Merrin wins GOP primary, sets rematch with Kaptur in Ohio seat

Derek Merrin’s victory in the Republican primary for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District sets up a rematch with Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur in one of the country’s most closely watched House races. NBC News projected Merrin as the GOP winner on May 5, giving Republicans a repeat nominee after Kaptur narrowly beat him in the November 5, 2024 general election.

The matchup is not simply a replay of last cycle. It is a test of whether Merrin can turn a near miss into a breakthrough in a district that stretches across northwestern Ohio, follows Lake Erie and includes Toledo and surrounding communities. Republicans have targeted the seat as competitive, and the 2026 contest will again center on a district that has become one of the state’s most important battlegrounds.

Merrin, a former Ohio state representative from Lucas County and Monclova, emerged from a crowded primary that also included state Rep. Josh Williams, Air Force Lt. Col. Alea Nadeem, former ICE deputy director Madison Sheahan and health care industry worker Anthony Campbell. His path to the nomination suggests the party is consolidating behind a familiar candidate rather than gambling on a newcomer, a sign that Republicans view this seat as worth another serious push.

For Kaptur, the race will turn on the advantages of incumbency and the vulnerabilities of a long tenure. She has represented Ohio’s 9th District since 1983, making her the longest-serving woman in congressional history. Toledo and the surrounding communities remain her political base, and her decades in office give her deep name recognition and an established campaign infrastructure. But the 2024 result also showed that the district can no longer be treated as safely Democratic.

That is what makes this rematch different. Merrin already proved he can make Kaptur work for every vote, and his primary win gives Republicans a candidate with recent general-election exposure and a ready-made contrast in style and geography. Yet the same facts that make this a real pickup opportunity also explain why it is still a steep climb: Kaptur has survived multiple cycles, and the district’s Democratic lean in Toledo has not disappeared. The general election is scheduled for November 3, 2026, and Ohio’s 9th District will once again measure whether a veteran incumbent can hold off a challenger who has already come close once.