Chris Widener

For the author and speaker, see Chris Widener (author).

Christopher Widener (born August 22, 1963) was the President pro Tempore of the Ohio Senate, and represented the 10th Senate District, which includes Madison, Clark and Greene counties. Before the Senate, he served three terms non-consecutively in the Ohio House of Representatives. He is a Republican.

Chris Widener
Member of the Ohio Senate from the 10th district
In office January 5, 2009 – January 21, 2016
Preceded by	Steve Austria
Succeeded by	Bob Hackett
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives from the 84th district
In office January 3, 2003 – December 31, 2008
Preceded by	Ron Rhine
Succeeded by	Bob Hackett
In office December 8, 1999 – December 31, 2000
Preceded by	Joe Haines
Succeeded by	Merle G. Kearns
Personal details
Born	(1963-08-22) August 22, 1963 (age 61) Springfield, Ohio, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Sally Widener (2 children)
Residence(s)	Springfield, Ohio, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Cincinnati
Profession	Architect

Career

After graduation from the University of Cincinnati, Widener served two terms on the Mad River-Greene Local Board of Education before starting his legislative career. His resume includes a stint as a civil service architect at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, where he also served as the base's first full-time historic preservation officer until 1989.

Widener was appointed to his first term as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives in 1999, but lost the party nomination to reelection to Merle G. Kearns, a prominent state Senator who was facing term limits. However, after redistricting occurred in 2002, Widener won a term beginning in 2003.

In the 2004 cycle, Widener again faced a primary challenge against fellow Republican Robert Rogers III. He defeated Rogers with 65% of the vote.^[1] He easily won reelection in 2006 with 60% of the vote.

In January 2016, Widener announced his retirement after nearly two decades of public service.^[2]

Ohio Senate

In 2008, Senator Steve Austria was term limited and running for Congress, and Widener declared his candidacy for his Senate seat. In the primary, he faced W. Reed Madden and James Howard, and won about 67% of the electorate.^[3] In the general election, Widener faced Clark County Commissioner Roger Tackett.^[4] While Democrats initially thought the district as potentially competitive, Widener won with 62% of the vote.^[5]

Widener served as Chairman of the Energy & Public Utilities Committee in the 128th General Assembly, and in the 129th General Assembly, Senate President Tom Niehaus named Widener as Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee,^[6][7] He also serves on the State Controlling Board;^[8] and to the State Council on Educational Opportunity for Military Children. As Chairman of the Finance Committee, Widener played a leading role in shaping the biennium budget.^[9] Widener was also a key player on the conference committee on the budget, where the budget was finished,^[10] and helped to pass the final budget for 2012-2013.^[11]

In 2012, Widener won reelection to a second term, defeating Jeff Robertson with 62% of the vote.^[12] Widener has faced controversy for trying to shield public records related to Senate parking key cards.^[13] For this and other reasons, the Cleveland Plain Dealer in an editorial named Widener the worst person in the Ohio General Assembly.^[14]

Committee assignments

• Committee on Rules

Electoral history

Ohio Senate 10th District: Results 2008 to 2012

Year		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Republican	Votes	Pct
2008		Roger Tackett	56,770	37.33%		Chris Widener	95,324	62.67%
2012		Jeff Roberson	58,021	38.30%		Chris Widener	93,472	61.70%

Ohio House 84th District: Results 2002 to 2006

Year		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Republican	Votes	Pct
2006		Connie Crockett	16,660	39.07%		Chris Widener	25,978	60.93%
2004		William Eby	17,972	34.13%		Chris Widener	34,598	65.87%
2002		Natalie Tackett	12,974	37.40%		Chris Widener	21,730	62.60%

References

1. Blackwell, Kenneth 2004 primary election results Archived 2010-12-27 at the Wayback Machine (2004-03-02)
2. "Widener Announces Plans To Retire After More Than Two Decades Of Public Service". The Ohio Senate. Columbus. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2016-01-28.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. Brunner, Jennifer 2008 primary election Archived 2010-12-27 at the Wayback Machine (2008-03-04)
4. Chris Widener, Republican Senate Candidate, Boasts About Tax Cuts, But How Will He Solve Ohio’s Budget Crisis?
5. Brunner, Jennifer 2008 general election results Archived 2011-02-28 at the Wayback Machine (2008-11-04)
6. Sen. Chris Widener to be Senate Finance Committee Chairman
7. Hershey, William (2011-01-16). "Area's state lawmakers take leadership spots". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 2011-04-18.
8. Widener named committee chair
9. Vardon, Joe; Jim Siegel (2011-04-18). "Is state's jobs entity really needed?". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2011-06-14. Retrieved 2011-04-18.
10. Guillen, Joe (2011-06-29). "State budget conference committee passes unified budget on party-line vote". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
11. Carr Smyth, Julie (2011-06-29). "State Senate passes budget that will change Ohio". Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2011-07-01. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
12. Husted, Jon 2012 general election results (2012-11-06)
13. "Widener orders garage passes that would limit public accountability". Dayton Daily News. Dayton. 2015-01-08. Retrieved 2015-01-09.
14. "For childish attempt to impede public's right to know, Chris Widener is Ohio legislature's Worst Person: Brent Larkin | cleveland.com". 23 January 2015. Retrieved 2015-01-23.