Robert McColley, president of the Ohio Senate, is running for lieutenant governor as Vivek Ramaswamy's running mate in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.
NBC News reported that Ramaswamy selected McColley on Jan. 6, 2026. McColley, a Republican from Napoleon, Ohio, faces Democrat David Pepper and Libertarian James L. Mills in the race, according to BallotReady election data.
Candidate information
- Full name: Robert McColley
- Party: Republican
- Date of birth: Oct. 14, 1984
- Hometown: Napoleon, Ohio
- Education: Bachelor's degree in finance, The Ohio State University (2007); juris doctor, University of Toledo (2010)
- Family: Wife Denise, daughter Anna and twin sons Matthew and Michael
Experience and public service
McColley has served in the Ohio Senate representing District 1 since 2017, according to his Ohio Senate page. He became Senate majority leader in 2023 and rose to president of the Ohio Senate in 2025.
Before joining the Senate, he served as state representative for District 81 from 2015 to 2017 and held the role of assistant majority whip in the Ohio House of Representatives.
His career spans law and economic development. McColley worked as an associate attorney at Hyre Legal Group from 2010 to 2011 and at Leatherman & Witzler from 2012 to 2013. He served as economic development director at the Henry County Community Improvement Corporation from 2013 to 2014. He has been of counsel at Clemens, Korhn, Liming & Warncke since 2015, according to BallotReady profile data.
On the issues
The following positions come from the Ramaswamy-McColley campaign website and represent the candidates' stated platform.
Taxes and budget: The campaign says it would slash property taxes to protect families, seniors and homeowners. The ticket also calls for phasing out the state income tax, starting with eliminating capital gains taxes, according to the campaign.
Education: The campaign says it would raise academic standards with a focus on third-grade literacy, eighth-grade numeracy and 12th-grade civics. The platform also calls for expanding career-technical education and apprenticeships, rewarding top teachers with higher pay and empowering parents with transparency and choices over where their children learn.
Criminal justice and public safety: The campaign says it would enforce stricter bail and sentencing for repeat violent offenders and empower local police and sheriffs.
Energy: The campaign calls for expanding natural gas and deploying new energy technologies to reduce electric bills. The platform also calls for streamlining energy project permits.
Economy: The campaign says it would reduce regulations and create more paths to homeownership and entrepreneurship by lowering the cost of living.
Endorsements
The following endorsements are claimed by the endorsing organizations, according to BallotReady profile data:
- Ohio Republican Party
- Summit County GOP
- Strongsville Republican Party
- Scioto County GOP
- Clermont County Republican Party
The West Chester-Liberty Herald invited all candidates in this race to complete a questionnaire. McColley's campaign did not respond. This profile is based on publicly available information and the campaign's published platform.
