LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Ohio's Senate President looks back at the November election and ahead to his new job as the Ohio Speaker of the House.
Matt Huffman was the keynote speaker of the Allen County Republicans' last luncheon of the year.
Matt Huffman was the keynote speaker of the Allen County Republicans' last luncheon of the year. Huffman traveled the state this year giving speeches and raising money for the "No on Issue One" campaign. The statewide issue was designed to replace the current panel of state lawmakers to draw the district lines for the Ohio House, Ohio Senate, and Congress with a panel made up of citizens. The issue was voted down 54 to 46 percent.
Huffman says that despite all the outside money coming to the state in favor of the issue, the proponents against it worked hard to get their message out.
"It really was a grassroots campaign. We were outspent about $40 million to $8 million. But because we have local Republican parties that are active throughout the state and knew that accentually was a progressive left takeover of the Ohio General Assembly and Congressional delegation, it really became a Democrat versus Republican issue. I don't think that people knew that at the beginning, but we were able to activate counties like Allen County Republican Party and local legislators to communicate that. We certainly got outspent, but we didn't get outworked," says Matt Huffman, (R) Ohio Senate President.
Matt Huffman will be the first person to have held both the Senate president and the speaker of the house seat when he takes over the Ohio House during the next session.
Huffman will be the first person to have held both the Senate president and the speaker of the house seat when he takes over the Ohio House during the next session. Huffman says he is looking for the House to move on legislation, like banning hemp products that have THC that minors can currently buy. He is also looking at education reform as another big bill that he and the other representatives will be working on in the next session.
