Arienne Childrey lost her last bid for office as a Democrat in 2023 when she failed to unseat the Republican nominee in a majority-red district in rural western Ohio. She was frightened and intimidated for three months before losing the local City Council election last year. And she is a transgender woman.
But none of that stops Childrey from running in the 2026 midterms and defeating Angela King (R-Celina), the representative of Ohio’s 84th district. The 43-year-old candidate said voters deserved more than one option.
“Elections only work when we have more than one person to choose from,” Childrey said. “People deserve the right to look at what I stand for, look at what Rep. King stands for and decide who they think will do a better job of fighting for them and making Ohio a better place to live.”
Background
Originally from Virginia, Childrey moved to Ohio briefly in 2001, then moved to Chillicothe in 2014, staying for a year before settling in St. Marys.
She lost the 2023 midterm elections to King, but in January 2025 she was appointed to the City Council seat in St. Marys in the King’s District. Childrey, the only Democrat on the council, said she was able to reach out to everyone on a number of issues, such as joining with Republicans to halt the ordinance over concerns it would limit public comment. Although she lost the next council election, the city’s Republican mayor chose her to replace another Republican on the city’s zoning board.
“Good ideas don’t have a party label,” Childrey said. “[To help constituents,] “We both have to compromise, and I’m willing to make a fair compromise with members of the Republican Party with good intentions.”
Childrey was preparing her local government campaign last September when user X threatened to kill her for comments she made after the murder of Turning Point US co-founder Charlie Kirk. Two days later, FBI agents arrested a 19-year-old in New Mexico for allegedly threatening online to “commit mass murder” and directly threatening to kill Childrey. According to the agency’s press release, he told agents he was a neo-Nazi and wanted to start a civil war.
Childrey stated that she was not “very scared” by the threat.
“Listen, there is always a risk involved in being involved in politics,” she said. “It’s not an excuse not to do it. We only have one chance to make a difference, to leave a legacy.”
Rules
Childrey is campaigning on several issues affecting Ohioans.
In the case of housing, he wants to stop landlords from discriminating against potential tenants based on whether they have to apply housing vouchers to pay rent. These income requirements for housing may unfairly hold back penniless people trying to get back on their feet, especially those who do not have housing.
“We continue to trap them in a system of poverty by allowing people to be discriminated against based on their source of income,” she said. “When you’re dealing with homelessness, obviously it has a huge impact on everything about your health, your ability to get a job and get back on your feet. Once we solve that, we’re actually working to solve a lot of problems.”
She is also supportive HB225 — a bipartisan bill that would prevent businesses from paying disabled workers less than the state minimum wage.
“I don’t think a lot of people know or really understand that there are people across the state who work every day and yet they don’t get paid the minimum wage because they have a disability,” Childrey said.
She described herself as a “staunch critic” of the EdChoice voucher program, which allows public money to be used for private school tuition. The public school system “may be one of the best things American democracy has ever produced,” Childrey said. She wants to phase out the EdChoice program to ease the burden on both public schools and taxpayers, she said.
“We are considering choosing a field of study [financial] burden ours [public] schools that will be passed on to local residents in the form of fees that they will have to vote on,” Childrey said. “If they don’t vote for them, we will be looking at severely underfunded schools that may have to cut staff and escalate class sizes, and we know this results in worse outcomes for students.”
Childrey also said she wants to aid farmers facing health care challenges – both physical and mental – and support a business ecosystem where local businesses prioritize purchasing from local suppliers.
Victory at the 2026 midterms
Childrey faces a candidate with close ties to Celina, the second most populous city in the district. Angie King’s brother is Celina City Council President Jason King. Both Jason King and Celina Mayor Jeffrey Hazel submitted testimony in support of Ohio’s proposed cross-dressing ban, containing misleading information about drag queen performances, calling them “lewd and lascivious conduct” despite many of the moves used by cheerleading squads. including Celina High School. Angie King stood next to neo-Nazis protesting against Celina’s 2023 Pride celebrations.
The king also sponsored HB 196 with Rep. Rodney Creech (R-West Alexandra), who was removed from committee duties in April and were told to resign after a minor family member accused him of sexual assault. HB 196 could force transgender candidates to come out to run for public office by forcing them to provide dead names on their application documents, which could escalate challenges to their candidacies.
According to the partisan index, the 84th District favors Republicans 60 out of 100 points, making it the most Republican district in the state.
“I understand that being a transgender candidate automatically polarizes some people, but I also really fight to show people that… culture war battles don’t make lives better,” Childrey said. “What the culture wars are really about is obfuscating the fact that these representatives have nothing to offer you.”
Childrey will “aggressively knock on doors” and fund more advertising. In lieu of donations, he is asking the district’s LGBTQ+ community to volunteer. This year’s campaign slogan is “a better path forward.”
“A path that listens. A candidate who will be willing to talk to you, regardless of political party, and bring your needs to Columbus,” she said. “It’s about commitment and showing people that they can either have more of the same or give me a chance for two years to prove that I can offer them a better way forward.”
In addition to focusing on her campaign, Childrey said she is encouraging people to enter the 16 uncontested state races this year. She wants 2026 to be the last year Ohio has uncontested races, and she hopes her campaign will inspire others.
“I’m in the reddest district in Ohio and we’re fighting like hell,” she said. “If we can do it, you can do it.” 🔥
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