Butler County’s newest state lawmakers to be sworn in today: Who is representing you?

The 134th General Assembly members will take their oaths of office today, Jan. 4, 2020, as the new House and Senate sessions are convened. FILE

Credit: FILE

Credit: FILE

The 134th General Assembly members will take their oaths of office today, Jan. 4, 2020, as the new House and Senate sessions are convened. FILE
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Jan 4, 2021
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There will be some new faces representing Butler County when the 134th General Assembly is gaveled into session today.

The senior-most lawmaker representing Butler County residents in the Ohio House will be Rep. Paul Zeltwanger, whose District 54 largely includes Warren County but also covers part of eastern Butler County. He will begin his fourth term. The other Butler County incumbent is Rep. Sara Carruthers, who represents the 51st Ohio House District. They will be joined by freshman lawmakers Jennifer Gross and Thomas Hall, who will represent the 52nd and 53rd Ohio House districts, respectively.

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Gross, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, is a political newcomer, succeeding Rep. George Lang, a West Chester Twp. Republican who will be sworn in as Butler County’s new state senator. Lang succeeds Sen. Bill Coley, R-Liberty Twp., who was term-limited and could not seek re-election. Lang has the most political experience among the Butler County lawmakers.

Hall, who will be the youngest Statehouse member to start the 134th General Assembly, was first elected to the Madison Twp. Board of Trustees in 2015 to fill an unexpired term. He was re-elected two years later to a four-year term, which expires next year. Hall succeeds Rep. Candice Keller, R-Middletown, who lost to Lang in the spring primary election for Butler County’s state Senate seat.

All four Butler County lawmakers will be sworn in today in Columbus, at 1:30 p.m. for the Ohio Senate and 2 p.m. for the Ohio House. The swearing-in ceremonies will be live-streamed on ohiochannel.org.

After the oaths of office are taken, the 134th session of the House and Senate will be convened, and the bodies will vote for the House Speaker and Senate President.

Majority and Minority leadership teams for both chambers have been elected by their respective partisan caucuses, with Sen. Matt Huffman, R-Lima, set to lead the Ohio Senate as President. Sen. Kenny Yuko, D-Richmond Heights, will be the House Minority Leader.

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The House will retain its current leadership this year with House Speaker Robert Cupp, R-Lima, retaining his speakership and Rep. Emilia Sykes, D-Akron, remaining as the House Minority Leader.

The committees each lawmaker will join will be announced after Huffman and Cupp are formally seated.

Lang served in the 133rd General Assembly on the Criminal Justice, Economic and Workforce Development, Financial Institutions, and Insurance committees in the Ohio House. Carruthers served on the Finance, Health, and Primary and Secondary Education Ohio House committees, and the Finance subcommittee on Transporation.

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BUTLER COUNTY LAWMAKERS

Here are the state lawmakers that will represent Butler County in the 134th General Assembly:

George Lang: A Republican from West Chester Twp. representing the 4th Ohio Senate District. The district encompasses most of Butler County (270 of the 282 precincts).

Sara Carruthers: A Republican from Hamilton representing the 51st House District. The district encompasses the cities of Hamilton and Fairfield, Ross Twp., and portions of Fairfield, Hanover, and St. Clair townships.

Jennifer Gross: A Republican from West Chester Twp. representing the 52nd Ohio House District. The district encompasses West Chester and Liberty townships, portions of Fairfield Twp. and the Butler County portion of Sharonville.

Thomas Hall: A Republican from Madison Twp. representing the 53rd Ohio House District. The district encompasses all or parts of 16 communities in northern and western Butler County, including Monroe, Middletown and Oxford.

Paul Zeltwanger: A Republican from Mason representing the 54th Ohio House District. The district encompasses portions of Warren County including Deerfield Twp., Lebanon and Mason, as well as part of eastern Butler County.

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Michael D. Pitman has been a reporter in southwest Ohio since 1999. He's covered local governments in Warren and Butler counties, as well as state and national issues. He currently covers the cities of Fairfield and Hamilton.