Rep. Max Miller is asking voters in northeast Ohio to look past a bitter divorce in the final days of his reelection race. The trouble for the Republican is that his custody fight is headed to trial only days after Tuesday's election.

Ohio's 7th Congressional District reaches from the outer Cleveland suburbs into rural towns and should be friendly ground for the GOP. Republicans carried it by 11 points in the last presidential race. This year it has turned into one of the more closely watched House contests in the country.

Miller's former wife has accused him of abuse, including a claim that he held a gun on her when their daughter was a baby. Miller strongly denies the allegations. A House Ethics review remains open and Speaker Mike Johnson has said he wants that process to run its course.

Money floods in late

Over the summer national Republicans quietly urged Miller to step aside before an August deadline. His former father-in-law, Sen. Bernie Moreno, said he should not serve in Congress. Miller refused to quit and told reporters he was confident he would win.

Now the party is spending heavily to save the seat. The main House GOP super PAC has put in more than $5 million and total Republican spending in the district tops $9 million. Democrats have spent about $17 million chasing an upset.

Miller's own fundraising has lagged. He raised about $145,000 from donors last quarter while lending his campaign $1 million and later added another $250,000 loan.

Attacks on both sides

His Democratic opponent, union ironworker Brian Poindexter, says he feels momentum from thousands of volunteers. Republican ads have hammered Poindexter over a 2013 fight at a baseball game and a 1998 arrest. He was never charged in either case and calls the attacks overblown.

Some voters say the mudslinging has turned them off on both men. One independent said she may skip the race or write in someone else. Another voter said she is leaning toward Poindexter but feels the ads make both candidates look bad.

In a recent ad Miller spoke straight to the camera about his divorce, telling voters that breakups are messy and that the summer's controversies are behind him. Polls close Tuesday night.