Former ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan finishes third in Ohio 9th District Republican primary, setting up Merrin-Kaptur rematch

Derek Merrin secured the Republican nomination in Ohio's 9th Congressional District on Tuesday, defeating Madison Sheahan, a former ICE deputy director, and state Rep. Josh Williams, who finished second with 24.3% of the vote. Sheahan received 20.2%, according to Associated Press results reported by Fox News.

Merrin's path to the general election is shaped by favorable redistricting: Ohio's legislature redrew the state's congressional map ahead of this cycle, making the Toledo-area district more favorable for Republicans. Trump carried the district by seven points in 2024. Kaptur, who has represented the seat since 1983, is described by both sources as a top NRCC target in the competition for the House majority, which currently stands at 218-212 with five vacancies, per Fox News.

Sheahan, 29, resigned from ICE in January and launched her campaign shortly after the killing of Renee Good, an American citizen, by immigration officers in Minneapolis, according to Politico. She ran television ads emphasizing her work carrying out Trump's immigration enforcement agenda and her connection to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, under whom she served. A second American citizen, Alex Pretti, died in a separate incident before the primary.