Sheriff Responds to Brown’s Run for Senate

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – Ohio plays a key role in national politics and federal legislation dictates how local agencies get things done.  

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz has had a working relationship with U.S. Senator Jon Husted from when he was Ohio’s Lieutenant Governor and now he endorses Husted’s 2026 senate campaign against Democratic Challenger Sherrod Brown.

“Senator Husted and I are on a kind of a first-name basis, have our phone numbers stored,” Lutz said. “He’s always been a very good resource for me and Muskingum County. His values, his core values, I think align very well and represent Republicans in Ohio, which we are very many. And they definitely represent a lot of the same core values that I have.”

Brown, who may well be the most recognized Democrat in Ohio, lost his 18-year senate seat to Republican Senator Bernie Moreno in 2024 but is looking to return to the senate by running against Husted, who was appointed to fill the senate seat vacated by Vice President J.D. Vance earlier this year.

“I think Senator Husted has always had law-enforcement in the forefront of his mind and I think he’s always supported that. And I think… When you’ve heard other candidates and other groups speak at the highest levels about defunding the police, I think Senator Husted, while he was here in Ohio, really supported law-enforcement. For me, being the chief law enforcement officer in Muskingum County, that’s huge,” Lutz said.

Ohio’s U.S. 2024 senate race garnered the most campaign spending in history with over $120 Million spent between the candidates and nearly $300 Million spent by interest groups, according to opensecrets.org.