ATHENS, Ohio — Athens County voters in the city of Athens and Canaan, Bern and Rome townships will receive primary ballots for Ohio House District 95 this March, after redistricting split the county in two.
The district also includes western Belmont County, eastern Guernsey County, Harrison, Morgan and Noble counties. Lish Greiner of Athens is uncontested in her Democratic primary bid for the seat currently held by Republican Don Jones (R-Freeport). Jones faces challenger Nelson Roe of Belle Valley in the Republican primary.
Athens County residents also are running for Ohio House District 94 and Ohio Senate District 30.
The last day to register to vote in the March primary is Feb. 20. Check your voter registration, update your address, find your polling location and more on the Athens County Board of Elections’ website.
On the Democratic ballot
Greiner said in a message she is a lifelong southeast Ohioan, wife, mother and “nurse, by trade.” She said she has held various leadership positions in the healthcare industry during her career; she recently retired to start her own small business, Go Green Lawn Care.
Greiner said she’s running for office “to listen to families of Eastern Ohio and to affect policy changes that echo their collective voices and experiences.”
“My experience in leadership roles is where I learned to listen to all parties involved, make heavy considerations that often had impacts on the community, and how to tie policy making and people together in a way that made the most sense for all parties involved,” Greiner said.
Greiner said the new house map for the 95th District — the largest in the state — complicates the variety of issues its residents face.
“However, we have far more in common that unites us than differences that divide us,” Greiner stated.
Greiner said her background as a southeast Ohioan who grew up in agriculture would inform her goals as a representative.
“My family was impacted by many socioeconomic factors, as well as other human struggles. As a young person living through a life of struggles, I never dreamed a successful life was even a possibility for me,” Greiner said.
“I plan to use my time as a state representative working hard to make the voices of people heard and to pass laws designed to help those families of the 95th District succeed in their lives and enjoy the freedoms of democracy,” Greiner said.
On the Republican ballot
Roe, of Belle Valley, said he was motivated to run for office because of “just the way things are going right now, and not being satisfied with the way certain things are going. And I’ve always kind of been of the mind that if you don’t like something, try to do something about it, rather than just complain about it.”
Roe is a father, lifetime resident of southeast Ohio and has a background in business analytics. Roe ran as a libertarian in 2014 for District 97, a race in which he lost to Brian Hill in a 3:1 landslide.
Roe said he was motivated to run in this election by his disappointment in the so-called Blue 22 — the 22 Ohio House Republicans who voted with Democrats to elect a more moderate Republican House Speaker than some Republican lawmakers preferred. House members Jay Edwards (R-94) and Jones are listed among the group. Edwards has reached his term limits. Jones did not respond to an inquiry regarding the Blue 22 in time for publication.
Roe cited inflation, school choice and “basic lack of common sense and problem solving” as other major issues facing the district and its representation in the legislature.
Like Shannon Walker, Roe believes in abolishing the state income tax. “I think that would allow everybody across the board some more freedoms,” he said. He added he believes in working together, listening and collaborating toward a common goal.
“And I think that needs to come back,” Roe said. “Because if people would just use their common sense, I don’t think half of the issues would be where they’re at.”
Roe said he also ran for office to be a role model for his children.
“Another one of the main reasons that I was running was to try to show them that possibly one person can make a difference if they’re willing to do the work, have some common sense and stay true to themselves,” Roe said. “I’d also like to, if this comes to fruition, be able to someday look back and say that I did something to leave something in a better way than we had it, for the kids.”
If Jones is reelected, his next term will be his fourth and therefore final. Jones’ background is in education and small business: He taught agricultural education for more than two decades in Harrison County. His small business is a farm equipment dealership; he is a farmer as well.
Jones said the district’s most common issues are infrastructure and “broadband and connectivity,” which “is still an issue — not as terrible as what it was when I started five years ago — but it’s still still an issue for many businesses.” He added that lack of internet access has implications for education, too.
Jones said schools in the district also struggle with meeting state requirements and accessing healthcare and mental health resources.
“A lot of things that my colleagues take for granted are things that we still need to work to improve upon,” Jones said.
Jones said he tries “to be an open book” and engages with the people he represents — although he noted that the size and geography of the district’s six counties makes it difficult to reach all its corners.
“That is probably one of the biggest hindrances that I have is — getting to some of my parts of my district are not easy,” Jones said.
Despite this, Jones said, “We’ll do the best that we can do to represent them and their needs. I think we’ve had success across all the counties that I’ve represented. And we look forward to continuing to do that this last term.”
Jones said throughout his years in office, some of his accomplishments include overhauling the state report card system. Working in politics can be “cumbersome,” he noted.
“We’ve gotten some things done educationally that needed to be done, and we’re continuing to work on those,” Jones said. “It’s not really designed to be efficient, or expedient. … It’s definitely a different world than what I was used to within education.”
Jones has a record of supporting socially conservative legislation, such as House Bill 68, which he co-sponsored, that banned trans girls from participating in sports, limited healthcare access for trans adults, and banned gender-affirming care for trans youths.
Last year, he served as a primary sponsor for House Bill 12 (in house committee) that suggested making sweeping changes to the Ohio Department of Education. While the bill died in committee, the state’s biennial budget absorbed its proposal to create the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. He also was a primary sponsor for House Bill 103, in committee, which mandates Ohio social studies standards based on “American Birthright.”
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