THE POLITICAL EDGE GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS November 7, 2000 INCUMBENTS PREVAIL IN SUPREME COURT RACES The races for the Ohio Supreme Court followed historic precedent last night, with the incumbent justices -- Deborah Cook and Alice Robie Resnick -- retaining their seats. Since World War II, only five elected incumbents on the Ohio Supreme Court have been defeated. For all of the effort the business community put into educating Ohioans about the court, trial lawyers and labor unions pulled out all of the stops in backing the re-election of Justice Resnick. In the end, Resnick captured 57 percent of the vote compared to 43 percent for Judge Terrence O'Donnell. O'Donnell did not do well in traditional Republican areas, losing Franklin County and winning Hamilton County by only a slim margin. In the meantime, Resnick rolled up wide margins in Lucas and Cuyahoga Counties. Justice Cook fared better in traditional Republican areas, winning with 52 percent to Judge Tim Black's 48 percent. Cook won in Hamilton County (Black's home turf) and ran up a large margin in Franklin County. Even though these results do not change the 4-3 tilt of the Ohio Supreme Court, business did put together a formidable effort this year, not allowing trial attorneys and labor interests to have the playing field to themselves. GOP HOLDS OHIO SENATE EDGE Election night held no surprises in races for the Ohio Senate, with incumbents holding their seats and favorites winning the open seats. Based on the results, Republicans will continue to have a 21-12 majority in the Senate. Both Chamber Choice candidates in the Senate, Rep. Ron Amstutz and Sen. Bob Spada, were victorious. District 2: Rep. Randy Gardner (R), running unopposed, captured 98,889 votes. District 4: Sen. Scott Nein (R) earned another term in the Ohio Senate with a strong victory, defeating Arnold Engel (D) 67% - 33%. District 6: Rep. Jeff Jacobson (R) will move up to the Senate, receiving 58% of the vote, besting Karl Keith (D) with 35% and Tom Brown (L) with 7%. District 8: Sen. Lou Blessing (R) easily won another term, winning 63%, compared to Stuart Manning (D) with 31% and Stephen Schulte (L) with 6%. District 10: Rep. Steve Austria (R) will make the move up to the Senate, defeating Clark County Commissioner Roger Tackett (D) 64-36% District 12: Rep. Jim Jordan (R) defeated his minor-party opposition, receiving 77% to 12% for Jack Kaffenberger (I) and 11% for Debra Mitchell (NL) District 14: Sen. Doug White (R) posted 80% of the vote, overcoming the minor-party opposition of Margaret Leech (L), who received 20%. District 16: Rep. Priscilla Mead (R) had no problem with her campaign to move up to the Senate, beating William Kammerer (L) 77% - 23%. District 18: Sen. Robert Gardner (R) won a comfortable victory posting 58% of the vote against Donna McNamee (D) with 39% and Bart Hildebrant (L) with 3%. District 19: Sen. Bill Harris (R) had no problem retaining his seat with 67% to 33% for Jack Campbell (D). District 20: Sen. Jim Carnes (R) easily wona second term, defeating Randy Williams (D) by a margin of 65% - 35%. District 22: Rep. Ron Amstutz (R) won his Chamber Choice race, pulling in 59% of the vote. Elizabeth Kelley (D) finished with 35%, Randy Jotte (I) received 4% and Cheryl Neufer (L) got only 2%. District 24: Chamber Choice Sen. Bob Spada (R) was able to defend his seat, winning with 65%. Ed Boyle (D) finished with 32% and Richard Leirer (NL) garnered 3 % of the vote. District 26: Sen. Larry Mumper (R) won another term, pulling 63% of the vote against challenger Mary Fleure (D), who pulled in 37%. District 28: Sen. Leigh Herington (D) posted an easy win, receiving 62% to 34% for Judy Jones (R) and 4% for Pearl Pullman (L). District 30: Sen. Greg DiDonato (D), running unopposed, captured 99,133 votes. District 32: Timothy Ryan (D) managed to get a majority in this Democrat-heavy district, with 51%, compared to 36% for Randy Law (R), 11% for former Trumbull County Commissioner Art Magee (I) and 2% for Patricia Urquhart (L). HOUSE MARGIN REMAINS UNCHANGED The House GOP, despite its substantial financial advantage, failed to net even one additional seat, meaning Republican control of the