Ohio Republican Party Chair Bob Paduchik Won’t Seek Re-Election

Ohio Republican Party (ORP) Chairman Bob Paduchik announced that he won’t seek reelection as state party chairman following a GOP sweep of statewide offices.

“I will not run for reelection for the chairmanship of the Ohio Republican Party. It is time for a new leader to take leadership of the party and I look forward to the January election of ORP officers,” Paduchik wrote in a letter to members of the Ohio Republican Party’s governing body.

In the letter, he congratulated the “great Republican victories” during the 2022 midterm elections. This included JD Vance winning the Ohio Senate seat over Tim Ryan (D-OH-13) and Governor Mike DeWine being re-elected for another term.

“We faced several challenges during my term as chairman and I am proud the committee rose above the fray and helped deliver big victories for our party and our candidates. Those challenges included: defending three Republican Supreme Court seats, holding a U.S. Senate seat after an expensive and tough primary, the redistricting debacle, massive out-of-state Democrat funding, and of course a hostile press that continues to support Democrats,” Paduchik said.

In September, Paduchik prevented an attempt by state party officials to replace him under two months before the November midterm election. Some members of the committee tried to replace Paduchik with Ohio GOP Vice Chair Bryan Williams over the party’s unusual decision to endorse Gov. Mike DeWine, who was in a contested primary, for reelection prior to the May election. The central committee voted 44-20 to reject the replacement effort.

The move came on the heels of a troubled term as Paduchik critics expressed concern about party finances – a dispute that landed in court. The Ohio Republican Party Chair and Treasurer David W. Johnson are defendants in a lawsuit alleging that $3 million has “gone missing” from ORP accounting documents.

Paduchik, an Akron-area native and University of Akron alumnus, was elected Ohio GOP chair in February 2021 after his predecessor, Jane Timken, stepped down to pursue a candidacy for U.S. Senate.

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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected].