Ohio Senator Jimmy Stewart (R-20th) will be resigning from his seat on the Ohio Senate effective in July.
Stewart said he is resigning to pursue an opportunity in the private sector but added that he will not be announcing the specifics for the next few days.
“I have been offered an incredible opportunity in the private sector. After 13 1/2 years of public service in Athens and Ohio ... I want to pursue (this opportunity),” Stewart said.
Stewart will continue to serve as majority leader until July, Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus wrote in an email.
“(Stewart) has been a tireless advocate for the people of Southeast Ohio and an outstanding public servant in the General Assembly for the past eight years,” he said.
Stewart has served as a state senator since 2009 and could have run for re-election in 2012. He also served as a state representative from 2003 to 2008, Athens City Auditor from 1998 to 2002 and an Athens City Councilman in 1998, according to Stewart’s website.
A replacement for Stewart’s seat will be chosen in a few weeks, Niehaus said.
To choose a replacement, the remaining senate members in the Republican Party will appoint an interim senator to serve for the next year and a half, Stewart said.
The appointee will be able to run for a full four-year term in 2012, Niehaus added.
“I don’t know who it will be. Anyone (in the nine-county district) can pursue it,” he said.
Athens County Republican Party President Pete Couladis said he could not comment on the matter because he was unaware it was happening.
Stewart came under fire earlier this year after he supported Senate Bill 5, which opponents argue severely limits collective bargaining rights for public workers.
Stewart cast one of the deciding votes when the bill went through the Ohio Senate.
Some of those lobbying to overturn the bill used the news of Stewart’s resignation as a rallying cry to get more signatures for the referendum to repeal it.
Nick Tuell, Organizing for America’s community organizer, sent out an email last night stating that Stewart’s resignation would not hinder the opposition’s effort.
“It is clear that this choice was made after the passage of SB5,” Tuell wrote in the email.
Because Stewart is not stepping down until July, he should still be able to vote on Gov. John Kasich’s proposed state budget. The state’s legislature must approve a state budget by July 1.
Although Stewart is leaving public service for now, he couldn’t say for sure if this would be his last time running for an elected office.
“I can’t predict the future. I wouldn’t rule anything out,” he said.
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