House will remain unchanged at 59-40. Top Republicans had optimistically predicted the GOP would pick up at least three seats, so the results have to be considered disappointing. The GOP did score some impressive wins, picking up the open seats formerly held by term limited incumbent Democrats Sean Logan and John Bender, and knocking off appointed incumbents Mike Stevens and Bob Gooding. But the Democrats had several key victories, too, as they knocked off appointed GOP incumbent Jim Mettler in Toledo as well as long-time target Rep. Ron Hood. They also picked up term limited Rep. Dale Van Vyven's Republican-held open seat in the night's closest contest. Wayne Coates beat Chamber Choice candidate Jim Raussen by only 169 votes. In addition, they held off strong GOP challenges to appointed incumbent George Distel and in the GOP-leaning seat of term-limited Rep. Jerry Luebbers. The night's biggest story was a good one for House Democrats, as well. In the 85th House district, 18-year-old Democrat Derrick Seaver upset Republican Dave Shiffer by 235 votes in the race to succeed Rep. Jim Jordan. The district strongly favors Republicans. Of the six Chamber Choice candidates running for election to the House, three won and three lost. Rep. Bill Hartnett and open seat candidates Chuck Blasdel and Jon Husted prevailed, while Rep. Mettler, Tony Condia, and Raussen went down to defeat. The following is a brief summary of the results in each of the 99 House districts: District 1: Rep. John Willamowski (R) earned a third term with a comfortable 75%-25% victory over Ray Moritz (D). District 2: In the race to succeed term limited Rep. George Terwilleger (R), Deerfield Township Trustee Tom Raga (R) posted a strong 75%-25% win over Richard Inskeep (D) in this heavily-Republican Warren County district. District 3: Former Rep. John Wargo (D) won’t be making a return trip to Columbus. Small businessman and Chamber Choice candidate Chuck Blasdel (R) posted a solid 60%-40% win over Wargo. He will succeed term limited Rep. Sean Logan (D) in this district that leans Democratic. District 4: Sen. Robert Latta (R) had no trouble in his bid to move from the Senate to the House. He easily defeated a Democrat and a Libertarian by taking 65% of the vote. District 5: Appointed Rep. George Distel (D) held off a spirited challenge from Ashtabula County Auditor Sandy O’Brien (R) 53%-44% in one of the nastiest House races of 2000. District 6: Fairfield County GOP Chairman Tim Schaffer (R) defeated Dennis Lupher (D) 60%-40% and will succeed term limited Rep. Jon Myers (R). District 7: Wayne County GOP Chairman Jim Carmichael (R) defeated Inell Keller (D) 61%-39% and will succeed term limited Rep. Ron Amstutz (R). District 8: Rep. Shirley Smith (D) pulled 87% of the vote against heronly challenger, an independent candidate, to win a second term in office. District 9: Cleveland Heights-University Board of Education member Claudette Woodard (D) will succeed term limited Rep. Barbara Boyd (D) in this district that includes the cities of East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. She captured 72% against two opponents. District 10: Annie Key (D) will follow long-time incumbent Rep. Troy Lee James (R) with an easy win over two opponents in this inner city Cleveland district. Key amassed 80% of the vote. District 11: Rep. Peter Lawson Jones (D) handily dispatched his only challenger, Ronald Lisy (R), 81%-19% to win a third term. District 12: Rep. John Barnes (D) was unopposed in his re-election bid. District 13: Former Congresswoman Mary Rose Oakar (D), having won a four-way primary in March, is the successor to term limited Rep. Barbara Pringle (D). Oakar had no General Election opposition. District 14: Rep. Ed Jerse (D) won a third term with a commanding 86%-14% victory over his sole opponent, Libertarian Richard Pierce. District 15: Rep. Jim Trakas (R) had no trouble winning a second term, dispatching the challenge of Dan Downing (D) 59%-41%. District 16: Rep. Sally Kilbane (R) cruised to victory over John Sweeney (D), 62%-38%. District 17: Rep. Bryan Flannery (D) captured 71% of the vote and beat back three challengers to earn a second term. District 18: In a rematch of one of 