Cincinnati City Council Member Greg Landsman Defeats Incumbent Steve Chabot, Flips 1st Congressional District

Greg Landsman is projected as the new state representative for Ohio’s 1st Congressional District, defeating incumbent Steve Chabot, according to data from the New York Times. As of 10:19 a.m. Nov. 9, Landsman has more than 151,418 votes and Chabot has 137,213, with more than 95% of the votes in. Results are preliminary until certified in about two weeks.

With the win, Landsman flips a district that Chabot has held since 2011.

Landsman, a Democrat and current Cincinnati City Council member of five years, answered CityBeat‘s questions for the 2022 midterm election guide, in which he repeatedly slammed Chabot for voting to overturn the legitimate 2020 election of U.S. President Joe Biden. Landsman also highlighted restoring abortion rights, repairing infrastructure like the Brent Spence Bridge and passing LGBTQIA+ protections.

Landsman’s time on Cincinnati City Council largely has focused on general safety, violence reduction, reproductive rights and neighborhood beautification.

“I am so grateful to the people of Southwest Ohio for electing me to be their next Congressman. I knew when I launched this campaign that this was an important fight and the right fight. I believe it even more tonight,” Landsman said in an emailed statement. “But our fight doesn’t end with this one election. The fight to protect our country and our rights, to build an economy that works for everyone, and to end the chaos and extremism that so many of us are tired of goes on. It will not be easy. But neither was this race and here we are now.”

Chabot, who was the incumbent Republican, did not respond to CityBeat‘s repeated questions about his campaign positions. He has supported former U.S. President Donald Trump’s false assertions that the 2020 general election was “stolen” and indicated that he would further ban abortion as well as birth control. Before he became a state rep in 2011, Chabot served as the Hamilton County Commissioner and as a member of Cincinnati City Council.

After the race was called, Chabot told reporters that he had a “nice, short conversation” with Landsman conceding the election and that he wished the incoming state rep “the best,” noting that “he did win fair and square.” He called his former district “the toughest Republican-held seat in the entire country outside of California.”

Chabot admitted that he did not like losing, however.

“I have no animosity towards Mr. Landsman. I do wish him the best,” Chabot said. “I hope a Republican beats him the next time.”

This year’s midterm elections followed a weird special election that was required after the state refused to draw new voting maps. A Republican-led commission redrew the boundaries of Ohio’s House districts earlier this year in an ongoing, dramatic redistricting battle. Many of the ensuing boundary maps repeatedly were rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court as being unconstitutional for unfairly favoring Republicans.

Though the Ohio Supreme Court deemed the maps unconstitutional, a federal court eventually declared that Ohio must use them for August’s special election and the Nov. 8 midterms due to timing, but the state is required to pass fairer maps before the 2024 election. However, the ramifications of voting within the current redrawn – and, many say, unfair – boundaries in districts throughout the state will affect elections and priorities for years to come.

All Ohio election results are preliminary until certified by the Board of Elections. CityBeat uses polling numbers that have been reported first-hand by the Associated Press, which is standard for most newsrooms. For more election results and information, visit Ohio’s secretary of state website.

This story was originally published Nov. 8 and updated Nov. 9 with ballot numbers, quotes and context.

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This article appears in Election 2022.