Marguerite B. Lehner (born August 5, 1950) is the current Mayor of Kettering, Ohio.[1] Formerly, she also served in the Ohio Senate, Ohio House of Representatives, and on the Kettering City Council. Her Senate district was located entirely in Montgomery County and included Vandalia, Riverside, Kettering, Centerville, Miamisburg and Germantown. Lehner is a Republican.

Peggy Lehner
Member of the Ohio Senate
from the 6th district
In office
January 11, 2011-December 31, 2020
Preceded byJon Husted
Succeeded byNiraj Antani
In office
November 18, 2008 – December 31, 2008
Preceded byJeff Jacobson
Succeeded byJon Husted
Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
from the 37th district
In office
January 5, 2009 – January 10, 2011
Preceded byJon Husted
Succeeded byJim Butler
Personal details
Born (1950-08-05) August 5, 1950 (age 73)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseDr. Jim Lehner (5 children)
Residence(s)Kettering, Ohio, U.S.
Alma materSaint Mary-of-the-Woods College (B.A.)
ProfessionLegislator

Career edit

Having attended American University of Paris and graduating from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, Lehner was a three-term city councilwoman in Kettering, sat on the Ohio Ethics Commission from 1991 to 1997, served as a board member for the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority and has been active in efforts to address issues facing Dayton-area suburbs for decades.[citation needed]

While Lehner was originally elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 2008, she came first to the Statehouse as a member of the Ohio Senate. When Senator Jeff Jacobson resigned his seat early, he left a vacancy in an important lame duck session. Since Jacobson's elected successor Jon Husted was at that time serving as Speaker of the Ohio House, he was unable to resign and take his new seat in the Senate. Therefore, Senate leadership appointed Lehner to temporarily take a seat in the Senate to fill out the remainder of Jacobson's term. Following a month-long tenure in the Senate, Lehner then began her term as in the House.

With incumbent and Speaker of the House Husted unable to run due to term limits, Lehner opted to succeed him.[2] She faced Democrat Andi Eveslage in the general election, and won with 64% of the vote.[3] She easily won reelection in 2010 with 70% of the vote, but only would serve about a week of that term.[citation needed]

Return to the Ohio Senate edit

After Senator Husted was elected as Ohio Secretary of State on November 2, 2010, he was required to resign his seat in the Ohio Senate. Lehner, who preceded Husted (albeit for only a month-long tenure), was named as a potential successor once the seat had been vacated. Lehner was up against five other potential appointees, including former state Representative Seth Morgan.

On December 13, 2010, it was announced that the Senate Republicans had decided to appoint Lehner to fill the remaining two years of Husted's term.[4] In a homecoming of sorts, Lehner was sworn into the seat she previously held on January 11, 2011, resigning from the House to do so.[5][6]

Lehner won a full term in the Ohio Senate in 2012, defeating Democrat Rick McKiddy with 63% of the vote.[7] In 2013, she began serving as Chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee. Lehner, as Chairwoman, was influential in education policy, including charter school reform.[8] Although she is pro-charter,[9] she has advocated for stronger charter school oversight and reform.[10]

Electoral history edit

Election results
Year Office Election Votes for Lehner % Opponent Party Votes %
2001 Kettering City Council General 5,158 51% Don Patterson Democratic 4,974 49%
2005 General 10,545 40%
2008 Ohio House of Representatives General 35,171 64% Andi Eveslage Democratic 19,089 36%
2010 General 28,598 70% Steven Byington Democratic 12,429 30%
2012 Ohio Senate General 103,183 62% Rick McKiddy Democratic 61,235 38%
2016 General 114,168 68% Albert Griggs, Jr Democratic 53,584 32%

References edit

  1. ^ "About the Mayor". Kettering. Retrieved 2022-12-20.
  2. ^ Lehner a natural choice for House
  3. ^ Brunner, Jennifer 2008 general election results Archived 2011-09-16 at the Wayback Machine (2008-11-04)
  4. ^ "Screening committee recommends Peggy Lehner to fill Husted Senate seat". Archived from the original on 2011-06-22. Retrieved 2010-12-19.
  5. ^ Hershey, William (2011-01-11). "Lehner appointed to state Senate - Butler, Buchy appointed to Dayton-area House seats". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  6. ^ Lehner named committee chair
  7. ^ Husted, Jon 2012 general election results Archived 2012-12-04 at archive.today (2012-11-06)
  8. ^ Siegel, Jim (2015-01-21). "Democrats in Ohio Senate lay out agenda". Columbus Dispatch. Columbus. Retrieved 2015-01-22.
  9. ^ "Many Ohio charter schools overstated attendance rates, state investigation finds | cleveland.com". Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  10. ^ "4 local charter schools under investigation for attendance... | www.mydaytondailynews.com". Retrieved 2015-01-23.

External links edit