2020 Ohio Primary: Blackshear Jr. wins easily to capture Strahorn’s 39th District House seat

DAYTON — UPDATE @ 11:45 p.m. (April 28): Willis Blackshear Jr. has won the race to replace former House Minority Leader Fred Strahorn for the House 39th District seat.

Blackshear, an outreach specialist with the Montgomery County Auditor’s office and son of former County Recorder Willis Blackshear Sr., won easily Tuesday in the Ohio Primary.

He won 69% of the vote (5,292) over Jo'el Jones (20% of the vote with 1,574 ballots cast) and Walter Hickman Jr., who captured just 10% of the vote (779).

Late Tuesday night, Blackshear issued the following statement:

“The people of Dayton and Jefferson Township have decided to pass the torch to the next generation of leadership -- and I’m so honored that they’ve chosen me to carry the torch for them as their Democratic nominee.

"From the very beginning, I said I want to be the kind of leader who listens and responds to the concerns of those I represent. Someone who works hard to find solutions to problems that will help Dayton residents have a better quality of life.

"Following last year’s tornadoes, the mass shooting, and now the current health crisis - our community has been confronted with its share of difficult challenges. I am ready to face those challenges. I am ready to lead.

"As we move onto the general election, here’s my pitch: I am ready to fight for the people of the 39th District, and I will be a strong voice for our community in Columbus.

This year’s election is too important to sit out - so I will work to earn every vote in the 39th District, and I will work alongside my fellow candidates and activists to ensure a Democratic victory this November.”

Strahorn stepped down in January 2019, following a vote for House speaker in which more than two-thirds of his caucus went against his advice and backed Rep. Larry Householder.

The move ends a four-year run as leader for Strahorn, D-Dayton, who oversaw a difficult 2016 election but rebounded in 2018 to net five seats for his caucus, now mired in a 61-38 minority. Democrats in late November re-elected Strahorn as leader, but that was before the caucus was pushed into the forefront of the Republican speaker’s fight.

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