Longtime Ohio legislator Tom Gilmartin dies at 87

YOUNGSTOWN

Thomas P. Gilmartin, a 26-year member of the Ohio General Assembly, described by former colleagues as a “tenacious worker” and “unique,” has died.

Gilmartin, 87, died Wednesday afternoon at Omni Manor Care Center in Austintown.

Gilmartin, born and reared in Youngstown, suffered a stroke in April 2011 that had him “in and out of medical units since then. His quality of life went from a near 10 to a zero,” said Brendan Gilmartin, a son.

Gilmartin “got talked into running” for the Youngstown school board in 1953 and 1955, losing both races, his son said.

But Gilmartin, a Democrat, enjoyed success in 1956, winning a seat in the Ohio House.

He served four two-year terms before being elected in 1964 to the Ohio Senate.

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