| Kathleen Clyde | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Ohio House of Representatives from the 68th district |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Kathleen Chandler |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 20, 1982 Kent, Ohio |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | Kent, Ohio |
| Alma mater | Wesleyan University, Ohio State University |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Religion | Christian |
Kathleen Clyde is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, serving from the Sixty Eighth District since 2011.
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Clyde is originally from Garrettsville, Ohio. She was the valedictorian of her class at James A. Garfield High School.[1] After graduation from the Michael E. Moritz College of Law at Ohio State University, where she served as an editor of the law review, Clyde served as Speaker of the House Armond Budish's deputy legal counsel. She also has worked in the Secretary of State's Office and the Ohio Senate. Clyde is a former president of the Public Interest Law Foundation.[2]
When incumbent Democrat Kathleen Chandler faced term limits in 2010, Clyde was one of three Democratic challengers who sought to replace Chandler, along with Sean Buchanan and Rick Hawksley.[3] Clyde won the nomination with 56.8% of the electorate.[4] In the general election, Clyde faced three opponents: Republican Roak Zeller, Constitution Party candidate Daniel Cartwright, and Independent Richard Duncan.[5] She defeated all three with 48% of the vote to take the seat.[6]
Clyde was sworn into her first term on January 3, 2011, and is serving on the committees of Agriculture and Natural Resources; Finance and Appropriations and its Higher Education Subcommittee; and State Government and Elections with its Subcommittee on Redistricting.
In one of her first initiatives as a Freshman legislator, Clyde has sought to create a uniform, statewide process for dealing with and counting provisional ballots during elections. "We cannot continue to tolerate this arbitrary treatment of voters from county to county. Poll workers are great public servants but we are all human and make mistakes." she said.[7]
Clyde has also been critical of a plan by Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted to allow voters to register on-line, but not give them as much time to cast absentee ballots. "Voting is already a confusing process, and I think this muddies it even further," said Rep. Clyde, who was director of the Early Voting Center in Franklin County in 2008. "It discourages voting."[8]