Turner, Jordan, Davidson, Chabot re-elected to House

Staff writer Jessica Wehrman contributed to this story.

Four GOP congressional lawmakers swept to re-election Tuesday, pushing back challenges from Democrats hoping to erode the GOP majority in the House.

U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Dayton, easily won an eighth two-year term, pushing back challenges from Democrat Robert Klepinger, a high-school teacher who lives in Harrison Twp. and Huber Heights Mayor Tom McMasters, who ran as an independent. With 95 percent of the vote in statewide, Turner had 64 percent to 32.9 percent for Klepinger. McMasters had 3 percent.

“This has been a very tumultuous election, not just for Ohio but our country — and whoever wins this, we’re going to have to pull the country together and get a very strong agenda for national security and our country,” Turner said in an interview at a victory party in the Crowne Plaza Dayton.

“As it sits now in Washington, none of the bills funding the federal government have been completed with the administration having put a hold on all of those bills,” he said. “Our No. 1 priority when we get back next week is going to be to get this done, get it done in a way that honors the men and women in uniform and make certain that we’ve put together an agenda that will be a foundation for the next president.”

U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, beat Democratic challenger Janet Garrett, a retired school teacher from Oberlin in north central Ohio, in the 4th Congressional District. Unoffical results showed Jordan had 68.1 percent of the vote while Garrett captured 31.9 percent.

In a statement, Jordan said: “It’s a great honor to serve as the 4th district’s voice in Congress, and I am humbled by the voters’ support to represent them for another term. I am committed to working hard and ending business as usual in Washington so we can begin tackling the big issues facing our country.”

U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Cincinnati, pushed back a challenge from first-time office seeker Michele Young, a Cincinnati Democrat who is an attorney, in the battle to win an 11th term in the 1st Congressional District that spans all of Warren and parts of Hamilton counties. Chabot had 60.2 percent of the vote and Young had 39.7 percent.

“I think it’s important that the entire Congress works together and pulls the country in a constructive direction and starts to get things done,” Chabot said in an interview. Helping small business create jobs and defeating ISIS and other terrorist groups were top priorities, he said.

First-term U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Troy, who replaced retiring House speaker John Boehner in the 8th District, defeated Democrat Steven Fought of Springfield, a first-time officer seeker and retired congressional staffer, and Green Party member Derrick James Hendricks. Davidson had 68.8 percent, Fought 27 percent and Hendricks 4.1 percent.

The district spans all or parts of Butler, Preble, Miami, Clark and Mercer counties.

The delegation’s newest member said it was an honor be able to serve a two-year term.

“We’re at a crossroads as a country,” he said. “I think the public has really expressed a sense of frustration with the lack of results out of the political status quo. … I’m excited to get in there and get the work done that I’ve been talking to the people about.”

About the Author