Sprague seeks Ohio secretary of state after treasurer tenure

Robert Sprague, Ohio's treasurer since 2019, is running as a Republican for secretary of state in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election. He faces two opponents. Democrat Allison Russo and Libertarian Tom Pruss are also on the ballot, which Butler County voters will see.

Sprague, a Findlay resident, said on his campaign website that he is running "to defend voters' rights and to run the most secure elections in Ohio history." He has been certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady election data.

Sprague initially announced a run for governor on Jan. 18, 2025, according to his Wikipedia biography. He withdrew on Feb. 5, 2025, and endorsed Vivek Ramaswamy in the gubernatorial contest.

Candidate information

Party: Republican
Residence: Findlay, Ohio
Born: April 18, 1973, in Findlay
Family: Married to Amanda Sprague; five children
Education: High school diploma, Findlay High School; bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, Duke University; master of business administration with an emphasis in finance, University of North Carolina

Experience and public service

Sprague's career spans private-sector consulting and local and state government. He worked as a management consultant at Ernst and Young and owned an investment firm, according to BallotReady profile data. He also founded his own consulting firm advising businesses internationally, according to his Wikipedia biography.

In elected office, Sprague served as Findlay city treasurer from 2004 to 2007 and city auditor from 2007 to 2011. He was appointed to Ohio House of Representatives District 83 in February 2011 to fill a vacancy created when Cliff Hite was appointed to the Ohio Senate. He won full terms in 2012, 2014 and 2016.

During his time in the Ohio House, Sprague served on the Finance and Financial Institutions Committees and the Criminal Justice Committee. He chaired a committee that traveled the state gathering information on the opioid crisis and chaired the Finance Subcommittee on Health and Human Services.

As state treasurer, Sprague oversaw growth of the STABLE Account program for individuals with disabilities, with participation more than doubling from January 2019 through December 2020, according to a Rotary Club of Canton profile. He also launched Family Forward. Through that program, Ohioans seeking to adopt may qualify for reduced-interest loans up to $50,000 to help manage adoption costs. He also launched ResultsOHIO, which evaluates and supports pay-for-success programs aimed at combating social and public health challenges.

On the issues

Election security: Sprague said on his campaign website that Ohio will be a paper ballot state with a verifiable, auditable paper trail. He said he would work with the Trump administration to obtain federal citizenship data so boards of elections can verify citizenship when individuals register to vote. He also said he would require a bipartisan panel of board of elections officials to review processes and chain-of-custody requirements after every election.

Drop boxes: Sprague called drop boxes "outdated, unnecessary remnants from the Covid era" that are "vulnerable to ballot harvesting and fraud," according to his campaign website. He said he would eliminate them.

Voter roll maintenance: Sprague said he would work with credit bureaus and financial services companies to obtain real-time information to update voter registration rolls. He also said he would file an annual report to the legislature detailing voter registration maintenance procedures.

Civics education: Sprague said he plans to partner with Vivek Ramaswamy to launch a civics education initiative, according to his campaign website.

Economy and finance: As treasurer, Sprague said he would not make investment decisions based on environmental, social and governance factors, describing that position as consistent with the office's fiduciary responsibilities, according to his Wikipedia biography.