1998’s closest contests, Rep. Erin Sullivan (D) won’t have to endure a recount to see if she wins. She bested George Caldwell (R) 56%-40% to win a second term. District 19: Rep. Dale Miller (D) beat Michael Maleski (R) 67%-33% to win a third term. District 20: Rep. Dean DePiero (D) was unopposed in his bid to win a second term. District 21: Appointed Rep. Joyce Beatty (D) pulled 82% over two opponents to win a full term. District 22: Rep. Ray Miller beat Ted Smith (R) 80%-20% to secure his re-election. District 23: Rep. Amy Salerno (R) had little trouble with independent Bart Hacker. She won a fourth and final term with 71% of the vote. District 24: Speaker Jo Ann Davidson's (R) successor is Madison Township fire chief Larry Flowers. He captured 64% against two opponents in this strong GOP district. District 25: Rep. David Goodman (R) topped Marc Fagin (D) 59%-41% to win his second full term. District 26: Linda Reidelbach (R) will succeed term limited Rep. and Congressman-elect Pat Tiberi (R). She defeated T.J. Johnson (D) 58%-42%. District 27: In the closest Franklin County contest, appointed Rep. Jim Hughes (R) eked out a 52%-48% win over Columbus Board of Education member Mark Hatch (D). District 28: Lobbyist Geoff Smith (R) did better in the General Election than he did in the primary in this solid Republican district. He defeated Upper Arlington councilwoman Mary Lorms (D) 55%-40%. District 29: Former Hilliard councilman Larry Wolpert (R) coasted to an easy win over two opponents. He garnered 62% of the vote. District 30: Rep. Sam Britton (D) racked up 88% against a Libertarian candidate to secure a fourth term. District 31: Three candidates combined to hold Rep. Catherine Barrett (D) to 67%, but she still won election to a second term. District 32: Chamber Choice candidate Jim Raussen (R) lost the night’s closest contest by a mere 169 votes to former Forest Park mayor Wayne Coates (D). The slim margin will result in a mandatory recount. Two other candidates were also on the ballot, so Coates’ victory was with a plurality of 47% of the vote. District 33: Community Building Institute director Steve Driehaus (D) kept this socially conservative, GOP-leaning district in the Democratic column with a surprisingly wide 55%-42% win over Chamber Choice candidate Tony Condia (R). Driehaus succeeds term limited Rep. Jerry Luebbers (D). District 34: Attorney and Green Township Trustee Bill Seitz (R) scored a 65%-35% win over Jean Siebenaler (D) and will succeed term limited Rep. Cheryl Winkler (R). District 35: Rep. Patricia Clancy (R), the only incumbent Hamilton County Republican that wasn’t term limited, won a third term with 64%. District 36: Small businesswoman and Madeira Mayor Michelle Glass Schneider (R) beat John Smith (D) and Everett Dejager (L) and will succeed term limited Rep. Bob Schuler (R). Schneider got 67%. District 37: Tom Brinkman (R) easily defeated two candidates and won a seat in the House with 67% of the vote. Rep. Jackie O'Brien (R) is term limited. District 38: Rep. Dixie Allen (D) cracked the 80% mark, getting 82% against her Natural Law party challenger. District 39: Former Senate staffer Fred Strahorn (D) will succeed term limited Rep. Tom Roberts (D) after his 69%-25% win over Brian Whitaker (R) and an independent. District 40: Chiropractor Don Shaffer (D) did better than he did against term limited Rep. Jeff Jacobson (R) in 1998, but still lost. Vandalia vice-mayor Arlene Setzer (R) beat him 55%-45%. District 41: Chamber Choice candidate Jon Husted (R) did much better than was feared, not only winning in a crazy five-way race, but winning an outright majority. Husted captured just over 50% of the vote. Miamisburg Mayor Dick Church (D) was second with 38% and former Republican Kettering Mayor Dick Hartman, running as an independent, got 8%. District 42: Kettering vice-mayor John White (R) beat Joe Lacey (D) 61%-39% and will succeed term limited Rep. Bob Corbin (R). District 43: State Board of Education member Diana Fessler (R) captured a bare majority with 50.4% of the vote. Carol McKeever (D) and Bob DeBrosse (L) made it interesting, but Fessler will follow veteran Rep. Bob Netzley (R). District 44: Barbara Sykes (D), the wife of term