Thomas F. Patton (born November 3, 1953) is the state representative for the 7th District of 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 Republican. The district consists of

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, North Olmsted, North Royalton,

Olmsted Falls Olmsted Falls is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, and a southwestern suburb of Cleveland. The population was 9,024 at the 2010 census. The city's main business district is located at the corners of Bagley and Columbia Roads, and ...

, Strongsville as well as

Olmsted Township Olmsted Township is a township located in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. Situated in the southwest end of the county, Olmsted Township is a west side suburb of Cleveland, and a part of the even larger Greater Cleveland area. As of the 20 ...

Cuyahoga County Cuyahoga County ( or ) is a large urban county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S.-Canada maritime border. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1 ...

. Patton previously represented the same district from 2003 to 2008, and was a member of the

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 s ...

from 2008 to 2016, serving for a time as that body's

Majority Leader In U.S. politics (as well as in some other countries utilizing the presidential system), the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.

Career

Born and raised in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the United States, U.S. U.S. state, state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

, Patton is a member the Knights of Columbus, the Cleveland Police Historical Society, the AFL-CIO and serves as president of the Treasurers and Ticket Sellers Local 756. With newly drawn district lines following redistricting in 2002, Patton was one of five Republicans who sought to succeed incumbent Erin Sullivan. To take the nomination, Patton received 42.33% of the vote. He went on to defeat Democrat Susan Adams in the general election with 52.4% of the vote. In his first reelection bid, Patton defeated Democrat Bobby Bland with 66.59% of the vote to take a second term. For his third term in House, Patton faced John Celebrezze in 2006. However, he easily defeated his opposition with 58.53% of the electorate. When incumbent Bob Spada was unable to run for another term in the

in 2008, Patton decided to give up a fourth term in the House to run for the seat. Unopposed in the primary, Patton went on to defeat Democrat Gary Kucinich, brother of

Dennis Kucinich Dennis John Kucinich (; born October 8, 1946) is an American politician. A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1997 to 2013, he was also a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States in 2004 and 2008. He ran fo ...

, in the general election with 68.39% of the vote. Spada resigned his seat two months prior to the end of his term in order to take an appointment from Governor

Ted Strickland Theodore Strickland (born August 4, 1941) is an American politician who was the 68th governor of Ohio, serving from 2007 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the United States House of Representatives, representing ...

. Subsequently, Senate Republicans decided to seat Patton early, in order for the Senate to have adequate representation throughout the important lame duck session. He was seated in the Senate on November 18, 2008. In 2012, Patton ran successfully for a second term, defeating Democrat

Jennifer Brady Jennifer Elizabeth Brady (born April 12, 1995) is an inactive American professional tennis player. She reached a career-high singles WTA ranking of world No. 13 on 22 February 2021, and a career-high doubles ranking of 44 on 19 August 2019. Br ...

with 59.16% of the vote.

Ohio House of Representatives

Term-limited in the Senate in 2016, Patton succeeded in convincing Representative Mike Dovilla to run for his Senate seat, allowing for Patton to return to the House. Opposed in the Republican primary, Patton handily defeated Jennifer M. Herold, 79% to 21%. Dovilla lost the Republican primary for Patton's Senate seat to Matt Dolan. Patton was unopposed in the general election, winning a seat that on paper is one of the most competitive in the state. He was sworn in for his fourth non-consecutive term in the House on January 3, 2017.

Committee Memberships

*Aging and Long Term Care *Finance *Public Utilities *Rules and Reference *Transportation and Public Safety *Finance Subcommittee on Transportation

Run for Congress

Patton announced on July 31, 2017 his intention to seek the Republican nomination for Ohio's 16th Congressional District.

Criticism

Jimmy Dimora Trial

During the trial of former Cuyahoga County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora, Patton was accused of bribing former Parma School Board member J. Kevin Kelley. Patton's third cousin, Kelley had already pleaded guilty to several counts of corruption related crimes when he testified under oath as to accepting the bribes from Patton. Patton denied the claim.

Controversial comments

In an interview on America's Workforce Radio, Patton referred to his opponent, Jennifer Herold, as "gal" and "sweetie". In addition, he questioned her ability to serve because she is a mother of young children. The comments generated national coverage. Numerous outlets such as ''Cosmopolitan'', ''Gawker'', and ''The Christian Science Monitor'' editorialized the story. Nate Beeler of The ''Columbus Dispatch'' also covered it, creating a cartoon regarding the comments.

References

External links

The Ohio House of Representatives - Rep. Thomas F. Patton (official site)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Patton, Tom 1953 births Living people Politicians from Cleveland Republican Party Ohio state senators Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives People from Strongsville, Ohio 21st-century American politicians Cleveland State University alumni