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105 ads analyzed · 23 use a rhetorical technique, most often glittering generalities and loaded language.
The words doing the persuading
From the Carey side · Paid for by Congressman Mike Carey“They fought for us. Now, Congressman Mike Carey’s office is fighting for them.
Since 2022, Congressman Carey has helped return more than $3 million to his fellow…”Glittering GeneralitiesSee this ad →
From the Leonard side · Paid for by DON LEONARD FOR OHIO“…kid deserves the chance to catch tadpoles, skip rocks, and come home muddy. That’s the Ohio worth protecting.
Don Leonard for Congress | Ohio’s 15th District”Glittering GeneralitiesSee this ad →
Mike Carey (Republican) and Don Leonard (Democrat) are the nominees for Ohio's 15th congressional district in the November 3, 2026 general election. Mike Carey is the incumbent. By their latest FEC reports, Mike Carey's campaign had raised $4.2 million (through October 14, 2026) and Don Leonard's campaign $1.3 million (through October 14, 2026). Outside groups have reported $1.8 million for Mike Carey and $4.0 million against; $2.5 million for Don Leonard and $2.6 million against. Semblen has analyzed 105 ads in this race; 23 used at least one rhetorical technique, most often glittering generalities and loaded language.
Mike Carey (REP, incumbent), Don Leonard (DEM).
1 other filed with the FEC; any ads they ran are below. 105 ads analyzed, 23 with at least one technique in the copy.
Newest first. The paid-for-by line is the advertiser's own filing. Updated 2026-10-29.
Also on every Ohio ballot: 1 statewide ballot measure →The ballot wording and the official arguments, read for rhetorical techniques.
How to vote in Ohio
From Ohio's official election office. Each line links to the official page it came from.
Registration
Register by Mon, Oct 5 (30th day before is Sun Oct 4; SOS says the deadline is Oct 5. Mail applications must be postmarked by the 30th day before) (passed)Source: codes.ohio.gov ↗Source: ohiosos.gov ↗
Anyone can vote by mail; request a ballot by Tue, Oct 27 (received by county board by close of business, 7th day before the election); return it by Tue, Nov 3 (received by county board by close of polls (7:30 p.m.); postmark grace period repealed by SB 293; UOCAVA exception) (passed)Source: codes.ohio.gov ↗Source: codes.ohio.gov ↗
Checked October 6, 2026. Rules can change; confirm with the official site before you go.
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
A person reads every report and fixes errors the same day.
Got a political text?
Paste a campaign text message you’ve received. Semblen marks the persuasion techniques in its wording and lists the factual claims it makes. Take your name out first: what you paste is analyzed and kept like any text.
Findings
As of 2026-10-29. Counts are of distinct ads; the same text run many times is one ad.
Ads analyzed
105 · started running between 2026-06-23 and 2026-10-26
$28,400–51,009 on all ads, $9,800–15,855 on flagged ads · Meta reports ranges; these are the sums of their ends
Example
“That’s the Ohio worth protecting.” — Glittering Generalities, paid for by DON LEONARD FOR OHIO
· the flagged ad with the highest reported spend that shows the most common technique
A small box with these findings and the newest ads, updated as new ads are analyzed. Free for newsrooms, blogs and campaigns alike; it links back here.
Follow Don Leonard in office
Don Leonard won. Get what Don Leonard says in office by email, analyzed for rhetorical techniques, once sworn in. And an email if the result changes: a recount or a call reversed. One-click unsubscribe.
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Loaded Language (7), Name Calling (5), Black-and-White Fallacy (3)
All from the campaign; no ads here from groups placed on this side.
Not placed on a side (8 sponsors)
18
4 of 18 (22%)
Glittering Generalities (3), Appeal to Fear (1), Bandwagon Appeal (1)
Read this before comparing the sides. Ads that attack an opponent use these techniques far more often than ads that introduce a candidate, whoever runs them, so the side running more attack ads shows a higher share. A technique is about wording, not about whether an ad is true. These are online ads only (Meta and YouTube), not television.
