Central Ohioans headed to the polls Tuesday to vote in the 15th Congressional District special election primaries.
The special election came after Republican congressman Steve Stivers resigned in May to become the CEO of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.
On Tuesday, some voters came out simply wanting to support their favorite candidate, like Karolyn Braum of Upper Arlington, who voted for Democrat Allison Russo.
"I really look forward to hopefully voting for her in the general election, so I try very hard to participate in every election that goes on," Braum said.
Rather than supporting their favorite candidate, there were also those who voted to prevent other candidates from winning, like Terry Brownell of Upper Arlington. Brownell said she voted for Republican Stephanie Kunze so that former President Donald Trump-endorsed candidate Mike Carey would not win.
"Since this is a predominately Republican district and we very may well end up with a Republican, I would like to see it be someone who is not Donald Trump's candidate," Brownell said.
But while many come vote during elections for various reasons, others like Carole Squire of German Village said voting was something her parents instilled in her growing up.
"I couldn't honor that if I were negligent in coming out to express my voice and my vote for democracy being what it should be — of the people, by the people and for the people," she said.
Squire added that voting in the primaries are important because it helps narrow the field for the actual election. She said she looks closely at the issues of what candidates stand for and what resonates with her.
"I look for those sorts of things, what matters in my soul and heart, and if I see that the candidate doesn't have a record of having a passion for those issues, then I tend not to vote that way," Squire said.
For the 15th District, Republicans have a crowded ballot with 11 candidates, while Democrats have two. According to the Ohio Secretary of State office, the district saw 10,537 early ballots, 7,145 being early in-person votes and the rest being absentee ballots.
In-person voting ends at 7:30 p.m.
