| Tracy Heard | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Ohio House of Representatives from the 26th district |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 2, 2007 |
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| Preceded by | Mike Mitchell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 30, 1963 Columbus, Ohio |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | Columbus, Ohio |
| Alma mater | University of Akron |
| Profession | Auditor, News Anchor, Community Developer |
| Religion | Baptist |
Tracy Maxwell Heard is the representative for the 26th district of the Ohio House of Representatives and the minority whip. She is a graduate of the University of Akron.
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After graduating from the University of Akron, Heard worked as a noncompliance auditor for Banc of America Practice Solutions, as well as for the Livingston Avenue Collaborative for Community Development. Her mother-in-law is a former Columbus School Board member. She was launched into politics following campaign work on the President Bill Clinton's 1996 Presidential Campaign, and went on to work in the Ohio Senate as a legislative aide. Heard is also known for her former roles as a news anchor.
Although the 26th District had long been a Democratic seat and incumbent Representative Mike Mitchell was only in his first term, both Heard and businessman Clarence Glover decided to try to unseat him in 2006. Benefiting from good name recognition, Tracy defeated Mitchell, just as he had defeated an incumbent two years earlier, by about 1,600 votes.[1] In the 2006 general election, Heard faced Michael D. Elicson, but easily defeated him by around 20,000 votes.[2]
Heard, in her first term, was elected as Secretary for the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus, and early on in her career, was also mentioned as a potential member of leadership in the future. In 2008, Heard won reelection over Republican Joseph Healy by a staggering 32,000 votes.[3] Subsequently, Heard was named by colleagues as assistant majority leader for the 128th General Assembly.[4] She also went on to serve as president of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus Foundation.[5]
When Majority Leader Jennifer Garrison stepped down from her leadership role in late 2009 to focus on a bid for Ohio Secretary of State, Heard was tabbed to replace her, and moved up from assistant.[6] Speaker of the House Armond Budish also appointed Heard to Chairman of the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee after former Chairman Linda Bolon stepped down early in 2010.
While many of the 2010 races were very contentious, Heard was reelected easily to a third term, beating Republican Joseph Healy once again, by about 19,000 votes.[7] However, as Democrats lost the majority, Heard lost her majority leader role, and in the 129th General Assembly serves as minority whip.[8] She also serves on the committees of Agriculture and Natural Resources; Insurance, Local Government; Rules and Reference; and Economic and Small Business Development, as well as a member of the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee.
Heard has introduced an initiative to create a uniform, statewide process for dealing with and counting provisional ballots during elections, stating the legislation "will ensure the voter is directed to the correct precinct, and it will require the poll worker to identify the voter's correct precinct on the form. If the checklist is not completed correctly it will constitute poll worker error and the voter's ballot will count."[9]
A opponent of charter schools, Heard has come out against a budgetary proposal to quadruple the amount of vouchers available for children to be sent to the schools. She has stated that they are ill prepared for what they could potentially face.[10]
In regards to Senate Bill 5, Heard has accused Ohio Governor John Kasich, claiming that political theatrics are being used in regards to compromise for the bill.[11]