COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio House of Representatives unanimously voted to remove Larry Householder as Speaker of the Ohio House just over a week after his arrest on federal corruption charges.
Members quickly approved the measure without debate at a Thursday morning session. The vote was 90-0, with 9 members, including Householder, absent. Additional “yes” votes could come as Thursday continues: some of the “absent” members were close, but they missed the vote as it happened so quickly.
The measure does not completely remove Householder from office, it only removes him from his job as President, a powerful position that schedules House votes and decides what will be voted on. The head of the family remains in office and is ready for re-election in November.
The head of the family, a political adviser and three lobbyists, including former Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges, were arrested last Tuesday in what federal authorities described as a $ 60 million bribery scheme. They were formally charged Thursday, minutes before the vote.
The FBI says FirstEnergy funneled the money to Householder and its allies, including a network of shadow political groups, to help elect Householder as speaker, in exchange for a nuclear rescue bill worth more than $ 1. one billion that Householder pushed through the legislature.
With Householder removed as speaker, House Republicans are working behind the scenes to elect a new one, with state representatives. Jim Butler, from the Dayton suburbs, and Bob Cupp, from Lima, emerging as the top candidates. Cupp is a former Ohio Supreme Court judge, while Butler served under Householder as House Republican number two.
House Republicans said the plan is to hold a private vote for Butler or Cupp behind closed doors, and then vote unanimously for the winning candidate in a subsequent public vote to make it official. They were scheduled to meet privately immediately after the session, but the group was delayed until 1:30 pm so that additional representatives could reach Columbus.
State Representative Jon Cross, a Kenton Republican who was a close ally of the household heads, said after the vote that he believes Republicans will be able to unite behind either candidate.
“I hope we can make a very unified decision, get together and vote and do this,” he said.
State Representative Jack Cera, a longtime Belmont County Democrat and state lawmaker, said he was sad about Thursday’s vote. He said the Householder episode illustrates the need for campaign finance reform.
“The public that goes back years and years has thought that all politicians are criminals. And things like this paint us all with the same brush. And we have to do something about money in the political system if we want to change that, “he said.
