Frank LaRose (born April 18, 1979) is an American politician. He has served as
Secretary of State of Ohio
The Secretary of State of Ohio is an elected statewide official in the State of Ohio. The Secretary of state is responsible for overseeing elections in the state; registering business entities (corporations, etc.) and granting them the author ...
since 2019, after serving two terms as a
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
member of the
Ohio State Senate
The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of the se ...
from Ohio's 27th Senate district which includes
Wayne County as well as portions of
Stark and
Summit
A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous.
The term (mountain top) is generally used ...
counties.
Early life, military career and education
LaRose was born at
Akron City Hospital
Summa Akron City Hospital, part of Summa Health System, was founded in 1892 in Akron, Ohio, United States as The City Hospital. From the first accredited radiology department in the country to the first adult open heart surgery in Akron (and one of ...
and grew up in
Copley Township in
Summit County, Ohio
Summit County is an urban county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 540,428, making it the fourth-most populous county in Ohio. Its county seat and largest city is Akron. The county was formed on March 3, 1840, ...
.
His grandfather started the House of LaRose, a beverage bottling and distribution company in Akron, Ohio. He has four siblings and worked on the family farm growing up. He graduated from
Copley High School
Copley High School is a public high school in Copley Township, just west of Akron, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in the Copley–Fairlawn City School District and competes athletically in the American Division of the Suburban Le ...
. He subsequently enlisted in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
, serving in the
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault operations. It can plan, coordinate, and execute multiple battalion-size air assault operati ...
and later, the
U.S. Special Forces
The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service Berets of the United States Army, headgear, are a special operations special operations force, force of the United States Ar ...
as a
green beret
The green beret was the official headdress of the British Commandos of the Second World War. It is still worn by members of the Royal Marines after passing the Commando Course, and personnel from other units of the Royal Navy, Army and RAF wh ...
. He received the
Bronze Star
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
Wh ...
for his service in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
.
He graduated from
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
with a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
degree in
consumer affairs
Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent business ...
and a Minor in
business administration
Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...
.
Ohio Senate career
Ohio Senate election (2010)
LaRose ran for Ohio Senate in 2010 and defeated the
Democratic nominee,
Summit County Councilman
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
Frank Comunale, in the 27th District, a Democratic-leaning district,
by 56.5% to 43.5%.
Ohio Senate (2011–2013)
LaRose was sworn into the Ohio Senate in 2011. ''
Governing
Governance is the process of interactions through the laws, social norm, norms, power (social and political), power or language of an organized society over a social system (family, tribe, formal organization, formal or informal organization, a ...
'' magazine named him one of "12 State Legislators to Watch in 2014".
LaRose was chair of the Ohio Senate Transportation, Commerce and Workforce Committee, and previously was chair of the State and Local Government Committee and Public Safety, Local Government and Veterans Affairs Committee. He previously was chair of the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review.
LaRose voted for
Senate Bill 5 which reduced
collective bargaining
Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and rights for workers. The i ...
rights for public workers (including police, firefighters and teachers).
He said that he agonized over the decision.
After the bill, which passed by a narrow margin, was repealed by a public referendum, LaRose said, "The voters have made it clear that this was not the course they wished to take."
In 2018, LaRose said, "As I look back on
y yes vote on SB5am I confident I did the right thing? Not necessarily."
LaRose voted for the Congressional Redistricting plan (HB 369) that is now under legal challenge for
gerrymandering
In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...
.
LaRose voted for SB 72 in 2011, a "late-term abortion" ban, which only affects 1% of abortions, and provided no exception for the mother's health. This was reintroduced as HB 78, which lowered the ban from 24 to 20 weeks, but allowed for an exemption for the woman's health.
Ohio Senate (2014–2018)
LaRose won re-election to his seat in 2014.
LaRose sponsored SB 63 to create the state's first online
voter registration
In electoral systems, voter registration (or enrollment) is the requirement that a person otherwise eligible to vote must register (or enroll) on an electoral roll, which is usually a prerequisite for being entitled or permitted to vote.
The ru ...
system. LaRose sponsored a bill to eliminate six days of early voting (SB 238) and to prohibit county Board of Elections from sending out unsolicited absentee voting applications. In 2016, he voted for SB 296, introduced by Rep.
Bill Seitz
William J. Seitz III (born October 29, 1954) is the state representative for the 30th District of the Ohio House of Representatives. He is a Republican. The district consists of Cheviot, Delhi Township, Green as well as portions of Cincinnati, ...
, which would require a monetary payment in order to extend voting hours at any vote center for any reason.
Frank LaRose authored more than 67 bills and resolutions during his two terms in the Ohio Senate. LaRose was named the 2015 Legislator of the Year by the Ohio Association of Election Officials.
