Summit County Republican Party Chairman and statewide party Vice-Chair Bryan Williams officially announced his candidacy for chairman of the Ohio Republican Party on Wednesday in a letter to state central committee (SCC) members.
The Ohio Republican Party’s central committee is meeting on January 6th, 2023, to consider selecting a replacement for current Chairman Bob Paduchik, who announced after the November 8th general election that he would not seek another term.
“After much consultation and deliberation with many committee members, I have decided to be a candidate for the chairmanship of the Ohio Republican Party. I am fully committed to working with all members of the committee to strengthen our party in ways beyond wins and losses at the ballot box,” Williams wrote in a letter to SCC members Wednesday.
The Summit County Republican previously challenged Paduchik’s leadership in September, criticizing him for his handling of party finances and “strategically unwise” endorsements of 2022 candidates, including Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.
The challenge was unsuccessful because committee members postponed a fresh party leadership vote until January after an hour of discussion. DeWine, on the other hand, survived a fiercely contested Republican Primary against a number of opponents and was reelected in November by a near-record majority.
Williams previously served in various roles, including chairman of the Summit County Republican Party, director of the Summit County Board of Elections, and court administrator for Summit County Juvenile Court. He graduated from Denison University in 1987, studying political science and history. In addition, he served in the Ohio House of Representatives from 1997-2004, representing Ohio’s 41st House District. Former Governor John Kasich appointed Williams as a board member of the State Board of Education and was later elected to serve a full term. Williams has also served as the director of Government Affairs for the Associated Builders and Contractors of Ohio, as a member of the Ohio School Health Services Association, and as a board member on the Summit County Board of Elections.
Last month, Williams confirmed to the Statehouse News Bureau that he wouldn’t run for chair. But he said he is working with a coalition “to support the best candidate.”
Williams joins several other candidates, including Alex Triantifilou, Jimmy Stewart, Dale Fellows, Matt Mayer, and Jean Anderson.
Triantafilou has served as chairman of the Hamilton County Republican Party since 2008, as well as a Hamilton County prosecutor and a judge on two courts. Before serving as a judge, Triantafilou served as vice-chairman of the Bush-Cheney 2004 campaign. He is a former president of the Green Township Republican Club and a former member of the Republican Executive and Judicial Screening Committee.
Stewart is a lobbyist and the head of the Ohio Gas Association, an organization that supports and defends the natural gas sector. He is a former Statehouse lawmaker who served from 2003-2008 in the Ohio House and from 2008-2011 in the Ohio Senate.
Fellows is the Lake County GOP Chairman. He is a small business owner in the printing and advertising industries.
Mayer is a former senior official at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the current President of a strategy and policy firm called Opportunity Ohio.
Anderson served as the former mayor of Vermillion and is a member of the conservative GOP group Ohio Promise Keepers.
On January 6, 2023, the next GOP chairman will require the support of the majority of SCC electors. The committee has 66 members, although there are now three open seats.
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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].
Photo “Bryan Williams” by University of Akron. Background Photo “Ohio Capitol” by Sixflashphoto. CC BY-SA 4.0.
