Residents of our region who are planning to vote in the upcoming primary elections but have not yet registered are running short on time.

If you live in Ohio, Monday is the deadline to make sure you have completed the process to be able to cast a ballot in the May 5 primary. And, if you live in West Virginia and have not already done so, the deadline to register to vote in the May 12 primary will be April 21.

This midterm election cycle that we are in the middle of is a little more interesting than most — on the federal level, control of Congress will be decided after the Nov. 3 vote.

One of the most closely watched Senate races this year is the battle for the Ohio seat held by Republican Job Husted. He won’t be challenged in the primary for his party’s nomination for the seat, which he has held since January 2025 when he was appointed to succeed J.D. Vance after Vance had been elected vice president.

His opponent in the fall will be former Sen. Sherrod Brown, who is seeking the Democratic nomination. There is an opponent listed on the Democratic side on the May ballot — Ron Kincaid — but the reality is that the battle in the fall will be between Husted and Brown.

They will be looking to fill the last two years of Vance’s term.

Brown will be looking to return the Senate — he represented Ohio there from 2007 to 2025, losing a bid for re-election in 2024 to Republican Bernie Moreno.

On the West Virginia side, incumbent Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito will face several challengers for her party’s nomination, including Alexander Gaaserud of Parkersburg, Janet McNulty of Martinsburg, Dave Purkey of Fairmont and Tom Willis of Martinsburg. The Democrats have a crowded primary field as well, with Thornton Cooper of South Charleston, Rachel Fetty Anderson of Morgantown, Jeffrey Kessler of Glen Dale, Rio Phillips of Charleston and Zachary Shrewsbury of Fayette.

Like the state’s Senate race, Ohio’s battle for governor will attract a lot of national attention. Even though the Republican primary ballot lists three candidates to choose among — Heather Hill, Casey Putsch and Vivek Ramaswamy –Ramaswamy very likely will win his party’s nomination and advance to the general election, where he and his running mate, Robert McColley, will take on the Democratic ticket of Amy Acton and David Pepper.

Overall, there are very few contested races on the primary ballot in Ohio. The most interesting one among those in our area is for the Republican nomination for the 96th District state House seat. Incumbent Ron Ferguson of Wintersville is being challenged by former state Sen. Frank Hoagland of Adena.

The winner will face Charrie Foglio of Toronto in November, who is unopposed on the Democratic side.

Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Michael Rulli of Salem is being challenged for his party’s nomination in Ohio’s 6th Congressional District by Julie Kelley of Sherrodsville.

There are seven Democrats seeking their party’s nomination in that race: Charles DiPalma of Steubenville, Sean Connolly of Canfield, Brent Hanni of Youngstown, Elizabeth Kirtley of New Philadelphia, Malcolm Ritchie of Dover, Adrian Vitus of Poland and Christopher Lafont, who is listed as a write-in candidate.

None of the primary races at the county level will be contested, and then only one — the seat on the board of commissioners held by Republican Eric Timmons — will be contested in the general election. Timmons is seeking his party’s nomination to be re-elected, while Brent Nemeth of Rayland is the lone Democrat seeking the party’s nomination.

There are several contested races on the primary ballots in West Virginia, including for the Brooke and Hancock county commissioners, as well as the Brooke and Hancock county school boards.

Voters in Steubenville are being asked to renew a couple of important issues on May 5 — the 0.7 percent and 0.3 percent income taxes that help pay for recreation, street improvements and safety services.

Property tax renewals also will on the ballot in Amsterdam, Rayland, Richmond and Tiltonsville.

No matter what you think about the candidates or how you feel about the issues, none of that really matters if you are not registered to vote –and remember, in Ohio the deadline to do that is 9 p.m. Monday.

Once you are registered, there are several ways to cast your ballot– you can vote absentee by mail, participate in early in-person voting at the board of elections or head to your polling location between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. on May 5.

If you choose to vote early at the board of elections, you can do that from 8 a.m to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 17; from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 24; from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 27; from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. April 28; from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. April 29 through May 1; from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 2; and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. May 3.

There will be no early in-person voting on May 4.

And, if you decide to sit out the May 5 primary but will still be interested in voting in the November general election, you will have until Oct. 5 to get registered.

So, if you live in Ohio, make sure you are registered to vote by 9 p.m. Monday — and then follow through and cast your ballot.

(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is senior writer for the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times)