

She continued: “The importance of this office and this position—I’m not going to make my determination based on what other people have done. I feel very strongly, Republican or Democrat opponent, that I am the most experienced and qualified to walk in on day one and be able to do this job,” Russo added to the outlet. “So I’m going to run the race that I think needs to be done.”

Republican Frank LaRose, the current secretary of state, is running for state auditor as he is term-limited and cannot run for re-election. In an interview with The Statehouse News Bureau, Russo raised concerns with LaRose’s maintenance of Ohio’s voter rolls.

The outlet reported that LaRose has continued removing “people who haven’t voted in two federal election cycles and haven’t responded to notices from elections officials” from the voter rolls. Russo doesn’t think someone should be removed from the voter rolls just because they haven’t cast a ballot in recent elections.

However, Statehouse reported that in 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the practice, and that about a dozen other states use the same approach.

Russo, who was elected to the Ohio House in 2018, had served in the role since January 2022. However, she was not eligible to run for re-election to the Ohio House due to legislative term limits.

Currently, Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague and Marcell Strbich, a retired Air Force intel officer, are running in the Republican primary for the post. Sprague initially planned to run for governor but opted instead to run for secretary of state after Cincinnati native and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy entered the gubernatorial race.

Bryan Hambley, a University of Cincinnati Health cancer doctor, is also running in the Democratic primary for the office.

“My fellow Ohioans have told me, loud and clear, that Ohio needs new voices in state government and a less partisan Secretary of State,” Hambley said in a release, according to the Ohio Capital Journal. “This is why I am running: to make our elections fair and ensure Ohioans can hold politicians accountable.”

Russo’s announcement is one of several high-profile announcements by Democrats seeking to gain a foothold in the Republican-leaning Buckeye State.

Former Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown announced a bid to run for the U.S. Senate again, challenging current Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, who was picked to replace current Vice President JD Vance. Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan is expected to announce in the coming weeks whether he will run for governor next year.

“They are playing musical chairs because they’ve been blocked out of running for governor, which is what most of them wanted to do,” Russo told The Columbus Dispatch. “Regardless of who my opponent is, I’m in this to restore transparency and integrity back to the secretary of state’s office.”