Rosenberger to seek vacant Senate seat
Lead Summary
By
Rory Ryan-hcpress@cinci.rr.com
Ohio lawmaker Cliff Rosenberger is seeking the appointment to the recently vacated 17th Senate District seat in the Ohio General Assembly.
Rosenberger, a Clarksville Republican, is currently serving his first term at the Ohio House of Representatives. He represents the 86th House District, which includes Clinton, Highland and Pike counties.
The 17th Senate District seat became open after Ohio Gov. John Kasich appointed former Sen. David Daniels, R-Greenfield, to serve as director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
"I am going to seek the Senate appointment," Rosenberger told The Highland County Press on Feb. 16.
"It's a very humbling experience to serve in the Legislature," Rosenberger said, adding he appreciates the support he's received in the 86th House District.
While the House district is comprised of three counties, the 17th Senate District includes all or portions of Clinton, Fayette, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence (part), Pickaway (part), Pike, Ross and Vinton counties.
Rosenberger said the Senate leadership was still sorting out the appointment process immediately after Daniels' departure. He said State Rep. Bob Peterson may also be interested in the Senate seat. Peterson reportedly turned down the appointment to become Ohio agriculture director.
According to Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus, Daniels' last official duties in the Senate were Wednesday, Feb. 15 and his resignation was effective Thursday morning. He was sworn in as the director of agriculture Thursday.
"I will be working closely with the Republican county chairs from the 10 counties in the 17th Senate District," Niehaus told The Highland County Press. "I just confirmed last night (Friday) that I will be meeting with the 10 county chairs on Saturday, Feb. 25. We will only be discussing the process by which we will go about filling the vacancy.
"It is really a two-step process," Niehaus said. "The way the law reads, the Senate is able to pick a temporary replacement, which is someone who would serve from the day they are sworn in until the end of the calendar year. They will select a replacement to be on the ballot in November. We want to work with them (the county chairs) to pick someone who not only is the temporary replacement for the Senate seat, but is also the person who would appear on the November ballot. There are two separate processes, which complicates things a bit."
To further complicate matters, a potential replacement may already be on the ballot in another race.
"I would refer you to the Secretary of State on that," Niehaus said. "I'm not certain what the law is for people who are on the ballot in 2012. We're still researching things right now.
"In terms of timing, we will not begin the process of screening potential replacements until some time in March," Neihaus said. "It will be after the primary. We hope to have an appointment made by the end of March. We will be getting a notice out to the public via the newspapers about the selection process, the timetables, and the deadlines for submitting letters of interest, and a time for the actual screenings."
Rosenberger is a United States Air Force veteran assigned to the 113th fighter wing of the Air National Guard, which he enlisted in shortly after graduating from Clinton Massie High School.
Though originally stationed in Springfield with the 178th Fighter Wing, Rosenberger transferred to the 113th Fighter Wing of the District of Columbia after accepting a position with the White House in February 2007. He has also served as the national political events coordinator for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, and Special Assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Interior, Dirk Kempthorne.
Romney endorsed Rosenberger in 2010 when he ran a successful campaign against Democrat Bill Horne and Libertarian Jacob Dawson.[[In-content Ad]]
Rosenberger, a Clarksville Republican, is currently serving his first term at the Ohio House of Representatives. He represents the 86th House District, which includes Clinton, Highland and Pike counties.
The 17th Senate District seat became open after Ohio Gov. John Kasich appointed former Sen. David Daniels, R-Greenfield, to serve as director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
"I am going to seek the Senate appointment," Rosenberger told The Highland County Press on Feb. 16.
"It's a very humbling experience to serve in the Legislature," Rosenberger said, adding he appreciates the support he's received in the 86th House District.
While the House district is comprised of three counties, the 17th Senate District includes all or portions of Clinton, Fayette, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence (part), Pickaway (part), Pike, Ross and Vinton counties.
Rosenberger said the Senate leadership was still sorting out the appointment process immediately after Daniels' departure. He said State Rep. Bob Peterson may also be interested in the Senate seat. Peterson reportedly turned down the appointment to become Ohio agriculture director.
According to Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus, Daniels' last official duties in the Senate were Wednesday, Feb. 15 and his resignation was effective Thursday morning. He was sworn in as the director of agriculture Thursday.
"I will be working closely with the Republican county chairs from the 10 counties in the 17th Senate District," Niehaus told The Highland County Press. "I just confirmed last night (Friday) that I will be meeting with the 10 county chairs on Saturday, Feb. 25. We will only be discussing the process by which we will go about filling the vacancy.
"It is really a two-step process," Niehaus said. "The way the law reads, the Senate is able to pick a temporary replacement, which is someone who would serve from the day they are sworn in until the end of the calendar year. They will select a replacement to be on the ballot in November. We want to work with them (the county chairs) to pick someone who not only is the temporary replacement for the Senate seat, but is also the person who would appear on the November ballot. There are two separate processes, which complicates things a bit."
To further complicate matters, a potential replacement may already be on the ballot in another race.
"I would refer you to the Secretary of State on that," Niehaus said. "I'm not certain what the law is for people who are on the ballot in 2012. We're still researching things right now.
"In terms of timing, we will not begin the process of screening potential replacements until some time in March," Neihaus said. "It will be after the primary. We hope to have an appointment made by the end of March. We will be getting a notice out to the public via the newspapers about the selection process, the timetables, and the deadlines for submitting letters of interest, and a time for the actual screenings."
Rosenberger is a United States Air Force veteran assigned to the 113th fighter wing of the Air National Guard, which he enlisted in shortly after graduating from Clinton Massie High School.
Though originally stationed in Springfield with the 178th Fighter Wing, Rosenberger transferred to the 113th Fighter Wing of the District of Columbia after accepting a position with the White House in February 2007. He has also served as the national political events coordinator for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, and Special Assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Interior, Dirk Kempthorne.
Romney endorsed Rosenberger in 2010 when he ran a successful campaign against Democrat Bill Horne and Libertarian Jacob Dawson.[[In-content Ad]]