Anti-abortion legislation
The anti-abortion advocacy group
Ohio Right to Life
Ohio Right to Life is an anti-abortion group based in Columbus, Ohio. It was established in 1967 by Jack Willke and his wife, Barbara. Its president is Michael Gonidakis, who Ohio Governor John Kasich appointed to the state medical board in 2012. ...
endorsed LaRose's opponent in the 2014 Republican primary. LaRose had previously voted against governor
John Kasich
John Richard Kasich Jr. ( ; born May 13, 1952) is an American politician, author, and television news host who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001 and as the 69th governor of Ohio from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, Kasic ...
's nomination of Ohio Right to Life president
Mike Gonidakis to the state medical board in 2012. In 2015, LaRose voted for SB 127, a 20-week abortion ban, and cosponsored HB 294, which prohibited public funds for abortion services. In 2016, LaRose supported HB 493, a "
heartbeat bill
A six-week abortion ban or early abortion ban, called a "heartbeat bill" or "fetal heartbeat bill" by proponents, is a form of abortion restriction legislation in the United States. These bans make abortion illegal as early as six weeks gestatio ...
", even though similar bills have been unanimously blocked by the judiciary in several other states.
In 2017, he voted for SB 28, which would require the burial or cremation of fetal remains, identical to a similar bill which had been blocked in Texas. Later that year, he sponsored legislation to prevent women from having abortions after a fetal diagnosis of
Down syndrome
Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...
.
Legislation
Senate Bill 63
This bill created a cost-saving and convenient online voter registration system which gave Ohio voters the option of submitting a simple form online to register. SB63 also required the Secretary of State to conduct a review of Ohio’s Voter Registration Database to identify non-citizens on the voter rolls. Ohio's secure online system cross-checks the provided voter information with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles' internal database to verify citizenship and other required information. SB 63 was signed into law on June 13, 2016.
Senate Bill 238
This bill removed the unintended five-day period of time where a voter was permitted to register to vote and cast a ballot at the same time, reducing the possibility of voter fraud. SB 238 was signed into law on February 21, 2014.
House Bill 64
LaRose successfully advocated for funding the purchase of electronic poll books in the state operating budget. Electronic poll books make voting more accessible and efficient and helps county boards of elections shorten voting lines while maintaining accuracy. HB 64 was signed into law on June 30, 2015.
Senate Bill 44
LaRose authored legislation to update Ohio’s campaign finance law by allowing campaign finance reports to be filed electronically with local boards of elections. This legislation removed the antiquated paper-only filing requirement that municipal, county and local candidates and campaign committees were forced to use when filing with county boards of elections. This legislation passed the Ohio Senate in multiple General Assemblies and was finally signed into law in 2019.
Ohio Secretary of State
Candidacy for Secretary of State (2018)
On May 17, 2017, LaRose announced that he would run for
Ohio Secretary of State
The Secretary of State of Ohio is an elected statewide official in the State of Ohio. The Secretary of state is responsible for overseeing elections in the state; registering business entities (corporations, etc.) and granting them the author ...
in the
2018 election. LaRose defeated the Democratic
state Representative
A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...
Kathleen Clyde
Kathleen Clyde (born May 18, 1979) is a former member of the Ohio House of Representatives who represented the 75th District from 2011 to 2018.
Early life and career
Clyde is originally from Garrettsville, Ohio. She was the valedictorian of her ...
in the general election, 50.9% to 46.7%.
Early during the campaign, LaRose indicated that he would continue a policy of purging voters from voter rolls if those voters had not voted for six consecutive years. Later during the campaign, LaRose said that he did not support the policy. In 2016, LaRose opposed automatic voter registration, but said during the campaign that he supported automatic voter registration. While in Ohio Senate, LaRose sponsored legislation to eliminate Ohio's "Golden Week" (a five-day period when Ohioans could register and vote on the same day); during the 2018 campaign, LaRose said he favored a different same-day registration system.
During the campaign, Clyde supported a shift to a uniform paper ballot system in Ohio; LaRose said he favored the current system where there is a requirement for a paper trail for ballots but all counties are allowed to use their own machines. Clyde called for the adoption of
postal voting
Postal voting is voting in an election where ballot papers are distributed to electors (and typically returned) by Mail, post, in contrast to electors voting in person at a polling place, polling station or electronically via an electronic voti ...
to replace early in-person voting; LaRose supported the existing system which is a combination of early in-person voting and postal voting.
Ohio Secretary of State (2019–present)
On January 12, 2019, LaRose was sworn in to serve as Ohio's 51st secretary of state, a four-year term. He was the "first Summit County resident elected Ohio secretary of state in about 166 years", according to Jim Simon, master of ceremonies of LaRose's
swearing-in
Traditionally an oath (from Anglo-Saxon ', also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to giv ...
. LaRose's offices are in the
Continental Plaza high-rise in downtown Columbus.
In April 2019, he observed the Ukrainian presidential election. He promoted simplifying the voter roll purging process in May 2019. He also sought automated voter registration, stating that he was crafting an election reform bill on the issue. In May, LaRose defended Ohio's congressional districts, opposed by Democrats for being gerrymandered to favor the Republican representatives in power. In June, he ordered county boards of elections to undergo security upgrades for the 2020 election.
