Upset Brief · OH-05 · Brian Shaver (D) vs. Bob Latta (R), incumbent
A long shot on the math: it takes a 16.1-point national wave.
<1%
odds today
1%
odds with the plan
61,713
net votes to find
37
days left; voting starts October 6
Where
- 01+102Middleton Twp North (Wood County)Starting line Latta +15. 14.6% split their ticket.
- 02+99Precinct Oberlin City #8 (Lorain County)Starting line Shaver +96. 0.7% split their ticket. About 290 more ballots in 2024 than in 2022 (estimate).
- 03+77Precinct Oberlin City #7 (Lorain County)Starting line Shaver +94. 0.7% split their ticket. About 230 more ballots in 2024 than in 2022 (estimate).
- 04+77Bowling Green 3-E (Wood County)Starting line Latta +1. 14.6% split their ticket.
- 05+71Bowling Green 4-A (Wood County)Starting line Shaver +12. 14.7% split their ticket. About 134 more ballots in 2024 than in 2022 (estimate).
- 06+68Precinct N. Ridgeville 1-C (Lorain County)Starting line Latta +5. 14.3% split their ticket.
The top 12 precincts carry 5% of the plan.
How
- P+14,606Persuade14,606 voters who split their ticket in recent elections and lean Latta today.
- M+1,385MobilizeAt least 13,375 people who voted in 2024 but not in 2022, in precincts where Shaver's side wins at least 55 percent.
- C+482ConsolidateVoters who went third party in recent races, in the precincts that lean Shaver's way.
Plus a national shift of 16.1 points of margin (45,241 votes) that no campaign controls.
What has to be true
- Shaver wins 50 percent of the ticket splitters now leaning Latta.
- In Precinct Oberlin City #8 (Lorain County) and Precinct Oberlin City #7 (Lorain County), 35 percent of the people who voted in 2024 but skipped 2022 come back and vote.
- The national environment moves about 16.1 points toward Shaver's side between now and November 3.
- No 2026 public poll exists for this race, so the starting line is a weighted blend of official recent results; the first real poll will move it.
The numbers behind it
- 01Crossover regression595 precincts, R² 0.986, 94 crossover precincts identified
- 02Monte Carlo20,000 seeded simulated elections with a 7-point baseline error. 90% range of the final margin with the plan: -79,152 to -11,721 votes.
- 03Money, FEC candidate totals through June 30Shaver $8,742 cash on hand; Latta $1,019,993.
- 04Call program for this list30,335 households, 91,004 dials, about 4,769 live conversations: an estimated $9,765 at published rates.
Independent analysis by The Political Group from official Ohio Secretary of State precinct returns (2022 and 2024), FEC filings and published polls, as of September 26, 2026. Not affiliated with any candidate or party.