Columbus City Council is weighing new caps on campaign donations for all elected city positions that could impact the mayoral race in 2027 between incumbent Mayor Andrew Ginther and Council President Shannon Hardin.
If passed, the new caps would go into place in 2027 and limit the size of future donations for both candidates. Ginther has already built up a war chest with $1.7 million in campaign cash on hand compared to Hardin's $425,000, per the latest filing.
If passed, the new caps could hamper Ginther's fundraising or make it difficult for Hardin to catch up. The new limits could also restrict their ability to get aid from allies like City Attorney Zach Klein, who is sitting on about $1.1 million in his campaign coffers and has endorsed Ginther.
Council first voted to place a limit on campaign contributions on the city's elections in 2018, authorizing a proposal by Ginther to tie the city's limit to the state's limit. Today, the state limit is $16,615.67 per election. If passed, the new proposal before council would cut the contribution limit to half the state limit or $8,307.83 today.
Additionally, the proposal would cap in-kind contributions for elected city officials at twice that state limit, or $33,231.34. Those contributions, which are currently unlimited, can include staffing, consulting, advertising and event expenses paid by another campaign.
As WOSU first reported, incumbent council members gave more than $330,000 in in-kind contributions to boost Councilmember Tiara Ross' campaign in 2025.
Council President Pro Tempore Rob Dorans, who endorsed Hardin for mayor, introduced the new legislation on campaign donation caps at the council's meeting on Aug. 31. Council will vote on the proposal at its next meeting on Sept. 14.
Dorans said the mayoral race did not play into his decision to introduce this legislation. He previously announced the proposal last week as he asked council to send twocouncil reform measures to the November ballot.
"I think it's important if we're going to do a lot of work toward reforming some of these [council] structures, campaign finances should absolutely be part of that discussion," Dorans said.
Dorans said campaign finance reform was a topic of discussion during negotiations with Our City, Our Say, a coalition backing its own council reform amendment this November. The citizen-led amendment seeks to establish district-only council elections in the existing nine districts. Council's amendment would create nine districts plus add four at-large members elected citywide and address redrawing the district boundaries.
Council and the coalition were not able to compromise on a single ballot measure in time, but leaders of the coalition have said they do not oppose council's measure.
“I am glad to see Columbus City Council follow through with initial campaign finance reforms," said Chris Tavenor, a member of the Our City Our Say petition committee. "I am hopeful that these initial changes are the start of conversations for more comprehensive reform that levels the playing field for candidates who don’t have connections to big-money donors.”
Ginther told The Dispatch in an emailed statement that people are understandably cynical about the role money plays in politics, and government has a responsibility to address that.
"Every resident should have confidence that their voice matters and won’t be drowned out by powerful special interests," Ginther said. "I was proud to lead the effort to establish the first campaign contribution limits in Columbus history and strengthen transparency around political spending. Those reforms were an important step, and it makes sense to build on them."
Hardin said the mayoral race is not influencing his support for the campaign donation caps.
"This is part of the comprehensive conversation around how do we make City Hall more open and transparent," Hardin said. "We said when we entered into those good faith conversations with Our City, Our Say that we would be comprehensive in looking at how we could lower the bar of entry and allow everybody an opportunity to run and serve."
While discussions with Our City, Our Say had centered on reforming city council, Dorans said it would be difficult to write legislation that creates different campaign donation rules for different city offices.
Government and politics reporter Jordan Laird can be reached at jlaird@dispatch.com. Follow her on X, Instagram and Bluesky at @LairdWrites.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus council weighs campaign finance limits ahead of 2027 mayoral race
