Christopher Widener (born August 22, 1963) was the President pro Tempore of the Ohio Senate, and represented the 10th Senate District, which includes

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Clark Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educate ...

and

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counties. Before the Senate, he served three terms non-consecutively in the

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in Ch ...

. He is a

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Career

After graduation from the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...

, Widener served two terms on the Mad River-Greene Local Board of Education before starting his legislative career. His resume includes a stint as a civil service architect at

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene and Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wr ...

, where he also served as the base's first full-time historic preservation officer until 1989. Widener was appointed to his first term as a member of the

in 1999, but lost the party nomination to reelection to Merle G. Kearns, a prominent state Senator who was facing term limits. However, after redistricting occurred in 2002, Widener won a term beginning in 2003. In the 2004 cycle, Widener again faced a primary challenge against fellow Republican Robert Rogers III. He defeated Rogers with 65% of the vote. He easily won reelection in 2006 with 60% of the vote. In January 2016, Widener announced his retirement after nearly two decades of public service.

Ohio Senate

In 2008, Senator Steve Austria was term limited and running for Congress, and Widener declared his candidacy for his Senate seat. In the primary, he faced W. Reed Madden and James Howard, and won about 67% of the electorate. In the general election, Widener faced Clark County Commissioner Roger Tackett. While Democrats initially thought the district as potentially competitive, Widener won with 62% of the vote. Widener served as Chairman of the Energy & Public Utilities Committee in the 128th General Assembly, and in the 129th General Assembly, Senate President

Tom Niehaus Tom Niehaus is an American former politician who served as President of the Ohio Senate from 2011 to 2012. He also was the state senator for the 14th District from 2005 to 2012. He served in the Ohio House of Representatives from 2001 to 2004. H ...

named Widener as Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, He also serves on the State Controlling Board; and to the State Council on Educational Opportunity for Military Children. As Chairman of the Finance Committee, Widener played a leading role in shaping the biennium budget. Widener was also a key player on the conference committee on the budget, where the budget was finished, and helped to pass the final budget for 2012-2013. In 2012, Widener won reelection to a second term, defeating Jeff Robertson with 62% of the vote. Widener has faced controversy for trying to shield public records related to Senate parking key cards. For this and other reasons, the

Cleveland Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of M ...

in an editorial named Widener the worst person in the Ohio General Assembly.

Committee assignments

* Committee on Rules

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Widener, Chris 1963 births Living people Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives Republican Party Ohio state senators University of Cincinnati alumni 21st-century American politicians