TIPP CITY — State Senator Bill Beagle is entering what is sure to be a hotly contested race for U.S. Rep. John Boehner’s seat in Ohio’s 8th Congressional district.

Beagle announced his candidacy Tuesday, saying that Washington needs problem-solving leaders.

The resignation of the Speaker of the House presented an unexpected opportunity, Beagle said, and he hopes to take this opportunity to tackle issues at the national level.

“Governing is about wisdom, it’s about good decisions, and I think it’s about working together,” Beagle said. “That is what many of us do in our family and business lives. That’s what I’ve been trying to practice the last few years in the General Assembly and I want to take it to Congress.”

If elected he will make economic and workforce development his top priorities, issues that have been his focus in the Ohio Senate.

Beagle has served in the Ohio Senate since January 2011, representing the 5th District. He was reelected last November and has three years left in his term.

Beagle said that he is proud of his work at the Statehouse, but he has decided that it is time to take his conservative principles to Washington.

The decision was not an easy one, he said, and required a great deal of consideration with his wife and family.

“We considered whether or not it made sense for me to take the track record of success I’ve seen in the legislature the last few years to Washington,” he said. “I think we can all agree that Washington is broken.”

Boehner’s term expires in December 2016 and his resignation — effective Oct. 30 — comes too late for his seat to be added to the November election. A date for a special election has not yet been announced.

The 8th Congressional district encompasses all of Butler, Clark, Darke, Miami, Preble counties and part of Mercer County.