Fred Strahorn

Frederick W. Strahorn[1] (born March 20, 1965) is an American Democratic politician who served in the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the 39th District, which consists of much of Dayton, Ohio. He served as the Minority Leader for the 131st Ohio General Assembly and 132nd Ohio General Assembly.

Fred Strahorn
Minority Leader of the Ohio House of Representatives
In office
January 5, 2015 – February 6, 2019
Preceded byTracy Maxwell Heard
Succeeded byEmilia Sykes
Member of the Ohio Senate
from the 5th district
In office
March 31, 2009 – December 31, 2010
Preceded byTom Roberts
Succeeded byBill Beagle
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 39th district
In office
January 7, 2013 – December 31, 2020
Preceded byClayton Luckie
Succeeded byWillis Blackshear Jr.
In office
January 3, 2001 – December 31, 2008
Preceded byTom Roberts
Succeeded byRoland Winburn
Personal details
Born (1965-03-20) March 20, 1965
Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationEmbry–Riddle Aeronautical University
Ohio State University (BS)
Sinclair Community College

Life and career

Strahorn served as a member of the Wright State University Board of Trustees, a position that ended in 2013.[2] He attended Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and graduated with a B.A. in aviation management from Ohio State University.[3] He also attended Sinclair Community College for real estate coursework.[1]

Strahorn won his election to the Ohio House of Representatives in 2000 and was re-elected in 2002, 2004 and 2006. Strahorn was term limited out of running again in his previous district, but chose to run for election in a different district in 2012.

Dayton NAACP President Derrick Foward presents Strahorn with the President's Award

In 2008, Strahorn received the Dayton Unit NAACP President's Award from civil rights activist Derrick Foward, the president of the Dayton NAACP.

The following year, Strahorn was appointed to the Ohio Senate to replace Tom Roberts, who had been appointed to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, but lost election to a full term to Republican Bill Beagle.

Return to the Ohio House of Representatives

Strahorn was chosen as the Democratic candidate for the position on August 12, 2012, at the Montgomery County Democratic headquarters, with a vote of 41-1.[4]

First elected in November 2012, Strahorn defeated his opponent, Jeffrey Wellbaum, with over 80% of the vote in a traditionally Democratic district. The two competed to fill the position that had been vacated in January 2013 by Clayton Luckie, who had earlier announced his withdrawal from the election following the news that he was being investigated on criminal charges.[5]

Strahorn soundly won re-election in 2014 with over 75% of the vote. His opponents were Jeff Dalton, Republican, and William Pace, an independent perennial candidate.[6][7]

On November 18, 2014, Strahorn was elected as Minority Leader of the Ohio House by the Democratic Caucus. Strahorn stated that he would work on trying to make clear the Democratic Party's message to voters, commenting "I know that we have work to do with the general public with communicating what our party really stands for." He was reelected to the position in 2016.[8]

Circa 2016, Strahorn gave an impassioned labor rights speech, denouncing the union busting tactics of Moraine, Ohio's Fuyao Glass America plant and praising workers who choose to unionize with the UAW. His speech was featured in 2019 documentary film American Factory.[9]

Electoral history
Election results
Year Office Election Votes for Strahorn % Opponent Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes %
2000 Ohio House of Representatives General 22,411 68.96% Brian L. Whitaker Republican 7,956 24.48% Logan Martinez Independent 2,132 6.56%
2002 General 19,725 71.81% Martin Arbagi Republican 7,744 28.19%
2004 General 33,325 70.17% Glenn Jones Republican 14,164 29.83%
2006 General 23,523 74.17% Martin Arbagi Republican 8,192 25.83%
2010 Ohio Senate General 47,681 49.15% Bill Beagle Republican 49,339 50.85%
2012 Ohio House of Representatives General 37,831 82.99% Jeffrey L. Wellbaum Republican 7,756 17.01%
2014 General 16,344 77.5% Jeffrey Dalton Republican 3,891 18.41% William Pace Independent 895 4.24%
2016 General 27,558 100%
2018 General 26,879 100%

Personal life

He is a member of the Baptist faith[1] and has one daughter.[3]

References
  1. VoteSmart - Fred Strahorn
  2. Borchardt, Jackie (January 7, 2013). "Ohio lawmakers sworn in for General Assembly". JournalNews. Retrieved January 14, 2013.
  3. Wright State University Board of Trustees - Fred Strahorn
  4. Progress Ohio blog
  5. Bischoff, Laura (December 20, 2012). "State Rep. Luckie Had to Face Trial on 22 January 2012". Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  6. "County Commission race a squeaker, Beagle wins, AP says". Dayton Daily News. November 4, 2014. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  7. "Election Insider - Your Vote 2014 (Summary of poll results)". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  8. Bischoff, Laura (November 18, 2014). "Strahorn picked to lead Ohio House Democrats". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  9. Hood, Nathanael (August 25, 2019). "American Factory Review: A horrifying look at Small Town America caught in the crosshairs of global labor rights". The Young Folks. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
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