South Ohio News

COLUMBUS, OH – Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) issued a statement regarding Governor DeWine's decision to call a special session of the General Assembly.

"For weeks, we have been pushing to find a legislative solution to having President Biden on the ballot. Ultimately, the will to do so wasn’t there in the Republican caucus," Stephens said.

He emphasized the consensus on banning foreign political contributions from ballot issue campaigns in Ohio and noted ongoing efforts toward this goal. "Everyone agrees that we need to ban foreign political contributions from ballot issue campaigns in Ohio, and we have been driving towards a solution."

Stephens mentioned that proposed language has been developed with input from campaign finance experts and other interested parties. "We have language that has input from campaign finance experts and important interested parties to deal with the issue. This is language that squarely and directly bans foreign influence in Ohio’s issue campaigns, while not also inadvertently limiting the rights of citizens to have their voices heard."

He concluded by expressing optimism about finding effective solutions. "We look forward to real solutions that will actually pass both chambers next week and solve problems."