Michael Rulli will represent Ohio’s 6th Congressional District through year’s end and must face Democrat Michael Kripchak again in November’s regular election.
Voters in eastern Ohio’s 6th District have chosen Republican Michael Rulli to fill their vacant congressional seat through the end of the year, expanding the GOP’s razor-thin majority in the House.
The Associated Press projected Mr. Rulli as the winner of the contest at 9:02 p.m. ET.
Mr. Rulli handily defeated Democrat Michael Kripchak in the June 11 contest to replace Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), who resigned in January to accept the presidency of Youngstown State University.
The win helps Republicans fill out its narrow majority as Congress heads into the appropriations process, which will set federal spending levels for the upcoming fiscal year. After Mr. Rulli is sworn in, Republicans will have 219 seats to Democrats’ 213, with three vacancies.
With Mr. Rulli’s victory, the Republicans hold a 219 to 213 majority in the House. That means the GOP must have all but two of their members voting for any legislation to pass, which has sometimes proven difficult in the current Congress.
The two candidates will face off again in November’s general election, and the winner will claim the seat for two years beginning Jan. 3, 2025.
With this result, Republicans once again hold 10 of Ohio’s 15 congressional seats.
The Candidates
Mr. Rulli, 55, is a second-term state senator from Salem, a city of 12,000 in Columbiana County. He is the operations director for his family’s century-old Rulli Bros. grocery stores. His platform emphasizes economic growth, energy independence, and public safety.
Mr. Kripchak, 42, of Youngstown, is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and a former Air Force officer. He ran on a platform to “restore the American Dream” by re-establishing manufacturing, improving K-12 education, and freeing independent farmers from the control of big agricultural companies.
Mr. Rulli had the advantage in funding, having spent more than $600,000 on this race as of May 31, according to FEC filings, compared to about $7,500 spent by Mr. Kripchak. Mr. Rulli also enjoyed the backing of prominent Ohio Republicans including Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).
Both candidates won their respective primary elections on March 19.
By Lawrence Wilson
