Ohio House of Representatives elections, 2016
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| 2016 Ohio House Elections | |
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| Primary | March 15, 2016 |
| General | November 8, 2016 |
| 2016 Election Results | |
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| • State legislative elections in 2016 | |
All 99 seats in the Ohio House of Representatives were up for election in 2016. Republicans gained one seat in the chamber after the November 2016 election.[1]
Introduction
Elections for the Ohio House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was December 16, 2015.
Majority control
- See also: Partisan composition of state houses
Heading into the election, the Republican Party held the majority in the Ohio House of Representatives:
| Ohio House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 34 | 33 | |
| Republican Party | 64 | 66 | |
| Vacancy | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 99 | 99 | |
Retired incumbents
Twenty-one incumbent representatives did not run for re-election in 2016. Those incumbents were:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Amstutz |  Republican |
House District 1 |
| Mike Dovilla | Republican |
House District 7 |
| Nan Baker | Republican |
House District 16 |
| Mike Curtin |  Democratic |
House District 17 |
| Cheryl Grossman | Republican |
House District 23 |
| Stephanie Kunze | Republican |
House District 24 |
| Kevin Boyce | Democratic |
House District 25 |
| Louis Terhar | Republican |
House District 30 |
| Denise Driehaus | Democratic |
House District 31 |
| Christie Bryant Kuhns | Democratic |
House District 32 |
| Stephen Slesnick | Democratic |
House District 49 |
| Timothy Derickson | Republican |
House District 53 |
| Terry Boose | Republican |
House District 57 |
| Ron Maag | Republican |
House District 62 |
| Sean O'Brien | Democratic |
House District 63 |
| Margaret Ruhl | Republican |
House District 68 |
| Dave Hall | Republican |
House District 70 |
| Bill Hayes | Republican |
House District 72 |
| Jim Buchy | Republican |
House District 84 |
| Jeffrey McClain | Republican |
House District 87 |
| Debbie Phillips | Democratic |
House District 94 |
Note: Bill Dean (R) was appointed to District 74 on April 12, 2016. It was previously held by Robert Hackett (R), who was appointed to the state senate on February 23, 2016.
Note: Tim Brown (R) resigned from the state House in July 2016. Theresa Gavarone was sworn in to the seat on August 2.
Note: Barbara Sears (R) resigned from the state House in June 2016. Derek Merrin was sworn in to the seat on August 2.
Note: Incumbent Jeffrey McClain (R) resigned from the state House on October 2, 2016.
2016 election competitiveness
Ohio sees a dip in electoral competitiveness.
Ballotpedia conducts a yearly study of electoral competitiveness in state legislative elections. Details on how well Ohio performed in the study are provided in the image below. Click here for the full 2016 Competitiveness Analysis »
- In the Ohio State Senate, there were 10 Democratic incumbents and 23 Republican incumbents. No incumbents faced primary challengers in the Democratic Party. There were four incumbents that faced primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- In the House, there are 34 Democratic incumbents and 65 Republican incumbents. Four state representatives faced primary opposition in the Democratic Party. There were six incumbents that faced primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- Overall, 18.6 percent of Democratic incumbents and 21.4 percent of GOP incumbents faced primary opposition in all of the state legislatures with elections in 2016.
- The cumulative figure for how many state legislative candidates faced no major party opposition in November in these states was 41.8 percent. This compares to 32.7 percent in 2010, 38.3 percent in 2012, and 43.0 percent in 2014.
- More details on electoral competitiveness in Ohio can be found below.
List of candidates
General election
Primary election
Write-in candidates
- Timothy Grady, District 2
- Keith Hatton, District 17
- M. Deborah Tunstall, District 17
- Jeff Brown, District 25
- Douglas Crowl, District 68
Margins of victory
The average margin of victory for contested races in the Ohio House of Representatives in 2016 was higher than the national average. Out of 99 races in the Ohio House of Representatives in 2016, 74 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 32.7 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.[3]
| Democratic candidates in the Ohio House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Republican candidates in 2016. Democrats won 33 races. In the 25 races where a winning Democrat faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 34.9 percent. Republicans won 66 races in 2016. In the 49 races where a winning Republican faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 31.6 percent. |
| More Democratic candidates than Republican candidates saw margins of victory that were less than 10 percentage points. Four of the 74 contested races in 2016—5.4 percent—saw margins of victory that were 10 percent or less. Democrats won all four races with margins of victory of 10 percent or less. |
Ohio House of Representatives: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent District Winning Party Margin of Victory District 17 D 8.8 percent District 20 D 7.3 percent District 60 D 9.6 percent District 75 D 9.8 percent
| The average margin of victory for incumbents in the Ohio House of Representatives who ran for re-election and won in 2016 was higher than the national average. 77 incumbents who ran for re-election in 2016 won. The average margin of victory for the 55 winning Ohio House of Representatives incumbents who faced a challenger in 2016 was 32.4 percent. The average margin of victory for all winning incumbents in contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016 was 31.8 percent. |
| Democratic incumbents in the Ohio House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Republican incumbents. 27 Democratic incumbents won re-election. In the 19 races where a winning Democratic incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 36 percent. 50 Republican incumbents won re-election. In the 36 races where a winning Republican incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 30.6 percent. |
Ohio House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis Party Elections won Average margin of victory[4] Races with incumbent victories Average margin of victory for incumbents[4] Unopposed incumbents Unopposed races Percent unopposed Democratic 33 34.9 percent 27 36.0 percent 8 8 24.2 percent Republican 66 31.6 percent 50 30.6 percent 14 17 25.8 percent Total 99 32.7 percent 77 32.4 percent 22 25 25.3 percent
Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in Ohio House of Representatives districts in 2016.
