Ohio’s two new members of Congress take their seats

This article was written by Ariana Figueroa and was originally published in the Ohio Capitol Journal and States Newsroom.

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday swore in two Ohioans as members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Reps. Shontel Brown, a Democrat, and Mike Carey, a Republican, bring the House to 221-213. They won their respective seats on Tuesday and were sworn in right away because the seats had been vacant.

“I ran for Congress because I believe in the resilience of the community I love and call home,” Brown said during her first floor speech. “With the eyes of history upon us, it is time to hold a more just and more equitable future.”

Brown thanked her friend and mentor, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge, who resigned the 11th District seat that Brown won this week in order to lead the agency.

Brown serves as the chair of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party. During her election, she was backed by establishment Democrats like Hillary Clinton and House Democratic Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina.

In the primary she defeated candidates including her closest opponent, Nina Turner, a former state senator and progressive Democrat who helped Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-Vt.), with his presidential campaign.

Brown will also become the 58th member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Carey will replace Steve Stivers, (R-Ohio), who resigned the 15th District seat in May to lead Ohio’s Chamber of Commerce. Carey is a former coal lobbyist who had the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

“The problems facing our nation today are great and consequential,” he said during his first House floor speech. “Working families need this body to deliver solutions. Today, I am ready to work for the people of my district and for this great nation.”

There is still one House vacancy, in Florida’s 20th District, after Alcee Hastings, a Democrat, died in April. The general election is on Jan. 11.