limited Rep. Vernon Sykes (D), will succeed her husband after pulling 79% of the vote in a three-way race. District 45: A tough campaign against Rep. Bryan Williams (R) never materialized, and he won a third term with a 54%-42% victory over Kurt Landefeld (D) and a Natural Law party candidate. District 46: Rep. Kevin Coughlin (R) earned a third term by getting 64% of the vote. District 47: Akron councilman Bob Otterman (D) cruised to a 73%-27% win over Chris Long (R). He’ll succeed term limited Rep. Betty Sutton (D). District 48: Rep. Twyla Roman (R) will be back for a fourth and final term after beating Summit County councilman Mike Grimm (D) 56%-44%. District 49: Minority Leader Jack Ford (D) was unopposed. District 50: Former Rep. John Garcia (R) was unable to make this 1998 rematch competitive, and Rep. Jeanine Perry (D) defeated him with 64% of the vote to win a second term. District 51: Rep. Lynn Olman (R) won a fourth term with a 66%-34% victory over John Billis (D). District 52: Teacher Theresa Fedor (D) scored an impressive win over Chamber Choice candidate and appointed Rep. Jim Mettler (R). She won 55%-42% in what is a marginally GOP district. District 53: Appointed Rep. Chris Redfern (D) fended off Joe Woods’ (R) challenge 64%-36% to earn a full term. District 54: Despite GOP efforts, Mary Cain (R) was unable to overcome this Canton city district’s strong Democrat leanings. Former Stark County commissioner Mary Cirelli (D) beat her 58%-42%. District 55: Rep. Kirk Schuring (R) won 65%-35% over Marylyn Scott (D) to capture a fourth and final term. District 56: Marlboro Township Trustee John Hagan (R) knocked off appointed incumbent Mike Stevens (D) 49%-47% to score a pickup for the GOP. District 57: The Democrats won't have Rep. Ron Hood (R) to kick around anymore. John Boccieri (D) finally did the trick, beating the always-vulnerable and frequently-polarizing incumbent 52%-48%. Hood was the only elected incumbent to go down to defeat this year. District 58: Rep. Gary Cates (R) prevailed 69%-31% over Middletown Board of Education member A.C. Mitchell (D). District 59: Rep. Greg Jolivette (R) beat challenger Archie Johnson (D) 69%-31%. District 60: Term limited Rep. Gene Krebs'' (R) successor will be veterinarian Shawn Webster (R). Webster won with 61% over three others. District 61: Rep. Dan Metelsky (D) was unopposed for a third term. District 62: Attorney and former N. Ridgeville law director Jeff Manning (R) put the 62nd in the GOP column by beating attorney Chris Rothgery (R) 52%-48%. Incumbent Rep. John Bender (D) is term limited. District 63: In one of the night's few surprises, retired businessman Tom Lendrum (R) held this seat for the GOP by defeating former Erie County commissioner Natalie Mosher (D). As is par for the course in the 63rd - retiring Rep. Bill Taylor's biggest win here in three tries was by 948 votes in 1996 - the margin was close. Lendrum won by a mere 498 votes. District 64: Rep. Sylvester Patton (D) had the year’s highest percentage in a contested race. He scored 90% of the vote against a Libertarian candidate. District 65: Austintown Township Trustee Ken Carano (D) will succeed term limited Rep. Ron Gerberry (D) following a 61%-39% win over Boardman Board of Education member Nancy Hull (R). District 66: Former Warren Mayor Dan Sferra (D), who beat appointed Rep. Chris Verich (D) in the primary, defeated Charles Burger (R) 60%-40%. District 67: Sen. Tony Latell will make the transition to the House after capturing 67% in a three-way race. He will succeed term limited Rep. June Ferderber (D). District 68: Attorney Tim Grendell (R) pulled 58% against two opponents and will succeed his term limited wife, Rep. Diane Grendell (R). District 69: The challenge to Rep. Ron Young (R) by Ohio PTA President Valerie Federico (D) never reached critical mass. Rep. Young won 52%-45%. District 70: Rep. Jamie Callender (R) won a third term by beating Karen Insana (D) 54%-44%. District 71: Miami Township Trustee Jean Schmidt (R) rolled to a 70%-30% victory over Sherrill Callahan (D). She’ll succeed term limited Rep. Sam Bateman (R). District 72: Despite a divisive primary, a conservative independent candidate, and a marginal district, Tom