How a group is placed: by its own filings with the Federal Election Commission. A group is with a candidate when it reported spending to support that candidate, or to oppose the other one in the general election. The parties' own committees are with their nominee. Spending against a candidate in a primary places a group nowhere, and neither does our reading of its ads: a group with no such filing is listed as not placed. The sponsor table gives the reason for each.
Decide what counts
Not everyone would call every technique a problem. Untick the ones you'd call ordinary persuasion and the count updates.
22% of the 105 ads here use at least one of the techniques ticked below (23 ads).
Leaving out the softer ones (loaded language, glittering generalities, slogans, exaggeration, repetition): 11% of ads.
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Money in this race
From FEC filings for 2025–26. Outside spending is money a group spends on its own about a candidate — TV and online ads, mail, canvassing. It is not a donation to the campaign, and the candidate does not control it. Supporting means it was spent to help that candidate win; Opposing means it was spent to defeat them, usually on attack ads. Groups report it within 24 or 48 hours as the election nears. Raised is the campaign's own fundraising, as of its latest quarterly report. Largest donors come from each outside spender's own FEC receipts, with each donor's share of its itemized receipts; donors under $100,000 are not named. People are shown with the employer and occupation they reported. A donor that is itself a political committee is shown with its own largest donors. Companies and nonprofits don't report their funders to the FEC, so the trail ends there, and the page says so.
Mike Carey (REP, incumbent)
Raised
$4.2M through 2026-10-14individuals $1.2M · PACs $2.2M · party $3,000 · from the candidate's other committees $768K · cash on hand $370K
HMP— $2.5M opposing CareyLargest donors:
HOUSE MAJORITY FORWARD $93.7M (39%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); Reid G Hoffman $8.5M (4%), Greylock Partners, Partner; ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FUND $5.0M (2%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); Fred Eychaner $5.0M (2%), Retired; UNITED ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ISSUES FUND $4.8M (2%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC)SAFETY & AFFORDABILITY PAC INC.— $1.1M supporting CareyYOUR COMMUNITY PAC— $951K opposing CareyLargest donors:
SIXTEEN THIRTY FUND $2.7M (62%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); NORTH FUND $900K (20%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); AMERICAN OPPORTUNITY ACTION $515K (12%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); GOVERNMENT THAT WORKS PAC $250K (6%)NO GOING BACK PAC INC.— $517K supporting CareyAMERICAN PRIORITIES (AP)— $454K opposing CareyLargest donors:
Mohammad Waqas $1.1M (14%), Showcase Commerce Inc., CEO; Omer Hasan $1.0M (13%), Retired; Hussain Mahrouq $925K (12%), MEI Group, CEO; FIG AND OLIVE ACTION $620K (8%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); Afaq Ahmed $500K (7%), Self-Employed, Investorand 10 more
$1.3M through 2026-10-14individuals $1.1M · PACs $50K · party $878 · candidate's own money, incl. loans $12K · from the candidate's other committees $173K · cash on hand $98K
Outside spending
$2.6M opposing Leonard · $2.5M supporting Leonard· latest reported 2026-11-05
Largest outside spenders
SAFETY & AFFORDABILITY PAC INC.— $1.7M opposing LeonardYOUR COMMUNITY PAC— $1.5M supporting LeonardLargest donors:
SIXTEEN THIRTY FUND $2.7M (62%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); NORTH FUND $900K (20%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); AMERICAN OPPORTUNITY ACTION $515K (12%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); GOVERNMENT THAT WORKS PAC $250K (6%)CFFE PAC— $645K supporting LeonardLargest donors:
PIVOTAL VENTURES $2.0M (56%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); OPPORTUNITY ACTION FUND $750K (21%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); GOVERNMENT THAT WORKS PAC $250K (7%); GREEN ADVOCACY PROJECT $250K (7%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); CHILDREN'S EQUITY FUND $100K (3%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC)DEFENDING MAIN STREET SUPERPAC INC.— $322K opposing LeonardLargest donors:
