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State Rep. Keith Faber (R) defeated former U.S. Rep. Zack Space (D) and accountant Robert Coogan (L) in the general election for auditor of Ohio on November 6, 2018. Incumbent Dave Yost (R), who was first elected in 2010, was term-limited, making this an open-seat race.
The office performs audits of state agencies and government entities throughout Ohio and provides financial services to local governments as needed. He or she is also one of five members of a state commission responsible for redrawing state legislative boundaries during redistricting.
Ohio was both a Republican trifecta and Republican triplex, meaning Republicans controlled both chambers of the state legislature and held the offices of governor, secretary of state, and attorney general.
Ohio had supported statewide Democratic candidates in the past decade, however, including President Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) in 2012.
Thomas Ferguson (D), the last Democrat elected state auditor in Ohio, left office in 1995.
Ohio state auditor, 2018
| Poll | Poll sponsor |  Space |
 Faber | Undecided/Other | Margin of error | Sample size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fallon Research May 21-25, 2018 | 1984 Society | 35% | 32% | 33% | +/-3.5 | 800 |
Ohio Auditor, 2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Dave Yost Incumbent |
57% | 1,711,927 | |
| Democratic | John Patrick Carney | 38.3% | 1,149,305 | |
| Libertarian | Bob Bridges | 4.8% | 143,363 | |
| Total Votes | 3,004,595 | |||
| Election results via Ohio Secretary of State | ||||
Ohio Auditor of State, 2010
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Dave Yost |
50.2% | 1,882,010 | |
| Democratic | David Pepper | 44.9% | 1,683,330 | |
| Libertarian | L. Michael Howard | 4.9% | 182,534 | |
| Total Votes | 3,747,874 | |||
| Election results via Ohio Secretary of State | ||||
Demographic data for Ohio
| Ohio | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Total population: | 11,605,090 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 40,861 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 51.1% | 50.8% |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 82.4% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 12.2% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.9% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.5% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 3.4% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 89.1% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 26.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $49,429 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 19.6% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Ohio. | ||
As of July 2017, Ohio had a population of 11,700,000 people, with its three largest cities being Columbus (pop. est. 860,000), Cleveland (pop. est. 390,000), and Cincinnati (pop. est. 300,000).
