It seems like we barely get through one election cycle before the next one begins.

That’s the position we find ourselves in once again as we head into the third full week of the new year.

While mid-term elections don’t usually carry the same weight as a presidential, there will be a lot on the line as voters head to the polls for primary elections on May 5 in Ohio and May 12 in West Virginia and again on Nov. 3 when the general election is held.

For starters, Ohioans will be selecting a new governor — whomever is elected in November will replace Republican Mike DeWine, who is prohibited by term limits from seeking another term. And while the filing deadline is still a couple of weeks away, it appears that the battle for that spot will come down to Republican Vivek Ramaswamy and Democrat Dr. Amy Acton.

Several other state offices will be up as well, as will every seat in the Ohio House of Representatives and every seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Statewide offices up for election this year include attorney general, auditor, secretary of state and treasurer. There also will be three seats up for grabs on the Ohio Supreme Court.

And then there are a handful of races across the country that might decide which party will control the U.S. Senate — and Ohio will be at center stage there as well.

Republican Jon Husted, the former lieutenant governor who was appointed to fill the spot left empty when J.D. Vance was selected to join the Donald Trump ticket as vice president, is being challenged by Democrat Sherrod Brown. Brown will be looking to return to Washington — he served three terms in the Senate before being defeated by Republican Bernie Moreno in the 2024 election.

What has been lost on some people is that the Husted-Brown race is actually a special election. They are not running for a full, six-year term, they are merely looking to complete Vance’s term, which means the next election for that seat will come in 2028. That means there will be a lot of campaigning not only in the coming months, but in the ensuing years.

Those races will certainly attract a lot of attention, around the state and across the country, as the year progresses. How much — if any — campaigning the statewide candidates do in Steubenville or Jefferson County is anyone’s guess right now, but it’s likely our region once again will draw interest.

There’s no argument that those races are big — but it’s also important to remember that there will be several local races on the ballot that will have an even greater impact on our day-to-day lives.

In Ohio this year, according to the Jefferson County Board of Elections, voters in our area will be choosing common pleas court judges, the county auditor and one county commissioner seat.

That commissioner’s seat is the one held by Republican Eric Timmons. The other two seats — belonging to Republicans Tony Morelli and Jake Kleineke — will come open in the 2028 election.

Also on the ballot will be the county auditor’s post currently held by Republican E.J. Conn.

The seats held by Common Pleas Judges Michelle Miller and Joseph J. Bruzzese Jr. are up for election, as is the seat held by Probate and Juvenile Judge Frank Noble Jr.

You can bet on seeing local issues come up in just about every election, and the May 5 primary will be no exception — as of Thursday, the issues listed on the board of elections website were renewals of Steubenville’s 0.7 percent and 0.3 percent income taxes that generate money that goes toward street improvements, parks and recreation, capital improvements, employee salaries and the general fund.

If you are interested in campaigning for any of the open offices, you are running out of time to file a petition — the deadline is 4 p.m. Feb. 4. Those planning to run as a write-in candidate have until 4 p.m. Feb. 23.

It’s important to know the candidates and issues that will appear on the primary ballot, but it’s even more important to make sure you are registered to vote. The deadline to complete that process for the May 5 election will be 9 p.m. April 6, with absentee and in-person voting scheduled to begin April 7.

West Virginians who are planning to run for office have until midnight Jan. 31 to file their paperwork. The voter registration deadline in the Mountain State will be April 21.

This year — just like every year — there are a lot of important decisions to be made, choices that will affect how the local government and legal system will be run, all the way up to which party will control the senate. You always are welcome to sit and talk about how government is run — but you’re also able to have a say in who gets elected into those spots.

Register to vote, learn about the candidates and, most important, make sure you cast a ballot in this year’s primary election.

(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is executive editor of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times)