District: OH-09
Cook Political Ranking: Lean D
Performance Voter Index: R+3
Rep. Kaptur has been the U.S. House Representative for Ohio’s 9th congressional district since 1983. Kaptur is the longest-serving woman in the House and the Dean of Ohio’s congressional district. Prior to Congress, she served as a domestic policy advisor during former President Carter’s administration.

Ohio’s 9th congressional district is in the northwestern part of the state, bordering Michigan, Indiana, and Canada, and it covers Toledo and Sandusky. For most of Kaptur’s congressional career, Ohio’s 9th congressional district has been solidly blue however, redistricting from the 2020 census changed the landscape of this district. Ohio Republicans were sued in 2022 for the unfairness of their newly drawn congressional district. A few short months later, they redrew the map with minimal changes and it passed, effectively turning OH-09 from a D+14 district to a R+3 district. In 2024, under these new lines, Kaptur was challenged by former Republican State Rep. Derek Merrin in a close contest resulting in Kaptur winning by less than 1 percentage point (2,382 votes). Kaptur raised $5 million compared to Merrin’s $1.7 million. Super PACs, national party committees, and other non-candidate groups combined to spend more than $18 million in this race.