U.S. Reps. Steve Stivers and Bill Johnson, both Republicans who represent Athens County, are considering running for U.S. Sen. Rob Portmanâs Senate seat in 2022.
Stivers, who comfortably won re-election in 2020, is said to be mulling a bid for the higher office, according to those familiar with his thinking.
He would forgo his seat in the House of Representatives in the event that he pursued a campaign for the Senate and won the primary, creating an opening in Ohioâs 15th Congressional District for the first time since 2011.
Johnson, who also won re-election in 2020 and whose district brushes up to Athens County, said in a statement that he is âseriously consideringâ launching a campaign for the seat and will talk with family and friends to determine if itâs something he should pursue. He would also forgo his House seat if he were to win the Republican primary.
The growing antagonism of college-educated and professional Republicans towards Trump has only intensified over the last two years of his administration, and especially in the wake of his failed response to a pandemic that has killed so many Americans and devastated the country’s economy.
Why Biden’s Immigration Bill Is the Boldest in Decades
During his campaign, President Biden promised that immigration reform would be one of his top priorities upon taking office. After unveiling the summary of a sweeping immigration reform bill on Inauguration Day, the Biden administration appears to have kept that promise.
If passed, the bill will provide a pathway to legal status for most of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States.
In addition to the legalization component, the Biden administration’s bill also contains three other legislative pillars: reforming the immigration court system, overhauling management of U.S. borders, and addressing the root causes of undocumented migration to the United States.