Commissioners approved a new special-event permit and accepted a $1.57M state road grant tied to the Grand Village at Hocking Hills.

A new white paper finds most Ohio legislative primaries from 2018–2026 were uncontested, with many races decided before voters had a real choice.

Two audits reached different conclusions about pay raises for Columbus City Schools executives, prompting the district to tighten approval rules amid budget pressure.

House Bill 611 would let select Ohio processors apply for paired grow rooms and a dispensary slot — supporters call it a fix for "orphaned" companies, critics say it favors processors.

A convicted participant in the college‑admissions scandal donated to Vivek Ramaswamy’s Ohio campaign, drawing criticism about the campaign’s meritocratic message.

Citadel founder Ken Griffin told a Sun Valley audience he’d prefer Marco Rubio over Vice President J.D. Vance — a rare public tilt from one of the GOP’s biggest donors.

A Dispatch payroll database shows Gahanna’s top 2025 earners were mainly police supervisors and the chief, with several employees topping $160,000 to $200,000.

A federal judge in Columbus granted a preliminary injunction stopping USCIS from enforcing memoranda that paused work permits and green cards for 25 immigrants.

Council President Shannon Hardin marched in the Short North Doo Dah Parade with a jokey "Hardin Run Club" and cheeky signs, reigniting talk of a possible mayoral challenge.

Sen. Jerry Cirino’s SB 461 would force students at universities with state-backed civics centers to take center-run classes and give center directors broad control over curriculum and tuition.

Ohio education officials opened a probe after Columbus City Schools flagged testing anomalies at Walnut Ridge and Independence; scores were invalidated district‑wide pending review.

State figures show more than 110 Ohio districts and independent schools list staff authorized to carry firearms after a 2022 law cut the training floor to 24 hours.

The Ohio Supreme Court heard State v. Morrell on June 30, 2026, over whether serious‑youthful‑offender juvenile adjudications can count as prior convictions and force mandatory prison time.