Candice Keller

Candice Keller

Republican Party

Prior offices

Ohio House of Representatives District 53

Successor: Thomas Hall

Predecessor: Timothy Derickson

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Elections and appointments

Last election

March 19, 2024

Personal

Profession

Executive

Contact

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Candice Keller (Republican Party) was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing District 53. She assumed office on January 1, 2017. She left office on December 31, 2020.

Keller (Republican Party) ran for election to the Ohio State Senate to represent District 4. She lost in the Republican primary on March 19, 2024.

Biography

Candice Keller lives in Middletown, Ohio. Keller's career experience includes working as the executive director of the Community Pregnancy Center in Middletown.

Committee assignments

2019-2020

Keller was assigned to the following committees:

• Armed Services and Veterans Affairs Committee
• House Health Committee
• Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee, Chair

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

Ohio committee assignments, 2017
• Agriculture and Rural Development
• Health
• Transportation and Public Safety

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2024

See also: Ohio State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for Ohio State Senate District 4

Incumbent George Lang defeated Thomas Cooke in the general election for Ohio State Senate District 4 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		George Lang (R)	63.0	102,393
		Thomas Cooke (D)	37.0	60,083

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 162,476
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Ohio State Senate District 4

Thomas Cooke advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio State Senate District 4 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Thomas Cooke	100.0	8,375

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 8,375
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Ohio State Senate District 4

Incumbent George Lang defeated Candice Keller and Mark Morgan in the Republican primary for Ohio State Senate District 4 on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		George Lang	60.1	19,862
		Candice Keller	27.4	9,040
	Submit photo	Mark Morgan	12.5	4,141

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 33,043
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Keller received the following endorsements.

• Ohio Value Voters
• Right to Life Action Coalition of Ohio

2022

See also: Ohio gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio

The following candidates ran in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jon Husted (R)	62.4	2,580,424
		Cheryl Stephens (D)	37.4	1,545,489
		Shannon Walker (Independent) (Write-in)	0.2	8,082
	Submit photo	Dayna Bickley (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	574
	Submit photo	Adina Pelletier (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	231
	Submit photo	Collin Cook (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	77

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 4,134,877
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Mary Cunnane (Independent)
• Michael Stewart (Independent)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio

Cheryl Stephens defeated Teresa Fedor in the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio on May 3, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Cheryl Stephens	65.0	331,014
		Teresa Fedor	35.0	178,132

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 509,146
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio

Incumbent Jon Husted defeated Joe Knopp, Jeremiah Workman, and Candice Keller in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio on May 3, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jon Husted	48.1	519,594
		Joe Knopp	28.0	302,494
		Jeremiah Workman	21.8	235,584
		Candice Keller	2.1	22,411

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,080,083
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Joanna Swallen (R)

2020

See also: Ohio State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Ohio State Senate District 4

George Lang defeated Kathy Wyenandt and Kent Keller in the general election for Ohio State Senate District 4 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		George Lang (R)	60.5	106,021
		Kathy Wyenandt (D)	38.8	68,000
	Submit photo	Kent Keller (Independent) (Write-in)	0.6	1,126

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 175,147
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Ohio State Senate District 4

Kathy Wyenandt advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio State Senate District 4 on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kathy Wyenandt	100.0	12,568

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 12,568
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Ohio State Senate District 4

George Lang defeated Candice Keller and Lee Wong in the Republican primary for Ohio State Senate District 4 on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		George Lang	49.4	12,579
		Candice Keller	32.7	8,318
		Lee Wong	17.9	4,568

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,465
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2018

See also: Ohio House of Representatives elections, 2018

General election

General election for Ohio House of Representatives District 53

Incumbent Candice Keller defeated Rebecca Howard in the general election for Ohio House of Representatives District 53 on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Candice Keller (R)	63.7	25,589
		Rebecca Howard (D)	36.3	14,567

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 40,156
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Ohio House of Representatives District 53

Rebecca Howard advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio House of Representatives District 53 on May 8, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rebecca Howard	100.0	3,202

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 3,202
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Ohio House of Representatives District 53

Incumbent Candice Keller advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio House of Representatives District 53 on May 8, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Candice Keller	100.0	5,662

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 5,662
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2016

See also: Ohio House of Representatives elections, 2016

Elections for the Ohio House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election was held on March 15, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was December 16, 2015. Incumbent Timothy Derickson (R) did not seek re-election.

Candice Keller defeated Suzi Rubin in the Ohio House of Representatives District 53 general election.

Ohio House of Representatives, District 53 General Election, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Candice Keller	65.20%	33,020
	Democratic	Suzi Rubin	34.80%	17,627
Total Votes				50,647
Source: Ohio Secretary of State

Suzi Rubin ran unopposed in the Ohio House of Representatives District 53 Democratic primary.

Ohio House of Representatives District 53, Democratic Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Suzi Rubin  (unopposed)	100.00%	5,522
Total Votes				5,522

Candice Keller defeated Joe Mulligan in the Ohio House of Representatives District 53 Republican primary.

