← All 2026 races
H4OH09169
MERRIN, DEREK Challenger
7.2
Influence Score · 2026
Substantially backed
Non-incumbent — only contributions, independent expenditures, and dark-money exposure are scored.
Lobbying, vote alignment, bundle timing, and trade direction require committee assignments and
roll-call records, neither of which exist for a non-sitting candidate. Maximum reachable score is
about 23, on a challenger-only scale — incumbents are scored 0–100 across all twelve axes, so the two
are not directly comparable. See methodology.
Score components
| Axis | Raw | Normalized (pts) | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct contributions | $1.55M | 5.88 | 2026 cycle, principal committee |
| Outside spending — direct support | $148K | — | PACs that directly supported this candidate |
| Outside spending — indirect (OPPOSE against opponents) | $38K | — | OPPOSE spending against opponents in the same race, attributed proportionally |
| Outside spending — OPPOSE against this candidate | $664K | — | PACs that spent to defeat this candidate (not scored on this axis) |
| Total outside spending in favor | $186K | 0.57 | direct + indirect — drives the outside-spending axis |
| Lobbying exposure | — | — | Requires committee assignment |
| Vote alignment | — | — | Requires voting record |
| Contribution timing — money arriving near key votes | — | — | Requires recorded-vote calendar |
| Dark-money exposure | 0.1020 | 0.71 | Disclosed-vs-dark outside spending share |
| Personal trade direction | — | — | Requires STOCK Act filings |
Race matchup OH-9
| Candidate | Party | Status | Direct $ | Outside $ | Score | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KAPTUR, MARCY HON. M.C. | DEM | Inc. | $2.52M | $1.83M | 89.0 | Most exposed |
| MERRIN, DEREK | REP | Chal. | $1.55M | $186K | 7.2 | Substantially backed |
| WILLIAMS, JOSH | REP | Chal. | $256K | $261K | 1.6 | Lightly backed |
| NADEEM, ALEA | REP | Chal. | $184K | $171K | 1.2 | Lightly backed |
| SHEAHAN, MADISON | REP | Chal. | $93K | $199K | 0.9 | Lightly backed |
| KINSEL, WAYNE CHARLES | REP | Chal. | $31K | $171K | 0.7 | Lightly backed |
Challenger and open-seat scores reflect contributions, outside spending, and dark-money exposure only — a maximum of about 23. They are not directly comparable to incumbent scores, which run 0–100 across all twelve axes. Compare the dollar columns (Direct $, Outside $) for a like-for-like view.