During presidential elections, Ohio rarely makes national headlines anymore. Once considered a swing state, Ohio went to Trump in 2016 and 2020, and likely will again in 2024.
But in Southwest Ohio, a race is occurring that may decide which party controls the U.S. House.
Democratic incumbent Greg Landsman and Republican Orlando Sonza are campaigning to represent Ohio’s 1st Congressional District, which includes all of Cincinnati, Warren County and suburbs like Anderson Township, Indian Hill, Montgomery, Madeira and Blue Ash.
Landsman, who previously served on Cincinnati City Council for four years, is vying to hold the congressional seat he won against Republican Steve Chabot in 2022. Chabot held the seat every term, but one, since 1994. For the first time in decades, Ohio Democrats are fighting to hold this seat.
Sonza previously ran for the Ohio State Senate, losing to Democrat Catherine Ingram in District 9. He served as the Hamilton County Assistant prosecutor and an infantry officer in the army before launching his bid to challenge Landsman this summer.
“I decided to run for this congressional seat because I believe that the policy direction in which my opponent has taken our district and country is making life harder for everyday Americans,” wrote Sonza in an emailed statement to CityBeat. Sonza also spoke about the lessons he learned from his campaign against Ingram, writing about the importance of “engaging directly with voters, no matter who they are, and more importantly, understanding their needs,” and how it’s “deeply integral to what I learned a public servant should be.”
Republicans hold a slim majority in the House, and Democrats need only to win a handful of seats to retake control. In 25 of the 26 most competitive races, Democrats are raising more than their Republican opponents, according to the Washington Post.
The Cook Political Report rates the 1st Congressional District as “likely Democrat,” with numerous polls showing the same thing. Landsman has also outraised Sonza, receiving $3,412,96 from donors, compared to Sonza’s $864,409, according to OpenSecrets.
Campaign donations and lawmaker integrity have been recurring topics in this election.
“I don’t take corporate PAC money because I want you to know I’m with you, and not billionaires,” said Landsman in a campaign ad. In an emailed statement to CityBeat, Landsman wrote that congress should “pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act so that we can ban dark money and end partisan gerrymandering across the country.”
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In comparison, Sonza has criticized Landsman for failing to disclose his stock trades in a timely manner. On Aug. 8, Landsman reported 86 financial transactions from over a year-and-a-half timeline, putting him in violation of the STOCK Act, which imposes a 45-day deadline on members of Congress to report stock transactions.
“Forty six days, a mistake; 48 days a slip up; 20 months to fail to disclose that?” said Sonza during his final debate with Landsman on Oct. 16. “You are responsible for every dollar that goes into your piggy bank.”
Asked specifically about his stock trades during the debate, Landsman said, “It was late, and that was wrong, and I took responsibility.”
Landsman also insisted that he was moving away from trading stocks, instead prioritizing mutual funds.
In the same debate, Landsman argued that his opponent was beholden to big business.
“That’s one of the reasons why he doesn’t support negotiating lower prescription drug prices, it’s why he supports privatizing medicare. It’s one of the reasons why he is all in on spending trillions for the super wealthy,” Landsman said.
Campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission show Sonza’s campaign has received $10,000 from Koch Inc., a political action committee (PAC) representing Koch Industries. His campaign has also received $343,288 in outside spending support from Americans for Prosperity Action, the super PAC of the conservative libertarian group Americans for Prosperity, which is an extension of the Koch family’s political operations.
Asked if he feared these contributions would make him beholden to the Kochs and their priorities if he were elected to office, Sonza told CityBeat he is “beholden to no one.”
Another issue mentioned throughout the campaign has been the Israel-Hamas war and the future of U.S. foreign policy.
Since Hamas’ terror attack on Oct. 7, which killed 1,200 Israelis and resulted in 251 Israelis being taken, the loss of life has continued. Over 42,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The war has expanded into Lebanon with the Israeli Defense Forces fighting Hezbollah. Meanwhile, Iran, which typically acts through proxies in the region, has begun launching missile strikes against Israel in retaliation for Israeli attacks on Iran-backed leaders and Iranian embassies.
“The war must end, every hostage must be returned home and the post-conflict work must be intense and sustained,” Landsman, who is Jewish, told CityBeat. “Israel must be secure, Gaza rebuilt, and self-determination by Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank must be realized.”
Sonza made a similar argument.
“As to the war in the Middle East, I believe the United States needs to supply our strongest ally in the region, Israel, with the resources they need to defend themselves and to bring the hostages home. Israel has every right to defend itself against terrorist organizations, and the United States should not play the role of Israel for them.”
Regardless, both candidates have critiqued each other for their stances on the subject, and activists in Greater Cincinnati have not backed down on their critiques of U.S. involvement in the war.
Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, Oberlin College, Ohio University, Miami University and Denison University have all had campus protests.
Questioned about what message he has for campus protesters, Landsman said, “My intention is to continue to be a leader on this work, and be part of the generation of leaders that helps secure peace and stability in the Middle East.”
Landsman also noted that Sonza accepted an endorsement from Kiumars Kiani, a Cincinnati resident with a history of antisemitic remarks.
“Orlando Sonza proudly accepting and promoting an endorsement from an extremist, conspiracy theorist and antisemite is disturbing,” said Landsman in a statement to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“Antisemitism in any form is wrong, and it has no place in our country, politics, or our college campuses,” Sonza wrote in a statement to CityBeat.
Speaking before an audience of reporters and students at Xavier University for their final debate before the election, Landsman and Sonza made their final pitch to voters.
“Hopefully over this last year, through the course of this campaign, and including tonight, I earned your vote,” said Sonza. “A vote to restore integrity, duty, honor, country, accountability and real policy solutions that can work for all of us, not just some.”
“Since I’ve been in Congress, I set out to be transparent, accountable, reliable and bipartisan,” Landsman said. “Ultimately, I am for fixing politics. We need normal, pragmatic, reliable bipartisan leaders, and this is a moment where both the far left and the far right need to see people in the middle, leaders like me, stand up and say ‘we’re not doing this anymore.’”
This story is featured in CityBeat’s Oct. 30 print edition.
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This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 12, 2024.