Democratic leaders are lauding Ohio's Sherrod Brown now that he's launched his 2026 campaign to return to the U.S. Senate.

Former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown announced a bid to once again represent Ohio in the Senate on Monday, nearly a year after his reelection effort in 2024 fell short.

In his first TV interview since announcing his 2026 U.S. Senate bid, Sherrod Brown told NBC4 he didn’t plan to run again, but “as this year wore on, this rigged system got worse.” The Democrat launched his comeback campaign on Monday,