Cameron Koffel, an independent candidate from Upper Arlington, is running for Ohio House of Representatives District 7 in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.

Koffel is certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady election data. He faces two opponents: Ukeme Awakessien Jeter, a Democrat, and William Mercier, a Republican.

Candidate information

  • Name: Cameron Koffel
  • Party: No party preference (independent)
  • Office sought: Ohio House of Representatives, District 7
  • Hometown: Born and raised in Upper Arlington, according to his campaign

Experience and public service

Koffel works in criminal defense, according to BallotReady profile data. He has served as a law clerk at Koffel Brininger Nesbitt, according to his campaign website.

On the issues

The following positions are drawn from Koffel's responses on BallotReady and his campaign website. Each reflects the candidate's own stated platform.

Property taxes and budget

Koffel said he would cap property taxes on an owner-occupied primary residence at a set percentage of household income. He also said he would end the sales tax exemption on data center equipment and construction materials and redirect that revenue toward property tax relief.

Education funding

Koffel said he would fix the state's local share calculation so no district is declared wealthy because of what he called an accounting artifact and then dropped to the minimum state share. He also said he would update the formula's cost inputs annually in statute, arguing that full funding of a formula priced in 2022 does not equal full funding today.

Healthcare and drug policy

Koffel said he would protect pre-existing condition coverage in Ohio law regardless of federal policy changes. He also said he would require price transparency from hospitals and insurers, with penalties that exceed the cost of noncompliance, and establish a state reinsurance program under a federal 1332 waiver.

On drug policy, Koffel said he would expand treatment capacity for overdose survivors and require naloxone in every Ohio public school building, maintained the same way schools stock automated external defibrillators and EpiPens.

Government reform and privacy

Koffel said he would require a warrant to query historical automatic license plate reader data, with exceptions for imminent danger and missing persons. He said he would block out-of-state or federal sharing of Ohio data without a warrant and impose penalties for misuse, including suppression of unlawfully obtained data.

Economy and energy

Koffel said he would create a single state portal for small-business formation, licensing and permits. He also supports broader occupational license reciprocity so licensed tradespeople moving to Ohio can work immediately. On energy, he said utilities should separately itemize data-center-driven transmission and generation costs on customer bills.

Candidate responses were collected through BallotReady and the candidate's campaign website. The Upper Arlington-Grandview Record presents these positions as reported by the candidate, not as endorsements.