Hearcel F. Craig (born July 1, 1949) is an American politician serving as the Senator for the 15th District 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 s ...

. Craig formerly served 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, ...

and then had a career with the Ohio Department of Youth Services. He then went on to help develop

City Year City Year is an American education nonprofit organization founded in 1988. The organization partners with public schools in 29 high-need communities across the US and through international affiliates in the UK and Johannesburg, South Africa. Ci ...

in Columbus. He has a degree from

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Established in 1892 as the Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute, the private normal school became a state institution and renamed Ce ...

. In 2007, Craig was appointed to serve on Columbus City Council. While on Council, Craig rose to serve as President Pro Tempore. In 2014, Craig decided to run for 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 ...

to replace Tracy Maxwell Heard, who was term limited. He won the primary over Heard's husband, Howard Heard. He went on to defeat Republican Dustin Pyles 76%-24%. He was elected to a 2nd term in the

in 2016. In 2018, Craig decided to seek the nomination for Ohio's 15th State Senate District. The incumbent,

Charleta Tavares Charleta B. Tavares is a former member of the Ohio Senate. She represented the 15th District from 2011 to 2018. Her district included much of central Franklin County, including the cities of Bexley and Grandview Heights with the majority encom ...

, was term limited and unable to seek re-election. Craig won both the primary and general elections, and took office on January 6, 2019.

Ohio State Senate

In 2018, instead of seeking re-election, Craig decided to seek the nomination for Ohio's 15th State Senate District. The incumbent Senator,

, was term-limited and unable to seek re-election. Craig won both primary and general elections, and took office on January 6, 2019. In 2021, Craig was elected as Assistant Minority Whip for the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus.

Committee assignments

* Committee on Government Oversight & Reform (Ranking Member) * Insurance (Ranking Member) * Energy & Public Utilities * Finance *Financial Institutions & Technology

Electoral history

References

1949 births Living people Democratic Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives United States Army soldiers Central Michigan University alumni Columbus City Council members 21st-century American politicians African-American state legislators in Ohio Democratic Party Ohio state senators 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American people {{Ohio-OHRepresentative-stub