East Liverpool rep has his sight set on House speaker job

It's been more than 50 years since a Valley politician served as speaker.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The election of the speaker of the Ohio House is 17 months away, but state Rep. Charles Blasdel is meeting with fellow Republican House members seeking their support for his run at the seat.
Blasdel, of East Liverpool, R-1st, said he has spoken to several Republican House members and will continue to do so in the coming weeks to gauge interest in his candidacy.
"I think my chances are as good as any others being mentioned for speaker," Blasdel said. "I'm traveling around and talking to members, and making myself available for those who want to talk. There is a lot of interest in me pursuing this endeavor."
Current Speaker Larry Householder cannot run for re-election next year because of the state's term limits law, leaving the seat vacant beginning January 2005.
Republicans control the Ohio House 62-37 and are expected to maintain that control after next year's election.
The other House Republicans most mentioned as being interested in the speaker's seat are: state Reps. Timothy Grendell of Chesterland, R-98th; Jon Husted of Kettering, R-32nd; and Stephen Buehrer of Delta, R-74th, the assistant majority floor leader.
Blasdel, who represents Columbiana County, said it is too early to say how many House Republicans will support his speaker's bid.
"It's just a feeling-out period," he said. "It's not time to sell yet."
History
If Blasdel were to win the speaker's job, he would be the first Ohio House member from the Mahoning Valley to capture the seat since John F. Cantwell, a Democrat from Mahoning County, who was elected to the job in January 1949 and served for two years.
The only other Valley politician to serve as House speaker was Joseph Richardson of Columbiana, who was elected to the job five times -- in 1818, 1819, 1820, 1822 and 1823.
"It would prove to be beneficial to the area if I was elected speaker," Blasdel said of the Valley.
The strongest candidates for the House speaker's job are those who have raised a lot of money for the party, are running for re-election next year for a safe seat, and someone who has built strong relationships with members of the Republican caucus, said Rick Farmer, a University of Akron assistant professor of political science and a fellow at the university's Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics.
It will be a challenge for Blasdel to become speaker, Farmer said, but it's certainly possible.
Grendell, who represents Geauga County and a portion of Cuyahoga County, said he will decide by the end of the month whether he will seek re-election to the House.
His decision will largely be based on his wife's political future. Diane Grendell, a judge on the Warren-based 11th District Court of Appeals, is considering a run next year for a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court.
Possibilities
If she runs for the top court, Grendell said he would run for re-election to the House or to the state Senate -- for a seat being vacated by Robert A. Gardner of Madison, R-18th, because of the state's term limits law -- so they could be together in Columbus. State Rep. Jamie Callender of Willowick, R-62nd, plans to run for Gardner's seat next year.
Grendell is also considering running for a Geauga County Common Pleas Court seat.
Grendell, a leader of the House Republican's conservative wing, said he sees himself as the favorite to be elected speaker if he chooses to run for the job. Grendell, who represented northern Trumbull County in 2000 and 2001 before House districts were realigned, said he has the support of 17 to 21 current House Republican members, who are also conservatives.
"If I could be speaker of the House, I'd like that opportunity," Grendell said. "But if it wouldn't be me, Chuck [Blasdel] would be someone I could support."
skolnick@vindy.com