Republican state Sen. Michael Rulli wins U.S. House seat in Ohio vacated by GOP’s Bill Johnson
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Republican state Sen. Michael Rulli won a special election Tuesday in eastern Ohio for the U.S. House seat formerly held by the GOP’s Bill Johnson.
Rulli, 55, defeated Democrat Michael Kripchak to fill the remainder of Johnson’s unexpired term. The two face off again Nov. 5 for a full two-year congressional term that begins in January.
Rulli’s single-digit victory was much closer than earlier GOP performances in Ohio's 6th District. Johnson won his last four elections by more than 30 percentage points. Trump also carried the district by roughly 30 percentage points in 2020. While this was a special election held in the summer, when turnout traditionally dips, the results could offer hope for Democrats looking to be competitive this fall in Ohio and neighboring Pennsylvania.
The second-term state senator is from Salem in Ohio’s Mahoning Valley, where he directs operations for his family’s 100-year-old chain of grocery stores.
Kripchak, 42, of Youngstown, served in the U.S. Air Force, and has done stints as an actor and in interactive telecommunications. He currently works at a local restaurant.
Johnson resigned in January after 13 years in Congress to take a position as president of Youngstown State University. His seat has sat empty since then.
The election took place under congressional maps that the Ohio Supreme Court previously deemed unconstitutionally gerrymandered to favor the state’s ruling Republicans.
The sprawling 6th District, which runs through 11 counties along the Ohio River, leans nearly 59% Republican, according to Dave’s Redistricting App, a political mapmaking website.
