Ohio General Assembly election recap: Five House incumbents lose primary elections; senators fend off challengers

Provided by Hannah News Service 

Four incumbent Republicans who voted for House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) over caucus pick Derek Merrin (R-Maumee) lost their seats in Republican primaries Tuesday, despite heavy spending by the Stephens-led Ohio House Republican Alliance (OHRA) to defend them. 

Of the 21 Republicans who joined with Stephens and all 32 Democrats in the House to elect Stephens as speaker, 12 faced primaries on Tuesday. Those who did not succeed in retaining their seats were Reps. Sara Carruthers (R-Hamilton), who lost to Diane Mullins; Brett Hillyer (R-Uhrichsville), who lost to Jodi Salvo; Gail Pavliga (R-Atwater), who lost to Heidi Workman; and Jon Cross (R-Findlay), who lost to Ty Mathews. 

Rep. Elliot Forhan (D-South Euclid) was the lone Democrat incumbent to lose his seat in the primary, coming in third behind winner Eric Synenberg and second-place finisher Angel Washington in the three-way primary. 

Surviving upset bids were Reps. Cindy Abrams (R-Harrison), Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland), Kevin Miller (R-Newark), Jeff LaRe (R-Canal Winchester), Haraz Ghanbari (R-Perrysburg), Tracy Richardson (R-Marysville), D.J. Swearingen (R-Huron) and Don Jones (R-Freeport). 

Others surviving primary night included Reps. Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus), Brian Stewart (R-Ashland), Dani Isaacsohn (D-Cincinnati), Thomas Hall (R-Middletown), Adam Mathews (R-Lebanon), Beth Lear (R-Galena), Sharon Ray (R-Medina), Justin Pizzulli (R-Franklin Furnace), Sen. George Lang (R-West Chester) and Sen. Sandra O'Brien (R-Rome). 

While Mathews, who had been criticized for raising money with Stephens, only received 44 percent of the vote, his two opponents split their votes to help him win his primary. Similarly, Pizzulli earned 48 percent in a three-way primary. 

Ray, who voted for Merrin, had been targeted for taking a position on Stephens' leadership team. 

Find the full list of winners here.