| Ohio House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory by District | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory |
| District 1 | R | 34.7 percent |
| District 2 | R | 39.4 percent |
| District 3 | R | 17.5 percent |
| District 4 | R | Unopposed |
| District 5 | R | 42.2 percent |
| District 6 | R | 22.2 percent |
| District 7 | R | Unopposed |
| District 8 | D | 59.6 percent |
| District 9 | D | 68.9 percent |
| District 10 | D | Unopposed |
| District 11 | D | 71.5 percent |
| District 12 | D | Unopposed |
| District 13 | D | Unopposed |
| District 14 | D | Unopposed |
| District 15 | D | Unopposed |
| District 16 | R | 12.6 percent |
| District 17 | D | 8.8 percent |
| District 18 | D | 37.5 percent |
| District 19 | R | 15.8 percent |
| District 20 | D | 7.3 percent |
| District 21 | R | 18.3 percent |
| District 22 | D | 35.9 percent |
| District 23 | R | 15.3 percent |
| District 24 | R | 21.2 percent |
| District 25 | D | 55.9 percent |
| District 26 | D | 59.2 percent |
| District 27 | R | 28.7 percent |
| District 28 | R | 14.8 percent |
| District 29 | R | Unopposed |
| District 30 | R | 46.2 percent |
| District 31 | D | 36.1 percent |
| District 32 | D | 53.8 percent |
| District 33 | D | 47.1 percent |
| District 34 | D | 54.3 percent |
| District 35 | D | 25.0 percent |
| District 36 | R | 27.1 percent |
| District 37 | R | 14.2 percent |
| District 38 | R | 26.2 percent |
| District 39 | D | Unopposed |
| District 40 | R | 28.2 percent |
| District 41 | R | 26.3 percent |
| District 42 | R | 26.1 percent |
| District 43 | R | 19.7 percent |
| District 44 | D | 64.2 percent |
| District 45 | D | 26.6 percent |
| District 46 | D | 15.5 percent |
| District 47 | R | 21.7 percent |
| District 48 | R | Unopposed |
| District 49 | D | 13.0 percent |
| District 50 | R | 45.6 percent |
| District 51 | R | 30.8 percent |
| District 52 | R | Unopposed |
| District 53 | R | 30.4 percent |
| District 54 | R | 36.2 percent |
| District 55 | R | 21.3 percent |
| District 56 | D | 27.6 percent |
| District 57 | R | 23.9 percent |
| District 58 | D | 36.9 percent |
| District 59 | D | 16.9 percent |
| District 60 | D | 9.6 percent |
| District 61 | R | 29.8 percent |
| District 62 | R | 57.2 percent |
| District 63 | D | 19.5 percent |
| District 64 | D | 10.9 percent |
| District 65 | R | 46.4 percent |
| District 66 | R | 56.9 percent |
| District 67 | R | 30.5 percent |
| District 68 | R | 35.1 percent |
| District 69 | R | 37.5 percent |
| District 70 | R | 43.6 percent |
| District 71 | R | 35.8 percent |
| District 72 | R | 43.5 percent |
| District 73 | R | 32.9 percent |
| District 74 | R | 33.6 percent |
| District 75 | D | 9.8 percent |
| District 76 | R | 37.6 percent |
| District 77 | R | 36.8 percent |
| District 78 | R | Unopposed |
| District 79 | R | 21.1 percent |
| District 80 | R | Unopposed |
| District 81 | R | Unopposed |
| District 82 | R | Unopposed |
| District 83 | R | 49.5 percent |
| District 84 | R | 66.8 percent |
| District 85 | R | Unopposed |
| District 86 | R | 42.4 percent |
| District 87 | R | Unopposed |
| District 88 | R | Unopposed |
| District 89 | R | 21.4 percent |
| District 90 | R | Unopposed |
| District 91 | R | Unopposed |
| District 92 | R | Unopposed |
| District 93 | R | Unopposed |
| District 94 | R | 15.6 percent |
| District 95 | R | 23.9 percent |
| District 96 | D | Unopposed |
| District 97 | R | Unopposed |
| District 98 | R | 41.7 percent |
| District 99 | D | Unopposed |
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Ohio elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Ohio in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| December 16, 2015 | Ballot access | Deadline for partisan primary candidates to file declarations of candidacy | |
| January 4, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for write-in primary candidates to file declarations of intent | |
| January 29, 2016 | Campaign finance | 2015 annual report due | |
| March 3, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-primary report due | |
| March 14, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for independent candidates to file nominating petitions | |
| March 15, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| April 22, 2016 | Campaign finance | Post-primary report due | |
| July 29, 2016 | Campaign finance | Semiannual report due | |
| August 29, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for write-in general election candidates to file declarations of intent | |
| October 27, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-general report due | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| December 16, 2016 | Campaign finance | Post-general report due | |
| January 31, 2017 | Campaign finance | 2016 annual report due | |
| Source: Ohio Secretary of State, "2016 Ohio Elections Calendar," accessed June 12, 2015 Ohio Secretary of State, "2016 Ohio Campaign Finance Reporting Calendar," accessed October 28, 2015 | |||
Competitiveness
Candidates unopposed by a major party
In 27 of the 99 districts that were up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of 8 Democrats and 19 Republicans were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.
Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 72 of the 99 districts up for election.
Primary challenges
Ten incumbents faced primary competition on March 15. Twenty-one seats are open and another 69 incumbents advanced past the primary without opposition. One incumbent lost in the primary:
- District 82: Incumbent Tony Burkley was defeated by Craig Riedel in the Republican primary.
Retired incumbents
Twenty-one incumbent representatives did not run for re-election, while 78 ran for re-election. One seat is vacant in District 74. A list of those incumbents, fourteen Republicans and seven Democrats, can be found above.
Impact of term limits
- See also: State legislatures with term limits
The Ohio House of Representatives has been a term-limited state house since Ohio voters approved Ballot Issue 4, an initiated constitutional amendment, in 1992. This amendment became part of Section 2 of Article II of the Ohio Constitution and limits the amount of time that an Ohio State Representative can stay in office to four two-year terms, saying, "No person shall hold the office of State Representative for a period longer than four successive terms of two years. Terms shall be considered successive unless separated by a period of four or more years."
There are 99 members of the Ohio House of Representatives. In 2016, twelve of them who were current members, three Democrats and 9 Republicans, were ineligible to run again in November. Robert Hackett (R) was term-limited in 2016, but he was appointed to the state senate before the end of his term.
The state representatives who are term-limited in 2016 were:
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Results from 2014
There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.
Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.
| Overall Competitiveness | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | |
| Competitiveness Index | 36.2 | 35.8 | 31.4 |
| % Open Seats | 18.6% | 21.2% | 17.0% |
| % Incumbent with primary challenge | 22.7% | 24.6% | 20.1% |
| % Candidates with major party opposition | 67.3% | 61.7% | 57.0% |
The following table details Ohio's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.
| Ohio General Assembly 2014 Competitiveness | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % Open Seats | % Incumbent with primary challenge | % Candidates with major party opposition | Competitiveness Index | Overall rank |
| 23.3% | 25.8% | 81.0% | 43.4 | 7 |
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
Campaign contributions
The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State House in Ohio in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State House races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.[5]
| Ohio House of Representatives Donations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Candidates | Amount |
| 2014 | 264 | $24,987,839 |
| 2012 | 252 | $31,449,460 |
| 2010 | 301 | $35,662,662 |
| 2008 | 247 | $34,769,515 |
| 2006 | 268 | $25,214,004 |
State comparison
The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state houses. The average contributions raised by state house candidates in 2014 was $59,983. Ohio, at $94,651 per candidate, is ranked six of 45 for state house chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s house candidates in 2014.[5][6]
Qualifications
 |
Primary filing deadline: 12/16/2015 |
| General filing deadline: 8/29/2016 |
| To learn more about ballot access requirements in Ohio, see this article. |
Article 2, Section 3 of the Ohio Constitution states: "Senators and representatives shall have resided in their respective districts one year next preceding their election, unless they shall have been absent on the public business of the United States, or of this state."
Article 2, Section 5 of the Ohio Constitution states: "No person hereafter convicted of an embezzlement of the public funds, shall hold any office in this state; nor shall any person, holding public money for disbursement, or otherwise, have a seat in the General Assembly, until he shall have accounted for, and paid such money into the treasury."
See also
External links
- Ohio Secretary of State - Candidate list
- Ohio Secretary of State - Primary election results
- Ohio Secretary of State - General election candidate list
Footnotes
- ↑ Republicans also reclaimed a single seat left vacant prior to the election.
- ↑ Under Ballotpedia's competitiveness criteria, districts that have a margin of victory of less than 5 percent are considered highly competitive. Districts that have a margin of victory from 5 to 10 percent are considered mildly competitive.
- ↑ This calculation excludes chambers that had elections where two or more members were elected in a race. These chambers are the Arizona House, the New Hampshire House, the North Dakota House, the South Dakota House, the Vermont House, the Vermont Senate, and the West Virginia House.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Excludes unopposed elections
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 followthemoney.org, "Contributions to candidates and committees in elections in Ohio," accessed July 28, 2015
- ↑ This map relies on data collected in July 2015.
