Erie County Treasurer Caleb Stidham, a Republican, announced Friday, Nov. 6, that he is stepping down as treasurer effective Monday, Nov. 9, so he can seek appointment the next day to the vacant Ohio House seat he won in the Nov. 3 election, according to the Sandusky Register’s Stay Tuned Sandusky report published Sunday, Nov. 8.
Stidham confirmed he will seek appointment on Tuesday, Nov. 10, to fill the vacant 89th House District seat for the unexpired term, rather than waiting until his full term begins in January, the Sandusky Register reported. The district covers all of Erie and Ottawa counties and part of Huron County, according to the Ohio Supreme Court’s opinion in the case that kept Stidham on the ballot.
“I am incredibly grateful to the residents of Erie County for the privilege of serving as their county treasurer these past five years,” Stidham said in a statement quoted by the Sandusky Register. “I am excited to get started as state representative next week,” he added in the statement quoted by the Sandusky Register. “I will tirelessly work on behalf of the people of Erie, Huron and Ottawa Counties.”
Stidham was first elected Erie County treasurer on Nov. 3, 2020, according to the Erie County Treasurer’s official biography, and managed the county’s investments, tax collection and treasury operations. His road to the House was unusually contested: incumbent Rep. D.J. Swearingen won the May 5 Republican primary, then withdrew on Aug. 4, and a Republican district committee selected Stidham as the replacement candidate on Aug. 10, according to the Ohio Supreme Court’s Oct. 8 opinion.
The Erie County Board of Elections split 2-2 on certifying Stidham, and Secretary of State Frank LaRose broke the tie in his favor on Aug. 20, the court’s opinion states. A voter lawsuit seeking to remove him was denied by the Ohio Supreme Court on laches grounds, as reported by the Fremont News-Messenger. On Nov. 3, Stidham defeated Democrat Easton Retzke; in the Ottawa County portion of the district, the Ottawa County Board of Elections’ unofficial canvass showed Stidham with 8,910 votes, 58.63 percent, to Retzke’s 6,189.
What happens next comes quickly: Stidham’s treasurer service ends Monday, Nov. 9, he seeks the House appointment Tuesday, Nov. 10, and the Erie County Republican Central Committee is expected to meet in the coming weeks to appoint an interim treasurer to serve out the remainder of his county term, according to the Sandusky Register.
Photo: WeaponizingArchitecture, CC BY-SA
[…] has had a busy civic stretch this month — Erie County is also choosing a path forward after Treasurer Stidham stepped down to seek an Ohio House seat, and voters across the bay in Sandusky County are electing a low-income representative to the GLCAP […]