U.S. House, Ohio 12th Congressional District · Election November 3, 2026 · Updated
Who should I vote for in Ohio's 12th Congressional District?
Troy Balderson has the strongest record in Ohio's 12th Congressional District. Troy Balderson scores 67 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 9, 2026. Troy Balderson's highest marks are relevant experience and roots in the constituency. Jerrad Christian (6 of 15 criteria) has too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Republican · incumbent
Strongest record
Troy Balderson
67 / 100
Public evidence on 13 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 56
- Qualifications
- 75
- Performance
- 69
Democratic
Jerrad Christian
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 6 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 50
- Qualifications
- 50
- Performance
- NR
The good, the bad and the unresolved
The record
The notable facts of each candidate's public life, each tied to a source and confirmed to be this person. Unresolved matters are labeled with where they stand and do not move a score.
Troy Balderson
- On the record2023-12-01
Voted Yea on the resolution expelling Rep. George Santos, which passed; Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise voted Nay.
Source: House Clerk Roll Call 691, 2023
- On the record2021-01-06
Voted Nay on the January 2021 objections to Arizona's and Pennsylvania's certified electoral votes.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 10, 2021, House Clerk Roll Call 11, 2021
- Credit2019-12-20
Sponsored H.R. 2322, the Accelerated Payments for Small Businesses Act; its provisions were enacted in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, signed Dec. 20, 2019.
Jerrad Christian
- Credit2002 to 2007
Served in the U.S. Navy from 2002 to 2007, as a flight deck fueler and later a meteorologist and oceanographer, and was honorably discharged.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jerrad Christian, Knox Pages, Oct. 31, 2024
Who they are
Character
Integrity
Tells the truth, keeps their word, and takes no private gain from public office.
Troy Balderson. Annual financial disclosure for 2025 filed with the House Clerk April 17, 2026. No House Ethics Committee matter or FEC administrative fine found; no periodic transaction reports in the Clerk index for 2019 to 2026.
Sources: House Clerk financial disclosure, Filing ID 10075720, House Committee on Ethics site search for Balderson, FEC administrative fines search
Jerrad Christian. Campaign committee reports are on file with the FEC through June 30, 2026, and House candidate financial disclosures are on the Clerk index. No FEC administrative fine found.
Sources: FEC candidate page, House Clerk candidate financial disclosure, Filing ID 10082870, FEC administrative fines search
Courage
Takes a stand that costs them something, including telling their own side no.
Troy Balderson. Voted to expel Rep. George Santos in December 2023 when the Speaker and Majority Leader voted no, and voted against the April 2024 Ukraine supplemental and the September 2024 stopgap spending bill that both leaders backed.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 691, 2023, House Clerk Roll Call 151, 2024, House Clerk Roll Call 450, 2024
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Accountability
Owns mistakes, answers hard questions, and works in the open.
Troy Balderson. No public record found.
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Temperament and judgment
Steady under pressure, decides on evidence, and treats opponents and staff with respect.
Troy Balderson. Served in the Ohio House, the Ohio Senate and, since 2018, the U.S. House. No censure, reprimand or House Ethics Committee matter found.
Sources: House office site, About, House Committee on Ethics site search for Balderson
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Fidelity to the oath
Uses power inside its limits: accepts certified results, obeys court rulings, follows the rules of the office.
Troy Balderson. Has held sworn state and federal office since 2009. Voted Nay on both January 2021 objections to the Arizona and Pennsylvania electoral votes and is not on the Texas v. Pennsylvania House amicus list. No misuse-of-office finding found.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 10, 2021, House Clerk Roll Call 11, 2021
Jerrad Christian. Served in the U.S. Navy from 2002 to 2007 and was honorably discharged. No official finding of misconduct found.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jerrad Christian, Campaign site, About
What they bring
Qualifications
Relevant experience
Has done work that prepares them for this specific office.
Troy Balderson. In the U.S. House since September 2018 and seeking a fifth full term; earlier served in the Ohio House (District 94) and the Ohio Senate (District 20).
Sources: House office site, About, Ballotpedia, Troy Balderson
Jerrad Christian. Navy flight deck fueler and later meteorologist and oceanographer, then an outdoor education teacher and now a software engineer. Has not held public office.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jerrad Christian, Campaign site, About
Command of the job
Knows the issues and knows what the office can and cannot do.
Troy Balderson. Serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee and is vice chair of its Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee; chairs the House Energy Action Team, a Republican conference group. Publishes a priorities page.
