Cleveland Expands Voter Guide: Candidates Must Detail Housing, Transit, Safety Stances

The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections began distributing updated voter guides on July 1 under Ordinance 2026-014, which mandates that candidates for Cleveland City Council and county offices submit written positions on five local issues for inclusion in printed and online materials sent to every registered household.

The change takes effect for the 2026 general election cycle because the county board updated its production schedule after the May primary to meet state deadlines for ballot preparation. Cleveland residents receive the guides alongside sample ballots, a shift from prior cycles where only basic candidate names and filing dates appeared.

Information Delivery to Specific Neighborhoods

Households in Ohio City, Glenville and Collinwood will see expanded entries that list each candidate's stated approach to the Cuyahoga County land bank program and RTA bus route funding. Residents who rely on mailed materials rather than online searches gain direct access to these responses without additional research steps.

Local advocates note that the ordinance applies equally to all candidates who file by the August 5 deadline, requiring answers of at least 150 words per topic. The Board of Elections posts the same text on its website for those who prefer digital review before early voting begins September 22.

Implementation Timeline and Verification Steps

The legislation states that the county auditor's office will verify that every guide mailed to the 412,000 registered voters in Cleveland contains the required sections. Candidates who do not submit responses by July 20 will have a blank entry noted as "no response filed."

Next, the Board of Elections will hold a public review session on July 15 at its downtown Cleveland office to confirm formatting and accuracy before printing begins. Residents can submit questions about the guides through the county's existing public records request process.