Niehaus (R) still put together a solid 58% win. Niehaus will succeed term limited Rep. Rose Vesper (R). District 73: In one of the night's biggest surprises, former Springfield police chief Roger Evans (R) - who held term limited Rep. David Hartley (D) to a 473 vote win in 1998 - was unable to win this open seat race. Evans was expected to have an easier time this year, but was unexpectedly beaten by former U.A.W. official Ron Rhine (D) 53%-47%. District 74: After dropping appointed Rep. Chris Widener (R) in the March primary, Sen. Merle Kearns (R) completed her bid to move to the House with a 66%-34% win over Cynthia Dunlevy (D). District 75: Rep. Ann Womer Benjamin (R) earned a fourth and final term with a 59%-41% victory over Ravenna councilman Gene Brown (D). District 76: Kevin DeWine (R) posted a decisive win over two opponents and will succeed Rep. Steve Austria (R). DeWine got 63% of the vote. District 77: Unlike 1998, Rep. David Evans (R) was not in a closely watched race this year. For good reason: he picked up a 63%-37% victory over Patricia Blakely (D). District 78: Speaker-desigate Larry Householder (R) never permitted Athens city prosecutor Lisa Eliason’s (D) campaign to get a foothold. He won 53%-44% in a tough district. District 79: Chamber Choice candidate Bill Hartnett (D) had little difficulty dispatching Richland County commissioner Ed Olson (R) 58%-42%. District 80: Appointed Rep. Jon Peterson (R) withstood some late negative attacks from his Democrat opponent, Juliann Secrest, to score a 60%-35% win. District 81: Rep. Chuck Calvert (R) posted a very comfortable 60%-35% win over two challengers to capture a second term. District 82: Rep. Steve Buehrer (R) earned a second term by collecting 63% of the vote against Tim Holtsberry (D). District 83: Rep. Jim Hoops (R) picked up 86% of the vote in crushing his lone opponent, Gregory Harpel (L). District 84: Keith Faber (R) captured the seat currently held by term limited Rep. Jim Buchy (R) with an easy 63%-37% win over teacher Bill Sell (D). District 85: In a shocking upset, 18-year old Derrick Seaver (D) - the nation’s youngest candidate for state officed - was elected to the House over Dave Shiffer (R). The seat, vacated by Rep. Jim Jordan (R), is solid Republican territory. But the notoriety Seaver gained because of his age made this an atypical race, and he won by 235 votes. District 86: Attorney Mike Gilb (R), who won a tough three-way primary, coasted to a 64%-36% win over Kenneth Ludwig (D). District 87: Appointed Rep. Tony Core (R) won election to a full term 67%-33% over Stacy Roberts (D). District 88: Rep. Dennis Stapleton (R) won a fourth term without opposition. District 89: Rep. Rex Damschroder (R) won a fourth term with a 69%-31% over Del Cook (D). District 90: After a decade of frustration, the GOP was finally able to pickup the 90th. After falling to former Rep. Randy Weston (D) by a 65%-35% margin two years ago, teacher Steve Reinhard (R) scored a convincing 60%-40% victory over Weston’s successor, appointed Rep. Bob Gooding (D). District 91: Rep. Joe Sulzer (D) won a second full term by carrying 58% of the vote. District 92: Rep. Bill Ogg (D) was unopposed for a fourth and final term. District 93: Appointed Rep. Thom Collier (R), who wasn't on the ballot or in the House until August and former Rep. Bill Harris' (R) ascension to the Senate, earned a full term with a 57%-40% win over Dan Zawacki (D). District 94: Rep. John Carey (R) had no opposition in his bid for a fourth term. District 95: Appointed Rep. Jim Aslanides (R) won a full term 65%-35% over Wayne Yoder (D). District 96: Former Gov. and Lt. Gov. and appointed Rep. Nancy Hollister (R) posted a 59%-41% win by beating Nancy Aiken (D). District 97: Rep. Kerry Metzger (R) had his most comfortable election, winning a fourth term 70%-30% over Keith Busch (D). District 98: A solid effort in a strong Democrat district by insurance agent Frank Sentich (R) wasn’t enough, as Eileen Krupinski (D) won election by a 53%-47% margin. Krupinski is the wife of term limited incumbent Rep. Jerry Krupinski (D). District 99: Assistant Minority Whip Charlie Wilson (D) won a third term, 68%-32% over Caldwell councilman Garry Wells (R).