Democrat Landon Meador is running against incumbent Jennifer Gross for Ohio House of Representatives to represent District 45 Photo: Official campaign portrait

Since being elected in November of 2020, Ohio House Republican Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester) has remained undefeated. Gross held a 27-point lead over her Democratic opponent Chuck Horn on election night in 2020 and was comfortably reelected in 2022 with 66.2% of the vote.

Since then, Rep. Gross has built quite a reputation in the Ohio Statehouse. She championed anti-vaccine legislation, advocated for giving the legislature sole authority over interpreting Ohio’s abortion amendment and sought to eradicate the commercial activity tax. 

Formerly represented by George Lang, House District 45 is located in the solidly Republican Butler County, which has only once voted for a Democratic presidential candidate in the past 70 years. Locally, a Democrat hasn’t been elected to a General Assembly seat in Butler County since 1970. 

Landon Meador is a 23-year-old recent graduate of Northern Kentucky University hoping to break that trend as the Democratic candidate running against Jennifer Gross in November. CityBeat sat down with Meador to talk about his goals for strengthening small businesses, capping tuition costs for healthcare workers and making state politics more transparent.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

CityBeat: Could you talk a little bit about your background in West Chester — what your life growing up was like and how you became interested in politics?
Landon Meador: I came from a very modest family. My family’s originally from Athens, Ohio, out in the farms. And growing up, I was a very shy kid. I did not care to talk to people. I’d rather just keep to myself. Once I got to middle school, I really started coming out of that shell. And that was actually when I had my own fight with mental health. I started talking to school therapists, some of the faculty. I started moving my circle outwards a little more. So once I got to high school, that’s where I really started taking a look into our community. I was one of the business managers for our school publication, called Spark. I wanted to be able to hear people’s stories. Then, as a presidential ambassador for the president of NKU, I was really working with incoming families and donors, seeing both sides there.

CB: You’ve described Jennifer Gross and the Republican majority as extreme. Could you talk a little bit about the policies and ideas that both Gross and the majority of the past few years have supported that you consider to be extreme?
LM: I think it is dangerous to assume that this is a joke from Jennifer Gross. I think that’s a dangerous mentality. We spent a lot of time fighting back against Critical Race Theory and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs — “witch hunts” – that went through our local schools. There was a lot of money spent and nothing was ever found. Jennifer has posted that she was hearing in Springfield that people are eating cats and abusing children, and that’s not true either. I try to really think of that as the fringe right. I don’t think those views make up conservatives. I really don’t. I think the most extreme thing that we can see in this election is not just one single issue, it’s that Jennifer Gross has skated by for four years without ever standing for anything besides just whining in the background about issues that don’t exist.

CB: You’ve called yourself the anti-corruption candidate. If you were to be elected, you would be one state representative in the minority caucus of the State House. How do you intend to address the issue of corruption — the issue of large money influencing Ohio politics?
LM: First, the Public Utilities Commission is appointed by the governor. I think the first thing that we have to do is we have to put real people in these positions, because no one on a Public Utilities Commission would have approved a bribery scandal if they weren’t working with the governor. I think we have to cut back on dark money in the state. We have to require disclosures for anyone making political contributions, whether it’s a business or an individual. The money has to be able to be traced.

CB: Could you talk about your economic vision? How does it compare to Jennifer Gross’ economic vision?
LM: The best way to have the best state you can have is through strong business. I’ve been endorsed by a ton of different unions. I think we have to make sure that our workers are treated respectfully, that they are paid fairly. But then I think we need to get innovative. We have a shortage of healthcare workers in this state. I would love to see capping tuition costs for healthcare workers in the state to $6-7,000 a semester. You keep them in the state and offer immediate job placement right after. I also think on the other side of that is small businesses. It is insanely hard to compete right now – how do we relieve the stress of being able to purchase a building to pay your workers, to be able to pay all the overhead? Does that look like a small business rebate? How do we bring new businesses into the state? I think there’s definitely a tax option there.

CB: If you lose the election in November, what do you want your campaign legacy to mean for young people?
LM: If you have ideas and a commitment to the area, and a flame in your heart to help people, run for office. A lot of people in this community know me. I think they’ve watched my whole transition from being the shy kid in the back of the class to now running for office and being the Democratic nominee against Jennifer Gross. Anyone can do it, and Ohio is worth fighting for. Do not let your state leave you behind.

CityBeat reached out to Jennifer Gross for an interview but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

This story is featured in CityBeat’s Oct. 30 print edition.

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This article appears in Oct 30 – Nov 12, 2024.