Smith wins 43rd House primary

Smith received 53 percent of the vote to Henning’s 47 percent, according to final, unofficial results.

The district includes all of Preble County, which Smith won with 57 percent of the 4,036 votes cast.

Henning won 52 percent of the votes cast in western Montgomery County with 100 percent of precincts reporting.

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Parts of Montgomery County in the district include Trotwood, part of Dayton, Clayton, Brookville, New Lebanon and Harrison, Jackson and Perry townships.

Smith will now face Montgomery County Commissioner Dan Foley in the Nov. 6 General Election.

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Foley was unchallenged in the Democratic primary. He received 4,966 votes on Tuesday.

Reached Tuesday night Smith said he’s absolutely stunned, excited and humbled by the results.

He’s previously said he wants to weed out waste and corruption in the statehouse, citing the recent resignation of Ohio House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger amid a possible FBI investigation.

Smith, a pastor, wants to battle the area’s biggest issue, the opioid crisis, with tougher penalties for drug dealers as well as imprisoning drug addicts and making them get treatment. He also wants to repeal the Medicaid expansion, which pays for opioid treatment for many low-income Ohioans.

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“I actually did a funeral today for a 30-year-old man who died of a drug overdose,” Smith said Tuesday. “This is very real for me. This is something that has to be addressed.”

Smith said he hasn’t met Foley but hopes for a good race based on policy differences. He wants to see “a bit of civility” re-enter politics.

The seat is being vacated by State Rep. Jeff Rezabek, R-Clayton, who is running for Montgomery County Common Pleas Court Juvenile Judge and won his Republican primary contest on Tuesday.

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