42 Facts About Jon Husted

Jon Allen Husted is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Ohio since 2025.

Jon Husted represented the 6th District of the Ohio Senate from 2009 to 2011 and was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from 2001 to 2009.

Jon Husted was elected Ohio Secretary of State in 2010 and reelected in 2014.

Jon Husted was a candidate in the Republican primary for governor of Ohio in the 2018 election, but later announced that he would instead run for lieutenant governor of Ohio as Attorney General Mike DeWine's running mate.

On January 17,2025, Governor DeWine appointed Jon Husted to fill the vacant US Senate seat created by the resignation of JD Vance, who became vice president.

Jon Husted will serve until a special election in November 2026, the winner of which will serve the remainder of Vance's term.

Jon Husted was born in the Detroit area in 1967 and immediately placed for adoption.

Jon Husted has said that his biological father did not want him and his biological mother was unable to care for him.

Jon Husted was adopted by James and Judith Husted and raised in Montpelier, Ohio, as the oldest of three children.

Jon Husted cites his experience having been adopted as a child as the foundation for his staunch opposition to abortion.

Jon Husted later received both a bachelor's and master's degree from the University of Dayton, where he played on the Dayton Flyers Football team.

Jon Husted stayed in the Dayton area and worked for Montgomery County Commissioner Don Lucas.

Jon Husted later became Vice President of Business and Economic Development at the Dayton-Area Chamber of Commerce, a position he held until running for state representative in 2000.

Jon Husted went on to serve as speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives and a state senator.

Jon Husted was elected Ohio Secretary of State in 2010, defeating Democratic nominee Maryellen O'Shaughnessy by nearly 500,000 votes.

Jon Husted was reelected in 2014, defeating Democratic nominee Nina Turner by over 700,000 votes.

Shortly after taking office, Jon Husted set uniform days and hours for voting across the state, replacing a system that allowed each county board of elections to set its own days and hours for early voting.

Chris Redfern, then Chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party, said Jon Husted had been looking for a way to chip away at the number of days and hours.

The state's ranking has continued to fluctuate since Jon Husted left office, finishing 34th in 2020 and 24th in 2022.

All Ohio businesses are required to maintain a business registration with the Secretary of State's Office and the business services division was the focus of a large number of changes after Jon Husted took office in 2011.

Jon Husted reduced the fee for starting a new business in Ohio by 21 percent and launched a partnership with Google's Get Your Business Online initiative, which directed new business filers to free business startup resources offered through the web giant.

Jon Husted's office estimated the move would save Ohio businesses $2 million each year based on growth rates at the time.

Jon Husted leaned heavily on technology in his efforts to streamline the operation of his office, which allowed him to reduce spending by $14.5 million in his first term.

In 2015, Jon Husted announced he would close his office's in-house business call center and instead contract with the Cleveland Sight Center, a nonprofit that employs people who are blind or have significant visual impairments.

Jon Husted said that his own experiences as a student athlete in both high school and college helped shape his view that extracurricular experiences develop good character skills and a strong work ethic.

Jon Husted supported State Senator Cliff Hite's legislative efforts to restrict school districts' ability to charge participation fees, but the legislation did not make it out of committee.

In September 2016, Jon Husted launched a program called "Safe at Home", whose stated goal was to allow victims of domestic violence and human trafficking to apply for a confidential address through the Secretary of State's office that they can use when interacting with government agencies to avoid the possibility of their actual home address becoming a public record.

Jon Husted said that some eligible voters were choosing not to register out of fear for their safety: "It is unacceptable that there are those in America who are forced to choose between their personal liberties and their personal safety".

Jon Husted ran in the Republican primary to succeed John Kasich as governor of Ohio.

In January 2021, Senator Rob Portman announced that he would not seek reelection, and Jon Husted's name was floated as a possible replacement.

In July 2024, Jon Husted nominated Senator JD Vance to be the Republican nominee for vice president of the United States at the 2024 Republican National Convention.

Jon Husted had originally declined the potential appointment and intended to run for governor in 2026.

Jon Husted was sworn in on January 21,2025, along with former Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, by Vice President JD Vance.

Jon Husted will serve until a special election in November 2026.

Jon Husted was escorted by fellow Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

In 2004, Jon Husted requested the use of National Cash Register's private jet to attend the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio.

In 2005, while representing the 41st Ohio house district, Jon Husted was criticized for a fishing trip during Memorial Day Weekend that included three Columbus lobbyists during a budget debate in which the lobbyists had a stake.

In 2008, as Speaker of the House, Jon Husted was accused of being "in sync" with FirstEnergy in its energy regulation dispute with Governor Ted Strickland and the state's largest manufacturers.

Jon Husted supported FirstEnergy's position over the regulation Strickland and manufacturers sought to control FirstEnergy's rates.

Since 2001, Jon Husted has accepted $39,500 from FirstEnergy's political action committee, and since 2008, he has accepted $71,000 from FirstEnergy employees.

In October 2008, Jon Husted became the subject of an electoral investigation concerning his residency.

In March 2022, while still serving as lieutenant governor, Jon Husted was appointed to a paid position on Heartland Bank's board of directors.