Cleveland.com
''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 Ma ...
reported in September 2019 that, as the top election official in Ohio, LaRose had spent "months working on a project to purge Ohio's inactive voters while also trying to address long-standing criticisms of the controversial process". He was urged to halt a purge of inactive voters by Democrats over errors, but he defended the purge. That month, his office was reviewing Ohio voter registrations that might have been incorrectly deleted in vendor errors, with Democrats suing. The state ultimately determined that around 40,000 entries included on the list of 235,000 voters to be purged were errors.
In September 2019, he was released from a February 2019 lawsuit filed by members of environmental activist groups, who "accused elections officials of using unconstitutional tactics that kept certain initiatives from going before voters". That month, he also claimed that Ohio had the most secure elections in the United States. On September 19, he said he was in the process of distributing $12.8 million
Election Assistance Commission
The Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is an independent agency of the United States government created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA). The Commission serves as a national clearinghouse and resource of information regarding electi ...
funds.
On October 9, 2019, the Ohio Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 52, which among other things, made LaRose a member of Ohio's Homeland Security Advisory Council.
Following the
2020 United States elections
The 2020 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Democratic presidential nominee, former vice president Joe Biden, defeated incumbent Republican president Donald Trump in the presidential election. Despite losing seats ...
held on November 3, 2020, LaRose stated that there were "no serious irregularities with voting", contrary to president
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
's
false claims of election fraud.
Reelection campaign (2021–present)
In May 2021, LaRose announced his bid for reelection in the
2022 Ohio Secretary of State election.
''
The Columbus Dispatch
''The Columbus Dispatch'' is a daily newspaper based in Columbus, Ohio. Its first issue was published on July 1, 1871, and it has been the only mainstream daily newspaper in the city since ''The Columbus Citizen-Journal'' ceased publication in 19 ...
'' reported in 2022 that LaRose had "maintained a careful balance between champion of Ohio elections and skeptic of how other states conducted voting" since 2020. While a spokesman for LaRose's campaign told the ''Dispatch'' that "Ohio's elections are well-run and run with integrity", the ''Dispatch'' noted that LaRose had additionally "espoused a sense of urgency around voter fraud in recent months" during his reelection campaign.
In April, Trump announced his endorsement of LaRose at a rally held in
Delaware, Ohio
Delaware is a city in and the county seat of Delaware County, Ohio, United States. Delaware was founded in 1808 and was incorporated in 1816. It is located near the center of Ohio, is about north of Columbus, and is part of the Columbus, Ohio m ...
.
LaRose defeated state representative
John Adams
John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...
in the Republican primary held on May 3, 2022. After his victory in the Republican primary, he was set to run against Democratic candidate Chelsea Clark, a member of the
Forest Park
A forest park is a park whose main theme is its forest of trees. Forest parks are found both in the mountains and in the urban environment.
Examples Chile
* Forest Park, Santiago
China
*Gongqing Forest Park, Shanghai
* Mufushan National Fores ...
city council, and conserative podcaster Terpsehore Maras, an independent candidate who has supported
QAnon
QAnon ( , ) is an American political conspiracy theory and political movement. It originated in the American far-right political sphere in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals known as "Q". ...
conspiracy theories, in the November general elections.
A challenge to Maras' inclusion on the election ballot, filed by the
Ohio Republican Party
The Ohio Republican Party is the Ohio affiliate of the Republican Party. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1854.
History
After the Civil War, Ohio politics was dominated by the Republican Party, and Ohio Republicans also played key roles i ...
in August, led LaRose's office to rule that Maras failed to gather sufficient signatures to run in the election.
Personal life
According to his official
Ohio Senate
The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of the se ...
biography, LaRose lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife, Lauren, and their three daughters. He was an
Eagle Scout
Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...
.
He is a board member of the
Ohio Historical Society
Ohio History Connection, formerly The Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society and Ohio Historical Society, is a nonprofit organization incorporated in 1885. Headquartered at the Ohio History Center in Columbus, Ohio, Ohio History Connect ...
, a junior vice commander of the Fairlawn
Veterans of Foreign Wars
The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an organization of US war veterans, who, as military service members fought in wars, campaigns, and expeditions on foreign land, waters, or a ...
and a member of the executive board for the
Great Trail Council
Scouting in Ohio has a long history, from the 1908 to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.
Early history (1910–1950)
Recent history (1950–1990)
In 1952 and again in 1975 th ...
,
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
.
On January 24, 2022, LaRose's office announced that he had tested positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, several days after a meeting with the Ohio Redistricting Commission.
References
External links
The Ohio Senate: Senator Frank LaRose (R) - District 27Frank LaRose official campaign website
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Larose, Frank
1979 births
21st-century American politicians
United States Army personnel of the Iraq War
Living people
Members of the United States Army Special Forces
Republican Party Ohio state senators
Ohio State University alumni
People from Copley, Ohio
Politicians from Akron, Ohio
Secretaries of State of Ohio
United States Army soldiers