Delaware County, like the state of Ohio overall, continued its recent reputation as a red state in the Nov. 8 general election, with Republicans sweeping the major races.
Close to home, Republican Beth Lear was the winner of the Ohio House of Representatives 61st District race over Democrat Louise Valentine. Lear will be representing residents in eastern Delaware County, as well as Centerburg and Fredericktown. Lear and Valentine were on the ballots in Berkshire, Genoa, Harlem, Kingston, Orange, Porter and Trenton townships, the city of Sunbury, the northern-most portions of Columbus and Westerville, and the village of Galena.
Unofficial results from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office showed Lear had 30,663 votes (59%) to 21,332 (41%) votes for Valentine. In Delaware County alone, that was 24,209 (55%) to 19,573 (45%).
After learning she had won the race on Tuesday night, Lear posted the following on her Facebook page: “Thank you Delaware and Knox Counties!
On Wednesday morning, Valentine posted, “First of all — thank you to every single person who supported this campaign. Every door knocked, dollar raised, post shared, helped us increase the Democratic vote share in Delaware County and inch closer to someday soon, turning at least a seat or two blue in this rapidly evolving community. The outcome of my race obviously wasn’t what we had hoped for. … Much love to all of my supporters, friends, and family who joined me in this journey, and THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. Onward.”
Republican Kris Jordan ran unopposed in the 60th District.
Also in the Ohio General Assembly, incumbent state Sen. Andrew O. Brenner (R) defeated Heather M. Swiger (D), 86,332 votes (63%) to 50,315 (37%), to retain the 19th District seat.
Following his successful reelection campaign, Brenner posted the following on his Facebook page: “THANK YOU to all of the volunteers, donors, supporters, family, friends, campaign staff, and all of those who voted to re-elect me to the 19th Ohio Senate district! … Every day, I’m fighting for this district and for all of Ohio. I will continue to be a Senator who represents every person in the district. We may not always agree, but I can assure you that I will continue to always listen. I’m proud of what we accomplished in my first term in the Senate, I look forward to what we are going to do together in the next. Delaware, Knox, Holmes, and Coshocton Counties, I look forward to working with you in the next term!”
For representative to Congress in District 4, Jim Jordan (R) defeated Tamie Wilson (D), 196,898 (69%) to 87,144 (31%). In District 12, Troy Balderson (R) defeated Amy Rippel-Elton, 187,322 (70%) to 82,101 (30%).
In other local races, John Grumney and Murray Neff won Sunbury City Council seats for unexpired terms ending Dec. 31, 2025. Randall D. Fuller ran unopposed for judge of the Court of Common Pleas in the Domestic Relations Division.
For judge of the Court of Appeals in District 5, Andrew King (R) defeated Earle E. Wise Jr. (D), 351,101 (65%) to 189,980 (35%); and Craig Baldwin (R) defeated David T. Ball (D), 361,431 (67%) to 178,807 (33%).
Republicans also won the major statewide offices. Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted were reelected over Nan Whaley and Cheryl L. Stephens (D), 2,528,018 (63%) to 1,497,866 (37%). Republicans Dave Yost (attorney general), Keith Faber (auditor of state), Frank LaRose (secretary of state) and Robert Sprague (treasurer of state) all had double-digit victories over their Democratic rivals.
Republicans also fared well on the Ohio Supreme Court. For chief justice, Sharon L. Kennedy defeated Jennifer Brunner (D) by a vote of 2,261,072 (56%) to 1,754,011 (44%). Pat Fischer and Pat DeWine also beat their rivals by double-digit margins for justice positions.
Delaware County residents also voted for these Republicans by similar margins.
In the U.S. Senate race, JD Vance (R) defeated Tim Ryan (D) by a vote of 2,147,898 (53%) to 1,883,223 (47%). Readers will recall that former President Donald J. Trump campaigned for Vance at the Delaware County Fairgrounds earlier this year. However, four other statewide Trump endorsees from that rally split their races.
