Sherrod Brown
Summary
Sherrod Campbell Brown, 71, is a veteran left-wing populist Democrat and Ohio native. Born November 9, 1952, in Mansfield, Ohio, he graduated from Yale University and Ohio State University. Brown served in the Ohio House (starting 1975), as Ohio Secretary of State (1983-1991), in the U.S. House representing Ohio's 13th district (1993-2007), and in the U.S. Senate (2007-2025). He chaired the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee and served on Finance, Veterans' Affairs, and Ethics committees. In 2024, Brown narrowly lost his re-election bid to Republican Bernie Moreno by 3.5 percentage points. In August 2025, after establishing the Dignity of Work Institute think tank and consulting with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Brown announced his comeback campaign.
Background
Sherrod Campbell Brown was born November 9, 1952, in Mansfield, Ohio. He attended Yale University and Ohio State University. Brown started his political career in 1975 in the Ohio House. He served as Ohio Secretary of State (1983-1991), then in the U.S. House (1993-2007) representing Ohio's 13th district. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006 and reelected in 2012 and 2018, serving 18 years. Brown chaired the Senate Banking Committee and was a leading voice for worker protections and fair trade. In 2024, he narrowly lost reelection to Bernie Moreno by 3.5 points. He married Connie Schultz in 2004; she is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author who has been prominent in his campaigns. They live in Columbus with a blended family of four children and eight grandchildren. After leaving the Senate, Brown established the Dignity of Work Institute think tank before announcing his 2026 comeback campaign.