Michael Stinziano

Michael Stinziano
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 18th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2011
Preceded by Dan Stewart
Personal details
Born November 29, 1979
Columbus, Ohio
Political party Democratic
Residence Columbus, Ohio
Alma mater University of Richmond
Profession Attorney
Religion Catholic

Michael Stinziano (born November 29, 1979) is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the 18th District since 2011. A Democrat, Stinziano represents portions of Columbus, including the Short North, German Village, Ohio State University and Downtown, as well as Grandview Heights and Bexley.

In February of 2015, Stinziano announced that he would be a candidate for Columbus City Council.[1]

Life and career

Stinziano holds degrees from the University of Richmond, George Washington University and Ohio State University.[2]

Stinziano most recently served as the Director of the Franklin County Board of Elections. His prior experience includes work as a congressional intern in Washington; as a research assistant for two members of the British Parliament; as a legal extern for the Supreme Court of Ohio; as a law clerk for the Ohio House Democratic Caucus; and as an assistant to the general counsel for Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.

Ohio House of Representatives

With incumbent Representative Dan Stewart unable to seek another term due to term limits, Stinziano, whose father, Mike Stinziano had held the same seat for two decades, entered the race. Stinziano faced a primary challenge in John Sowers, a local business owner, but won by about 3,200 votes. Originally, Stinziano was going to face Republican Scott Hubbard in the general election, however, Hubbard dropped out, leaving Stinziano with a clear path to the Statehouse.[3]

On January 3, 2011, Stinziano was sworn into his first term. Stinziano won a second term in 2012 over Republican Bill Colgan with 73.39% of the electorate, and a third in 2014 with 74% of the vote.

Committee assignments

Initiatives, policies and positions

Referring to his background in elections, Stinziano is co-sponsoring legislation that will create a uniform, statewide process for dealing with and counting provisional ballots during elections. "We need to make these protections uniform statewide," he said.[4]

In another ballot initiative that proposes to require a photo ID to vote, Stinziano has argued that doing so would sanction voters. He has remained critical of the speed in which the bill is passing through the legislative process. He has stated that issues of fraud have come from provisional ballots not from the polls.[5]

Along with Sean O'Brien, Stinziano has introduced a bill that aims to prevent sports related head injuries. Backed by the NFL, the legislation is aimed at all levels of sports.[6]

Stinziano has introduced a Caylee's Law proposal in Ohio, which would carry a felony punishment if a child death was not reported to law enforcement within an hour, or in the case of a missing child, within 24 hours. It comes after the Casey Anthony trial, in which the defendant claimed that Caylee died accidentally yet failed to contact law enforcement.[7]

Following King v. Burwell, Stinziano introduced legislation to set up a state health-insurance exchange.[8]

Election history

Ohio House 18th District: 2010 to 2014
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
2014 Michael Stinziano 16,125 74.46% Rob Sharrah 5,532 25.54%
2012 Michael Stinziano 33,380 73.39% William Colgan 12,101 26.61
2010 Michael Stinziano 20,144 100.00%

References

  1. ↑ "Rep. Stinziano Talks Homelessness, Transportation and Transformation in Campaign for City Council". Columbus Underground (Columbus, Ohio). 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2015-03-05.
  2. ↑ bio of Stinziano
  3. ↑ Stinziano runs unopposed, will represent 25th House District
  4. ↑ A plan to repair the state's big problem with provisional ballots
  5. ↑ Siegel, Jim (2011-01-23). "Ohio House moving fast on voter photo-ID bill". Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2011-03-23.
  6. ↑ Bischoff, Laura (2011-03-08). "New bill focused on brain injuries". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
  7. ↑ Siegel, Jim (2011-07-13). "Not reporting missing child would be felony under bill". Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
  8. ↑ "Ohio Dems call for state health-insurance exchange as court hears challenge". Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio). 2015-03-05. Retrieved 2015-03-05.

External links