Sources: GovTrack, committee membership, House office site, About, House office site, Priorities
Jerrad Christian. Publishes an issues page with positions on campaign finance, voting rights, civil rights and other topics, mostly in general terms.
Source: Campaign site, Issues
Communication
Explains plainly, persuades, and listens.
Troy Balderson. Offers an e-newsletter and publishes issue priority pages. Has not completed Ballotpedia's 2026 survey.
Sources: House office site, home page, House office site, Priorities, Ballotpedia, Troy Balderson
Jerrad Christian. Completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026 and publishes a plain-language issues page.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jerrad Christian, Campaign site, Issues
Roots in the constituency
Lives there, knows the people, and is funded by them.
Troy Balderson. Born and raised in Muskingum County, which lies in the district, and lives in Zanesville. FEC by-state totals for 2025 to 2026 show about 72 percent of itemized individual contributions from Ohio.
Sources: House office site, About, House office site, About the District, FEC contribution totals by state
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Management
Can build and run an organization.
Troy Balderson. Campaign committee reports are on file with the FEC through June 30, 2026. No FEC administrative fine record found.
Sources: FEC candidate page, FEC administrative fines search
Jerrad Christian. Campaign committee reports are on file with the FEC through June 30, 2026. No FEC administrative fine record found.
Sources: FEC candidate page, FEC administrative fines search
What they deliver
Performance
Results
Turns ideas into outcomes.
Troy Balderson. Legislative Effectiveness Score of 0.860 in the 118th Congress against a benchmark of 1.198, meets expectations. His Accelerated Payments for Small Businesses Act was enacted through the 2020 defense authorization law.
Sources: Center for Effective Lawmaking House dataset, 93rd to 118th Congress, GovTrack, H.R. 2322 (116th Congress)
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Showing up
Does the basic work of the job.
Troy Balderson. Missed 23 of 3,985 roll call votes, 0.6 percent, from September 2018 to September 2026.
Source: GovTrack, missed votes
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Constituent service
Solves problems for the people they represent.
Troy Balderson. Lists a district office in Pickerington and offers help with federal agencies. No published casework totals found.
Sources: House office site, home page, House office site, Services
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Coalition building
Wins support beyond their own faction.
Troy Balderson. Lugar Center Bipartisan Index score of -0.44594 in the latest posted House scores (2023), ranked 211 of 436, a negative score above the bottom quarter.
Source: Lugar Center and McCourt School Bipartisan Index, House Scores
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
Stewardship of public money
Treats tax dollars as someone else's money.
Troy Balderson. No public record found.
Jerrad Christian. No public record found.
How to read this
Each criterion is scored 0 to 4 against the written rubric in the Ballot Standard. NR means no record: there is no reliable public evidence either way, so the criterion is left out and never counts against the candidate. A total is published when at least 8 of 15 criteria have evidence.
A sitting officeholder has a longer public record than a first-time candidate, so the two totals rest on different amounts of evidence. Read the count of criteria beside each score. Low marks require an official finding or a primary record. Allegations and opinion are not used.
No policy position is scored. Evidence checked October 9, 2026. Campaigns and readers can send a correction with a public source to tpg@thepoliticalgroup.com.
Questions
Who should I vote for in Ohio's 12th Congressional District?
Troy Balderson has the strongest record in Ohio's 12th Congressional District. Troy Balderson scores 67 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 9, 2026. Troy Balderson's highest marks are relevant experience and roots in the constituency. Jerrad Christian (6 of 15 criteria) has too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Who is running in Ohio's 12th Congressional District in 2026?
Troy Balderson (Republican, incumbent), Jerrad Christian (Democratic). The general election is November 3, 2026.
Is Troy Balderson a good candidate for Congress?
Troy Balderson scores 67 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, with public evidence on 13 of 15 criteria: character 56 of 100, qualifications 75 of 100, performance 69 of 100. The standard measures character, qualifications and performance, not policy positions.
Is Jerrad Christian a good candidate for Congress?
Jerrad Christian has public evidence on 6 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
How is the strongest record decided?
The candidate with the highest Ballot Standard score has the strongest record. Each of 15 criteria on character, qualifications and performance is scored 0 to 4 from public records and established reporting, the same way for every party. No policy position is scored, and unresolved accusations never move a score.
More on this race: every Ohio race scored, the trailing candidate's path to victory, and the Ohio 2026 election guide. Independent scorecard by The Political Group, not affiliated with any candidate or party.