Court puts Ohio House speaker back in control of GOP purse strings

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An appeals court has returned control of Ohio House Republicans’ campaign purse strings to Speaker Jason Stephens, but the Thursday ruling appeared to do virtually nothing to resolve a yearlong intraparty dispute.

On X, Stephens tried to strike a unifying tone after a three-judge panel of the 10th District Court of Appeals ruled unanimously to vacate a lower court order that had put a rival GOP faction in charge of the caucus campaign fund, known as the Ohio House Republican Alliance.

“Now that there is certainty, as Republicans, it is time to come together,” he wrote, pledging to help elect Republican candidates from presidential nominee Donald Trump on down the ballot and to defeat a redistricting ballot issue.

Republican Rep. Rodney Creech, a Stephens adversary, posted back that he was happy to see Stephens “finally supporting the House majority. This is the first time you have since you stole the gavel 20 months ago.”

In January 2023, Stephens surprised the GOP-supermajority chamber by winning the speakership with support from a minority of the Republican caucus — but all 32 House Democrats.

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