Cupp re-elected to Ohio’s Speaker of House

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COLUMBUS — Rep. Bob Cupp, R-Lima, has been re-elected as Speaker of the Ohio House.

Cupp originally had been voted into the House’s top seat at the end of July following the release of federal racketeering charges against then-Speaker Larry Householder, who was ousted from the role.

As of Wednesday, Cupp will also hold the seat during Ohio’s 134th General Assembly to begin in 2021 after being selected by the state’s Republican Caucus.

“I am so honored to have been re-elected by my colleagues to continue leading the Ohio House,” Cupp said in a written statement. “I will work every day with our unified caucus to advance conservative policies to benefit all Ohioans. We have great challenges but I know the talented members of our caucus will work together to solve them.”

Cupp could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

With Cupp confirmed as speaker, Lima now has two of its elected officials in the top leadership positions in the state legislature. Last week, Sen. Matt Huffman was unanimously elected as Ohio Senate President.

With both now in senior positions, the two will have greater influence to set the priorities for the General Assembly. Longstanding issues that plague Lima and legacy cities — housing blight, workforce problems and a lack of large-scale redevelopment — have all largely been back-seat priorities for the state in recent years.

Prior to taking the Speaker seat, Cupp has held a long public career in both local and state governments. Before serving multiple terms as a state representative, Cupp served as an Allen County commissioner, a four-term state senator and as a Supreme Court Justice, among other roles.

In recent years, his legislative work has focused on tackling Ohio’s unconstitutional funding structure for education, which has since morphed into a bipartisan effort in the 133rd general assembly’s lame duck session.

Other members of the House leadership team were also announced Wednesday.

They include Speaker Pro Tempore Tim Ginter, R-Salem; Majority Floor Leader Bill Seitz, R-Green Township; Assistant majority Floor Leader: Rick Carfagna, R-Genoa Township; Majority Whip Don Jones, R-Freeport; Assistant Majority Whip and Cindy Abrams, R-Harrison.

Cupp
https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2020/11/web1_cupp.jpgCupp
Lima now holds both top spots in General Assembly

By Josh Ellerbrock

[email protected]

Reach Josh Ellerbrock at 567-242-0398.

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