Rep. McNally Says Time For Change and Transparency Following Householder Guilty Verdict

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) released the following statement today following the conviction of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder: 

“Democrats have said for a long time that Ohioans deserve better. My predecessor, Michele Lepore-Hagan, led the charge to remove Larry Householder from our chambers. Now that the justice system has played its part in getting accountability for Ohioans, it’s our turn to do more to keep this from happening again,” said Rep. McNally. “We deserve a state government that is focused on doing right by the people of Ohio, instead of special interests. We need real change if we’re serious about solving the dark money problem that is plaguing Ohio.”

In the 134th General Assembly, then State Representative Michele Lepore-Hagan (D-Youngstown) introduced House Resolution 70 (HR 70) with then then State Representative Jeff Crossman (D-Parma) to expel the former speaker after news broke of his role in orchestrating the largest public corruption scandal in Ohio’s history. The pressure from them and other Ohio House Democrats forced Republicans to take action, thereby ending Householder’s career in public service.

Ohio House Democrats plan to reintroduce the Ohio Anti-Corruption Act which would require dark money groups to identify their contributors and disclose their spending.