REPUBLICAN MAIN STREET PARTNERSHIP $3.0M (81%) (an organization: its own funders aren't reported to the FEC); Elizabeth Forrest $250K (7%), DAN Newlin Injury Attorneys, Chief Operating Officer; LETTER CARRIER POLITICAL FUND $150K (4%); INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE FIGHTERS (FIREPAC) $100K (3%)BUCKEYE PROSPERITY PAC— $282K opposing Leonardand 15 more
Bundled through PACs
none reported · FEC bulk data of 2026-11-01
6 PACs gave directly — alphabetical; the legal limit is $5,000 per election
Paid for by CAREY FOR CONGRESSfrom 2026-10-262 variantsspend $0–1989,000–10,998 impressions
Proud to have the endorsement of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. I’ll always stand with the men and women who keep Ohio’s railways moving and our economy running strong.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Let America Buildfrom 2026-10-26 to 2026-10-28spend $0–99100–999 impressions
Our country needs an approach that welcomes investment and allows responsible energy projects to move forward based on their merits. Rep. Mike Carey can make that happen.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by CAREY FOR CONGRESSfrom 2026-10-26spend $0–997,000–7,999 impressions
Great to join the Dublin Republican Club for their door launch. I’m proud to work alongside fellow Republicans who are fired up to get out, talk with voters, and keep Ohio moving forward.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Don Leonard won. Get what Don Leonard says in office by email, analyzed for rhetorical techniques, once sworn in. And an email if the result changes: a recount or a call reversed. One-click unsubscribe.
Confirming also makes your free Semblen account, with a 14-day Pro trial. No card.
Paid for by CAREY FOR CONGRESSfrom 2026-10-252 variantsspend $100–29814,000–19,998 impressions
No better way to spend a fall morning than breakfast at the Wigwam with State Senator Michelle Reynolds, Mayor Joe Steager, and the hardworking men and women who make Canal Winchester one of the best towns in all of America.
Paid for by CAREY FOR CONGRESSfrom 2026-10-24spend $0–999,000–9,999 impressions
I had a great time talking with voters ahead of the Circleville Pumpkin Show yesterday. Events like this are a great reminder of what makes Ohio’s small towns special, and I appreciate everyone who came out this weekend. I’m asking for your vote so I can keep fighting for Ohio’s 15th District in Congress, and I look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by CAREY FOR CONGRESSfrom 2026-10-23spend $100–19910,000–14,999 impressions
Proud to have the endorsement of the Central Midwest Carpenters. I’ll always stand with the men and women who build our communities and keep Ohio growing.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
An ad is on this page because its own "Paid for by" line is a campaign in this race; or it comes from a national Senate group and ran mostly in OH; or it ran mostly in OH and names a candidate — unless its sponsor is a campaign for some other office. Ads from outside groups appear alongside the campaigns' own.
Campaigns run one text as many separate ads. Identical text from the same sponsor is one card here, marked with its number of variants.
A technique is a specific rhetorical move in the wording, found by our model and explained in one line. It is not a claim that the ad is false.
Claims are checked when a reader asks: press "Check this ad's claims" on a card. Running a check and seeing its verdicts are part of Semblen Pro, because each check costs money to run; anyone can see which claims an ad makes. The ten ads with the most money behind them in each race are checked ahead of time.
Claim verdicts say what the cited sources say. A verdict that an ad is wrong or misleading is shown only when it cites an established fact-checker or an institutional record — Congress, a federal agency, a court — and its confidence is not low; a weaker one is not shown at all. Each verdict shows what it rests on and how confident it is. If we got one wrong, press Disagree: a verdict that readers dispute and no one defends comes down.
Video ads come from the campaigns' own YouTube channels; the transcript is analyzed. Meta ads are analyzed on their text; their video and images are not, yet.