The Ohio House of Representatives has started the process of selecting a new Speaker of the House for 2020, following the ousting of controversial former Speaker Larry Householder on Sept. 17.
House Republicans, who control 61 of the 60 seats in the chamber, are planning a closed-door caucus meeting on Sept. 24, which could potentially lead to a new Speaker being chosen.
The current front-runners for the post are current Republican Majority Floor Leader Bob Cupp, of Lima, and current House Speaker Pro Tem Jim Butler, of Oakwood.
Cupp is seen as a more moderate, consensus-builder who could work to bridge the divide between House Republicans and Democrats, while Butler is aligned more closely with Householder and has a more conservative voting record.
Current House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes, of Akron, has also been mentioned as someone who could be considered for Speaker, although she was not invited to last week’s closed-door Republican caucus meeting.
The election for Speaker will take place in January when the new legislative session begins.
