WASHINGTON — Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, announced Monday that he is stepping down next month to lead his state's Chamber of Commerce, opening up another vacancy in the narrowly divided House.
Stivers, who’s serving his sixth term in Congress, said he will step down May 16 to take the job as president and CEO of the chamber.
“The best part of this job has been making a positive difference in the lives of constituents,” Stivers said in his statement. “I am grateful to the people of Ohio’s 15th Congressional District for putting their trust in me to represent them in the halls of Congress; it has been one of the biggest honors of my life.”
Stivers’ early exit creates a sixth House vacancy in a chamber where Democrats hold the majority by a razor-thin margin, but his central Ohio seat isn’t a competitive one. He won his 2020 race by a wide margin, 63 percent to 37 percent and his district favored former President Donald Trump 56 percent to 42 percent.
Stivers’ departure will leave a second House vacancy in Ohio’s congressional delegation. The special election for the seat previously held by Housing Secretary Marcia Fudge — which is a safe Democratic district — won’t be held until Nov. 2.
Stivers served as the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee from 2016 to 2018, the year Democrats retook the majority in the House.