Ohio House of Representatives District 53, Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Candice Keller	58.88%	10,092
	Republican	Joe Mulligan	41.12%	7,047
Total Votes				17,139

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candice Keller did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Candice Keller did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Candice Keller did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

2016

Keller's campaign website highlighted the following issues:

“	Second Amendment: I hold memberships with the NRA, United States Conceal Carry Association, and Buckeye Firearms Association. I am a member committed to protecting the right to gun ownership. I come from a hunting family; I am a gun-owner and I carry concealed. I believe the right to individual gun ownership is a key constitutional right so important to our founders; it was placed in a prominent position in the Bill of Rights. I will always be a consistent and unwavering supporter of the 2nd amendment right to keep and bear arms. Education: I believe that decisions about the direction of a child’s education are the responsibility of parents, not the federal government. I believe local communities and states should be empowered to aide in supporting public education, but nowhere in the Constitution will you find the federal government being given a role in the education of our children. This is why I strongly oppose "Common Core" and believe the federal government should not be given the authority to dictate common standards for public education across our country. Jobs & Economy: The federal government must rein in spending, reform the tax code and end the heavy-handed regulations that are making it harder and harder for the private sector to create the real jobs this country desperately needs. Life: I believe human life begins at conception and should only end at natural death. I stand firmly against federal funding for abortion services, and will work to remove that funding. I have worked tirelessly throughout my career for the protection of the unborn. Immigration: I support enhancing our border security by extending and reinforcing physical barriers along the southern border, augmented with sufficient surveillance assets to alert authorities to illegal entries. I also support increasing our response capability. Once the border has been secured, we can begin to discuss meaningful reforms, but it is important that we focus on policies that will actually begin to solve the problem.	”
—Candice Keller

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Candice Keller campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Ohio State Senate District 4	Lost primary	$21,010	$20,843
2022	Lieutenant Governor of Ohio	Lost primary	$0	$2,111
2020	Ohio State Senate District 4	Lost primary	$101,016	N/A**
2018	Ohio House of Representatives District 53	Won general	$26,365	N/A**
2016	Ohio House of Representatives, District 53	Won	$40,143	N/A**
Grand total			$188,534	$22,954
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Ohio

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Ohio scorecards, email suggestions to [email protected].

2020

In 2020, the Ohio State Legislature was in session from January 6 to December 31.

• Club for Growth Foundation

Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.

• Innovation Ohio

Representatives are scored on their votes on bills affecting working families.

• National Federation of Independent Business

Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

• Ohio Chamber of Commerce

Legislators are scored on their votes on bills impacting Ohio's business community.

• Ohio Environmental Council

Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental policy.

• The American Conservative Union

Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2019

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show].
In 2019, the Ohio General Assembly was in session from January 7 through December 31. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2018

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show].
In 2018, the 132nd Ohio General Assembly was in session from January 2 through December 31. Innovation Ohio Representatives are scored on their votes on bills affecting working families. Ohio Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on their votes on bills impacting Ohio's business community. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2017

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show].
In 2017, the 132nd Ohio General Assembly was in session from January 2 through December 31. Ohio Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills impacting Ohio's business community. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2016

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show].
In 2016, the 131st Ohio General Assembly was in session from January 5 through December 31. Ohio Chamber of Commerce: 2015-2016 scorecard Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills impacting Ohio's business community. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

Noteworthy events

Introduction of impeachment articles against Gov. DeWine on November 30, 2020

On November 30, 2020, Ohio Reps. John Becker (R), Candice Keller (R), Nino Vitale (R), and Paul Zeltwanger (R) introduced articles of impeachment against Governor Mike DeWine (R) in response to his handling of the coronavirus. Becker's office wrote in a statement: "Governor DeWine’s mismanagement, malfeasance, misfeasance, abuse of power, and other crimes include, but are not limited to, meddling in the conduct of a presidential primary election, [and] arbitrarily closing and placing curfews on certain businesses, while allowing other businesses to remain open." Becker said, "Rather than hearing the cries of Ohioans, Governor DeWine continues to stifle those cries by finding more inventive ways to use masks to muffle the voices of the people."

DeWine responded during a press conference on November 30, saying: "At some point, this foolishness has got to stop. I’m not talking about most Ohioans — just a small number of people who for whatever reason just continue to think and act like this is some big joke and this is all some fantasy. [...] I just wish they’d go spend some time talking to somebody who suffered through this." As of December 3rd, Ohio House Speaker Bob Cupp (R) had not commented on the filed articles of impeachment. Cupp expressed opposition to drafts of similar impeachment charges in August, saying, "I will continue to raise my concerns and disagreements and those of House members with the governor. However, informed dialogue and the law-making process are the best way to resolve these issues."

See also

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Ohio State Senate District 4

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Timothy Derickson (R)	Ohio House of Representatives District 53 2017-2020	Succeeded by Thomas Hall (R)

[show]

Current members of the Ohio State Senate

Leadership

Senate President:Robert McColley

Minority Leader:Nickie Antonio

Senators

District 1

Robert McColley (R)

District 2

Theresa Gavarone (R)

District 3

Michele Reynolds (R)

District 4

George Lang (R)

District 5

Stephen Huffman (R)

District 6

Willis Blackshear (D)

District 7

Steve Wilson (R)

District 8

Louis Blessing (R)

District 9

Catherine Ingram (D)

District 10

Kyle Koehler (R)

District 11

Paula Hicks-Hudson (D)

District 12

Susan Manchester (R)

District 13

Nathan Manning (R)

District 14

Terry Johnson (R)

District 15

Hearcel Craig (D)

District 16

Beth Liston (D)

District 17

Shane Wilkin (R)

District 18

Jerry Cirino (R)

District 19

Andrew Brenner (R)

District 20

Tim Schaffer (R)

District 21

Kent Smith (D)

District 22

Mark Romanchuk (R)

District 23

Nickie Antonio (D)

District 24

Thomas Patton (R)

District 25

William DeMora (D)

District 26

Bill Reineke (R)

District 27

Kristina Roegner (R)

District 28

Casey Weinstein (D)

District 29

Jane Timken (R)

District 30

Brian Chavez (R)

District 31

Al Landis (R)

District 32

Sandra O'Brien (R)

District 33

Alessandro Cutrona (R)

Republican Party (24)

Democratic Party (9)