Ohio's 9th Congressional District election, 2022 (May 3 Republican primary)

	2024 → ← 2020
Ohio's 9th Congressional District
	Democratic primary; Republican primary; General election
Election details
	Filing deadline: March 4, 2022
	Primary: May 3, 2022; General: November 8, 2022
How to vote
	Poll times: 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; Voting in Ohio
Race ratings
	Cook Partisan Voter Index (2022): R+3; Cook Political Report: Lean Democratic; Inside Elections: Lean Democratic; Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
	U.S. Senate battlegrounds; U.S. House battlegrounds; Federal and state primary competitiveness; Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2022
See also
	Ohio's 9th Congressional District; U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th • 11th • 12th • 13th • 14th • 15th; Ohio elections, 2022; U.S. Congress elections, 2022; U.S. Senate elections, 2022; U.S. House elections, 2022; Alabama U.S. House racesAlaska U.S. House racesArizona U.S. House racesArkansas U.S. House racesCalifornia U.S. House racesColorado U.S. House racesConnecticut U.S. House racesDelaware U.S. House racesFlorida U.S. House racesGeorgia U.S. House racesHawaii U.S. House racesIdaho U.S. House racesIllinois U.S. House racesIndiana U.S. House racesIowa U.S. House racesKansas U.S. House racesKentucky U.S. House racesLouisiana U.S. House racesMaine U.S. House racesMaryland U.S. House racesMassachusetts U.S. House racesMichigan U.S. House racesMinnesota U.S. House racesMississippi U.S. House racesMissouri U.S. House racesMontana U.S. House racesNebraska U.S. House racesNevada U.S. House racesNew Hampshire U.S. House racesNew Jersey U.S. House racesNew Mexico U.S. House racesNew York U.S. House racesNorth Carolina U.S. House racesNorth Dakota U.S. House racesOhio U.S. House racesOklahoma U.S. House racesOregon U.S. House racesPennsylvania U.S. House racesRhode Island U.S. House racesSouth Carolina U.S. House racesSouth Dakota U.S. House racesTennessee U.S. House racesTexas U.S. House racesUtah U.S. House racesVermont U.S. House racesVirginia U.S. House racesWashington U.S. House racesWest Virginia U.S. House racesWisconsin U.S. House racesWyoming U.S. House racesSubmit

J.R. Majewski defeated three other candidates—Beth Deck, Theresa Gavarone, and Craig Riedel—in the Republican primary election for Ohio's 9th Congressional District on May 3, 2022. Incumbent Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D) was first elected in 1982 and sought re-election.

Under the congressional district maps approved during Ohio's redistricting process ahead of the primary, the 9th District—which race forecasters rated as Solid Democratic in 2020—leaned more Republican in 2022. According to FiveThirtyEight, the 9th District had an R+6 lean.^[1] These congressional district lines are currently subject to a state lawsuit. On July 19, 2022, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in a 4-3 decision that the congressional district boundaries that the Ohio Redistricting Commission adopted on March 2, 2022, were unconstitutional.^[2] The 2022 congressional elections took place using the boundaries the redistricting commission adopted in March 2022 since primary elections were held using those districts on May 3, 2022.^[2] Since the congressional district boundaries that the commission enacted did not have support from members of the minority party, the boundaries were in effect for only four years with the commission required to enact a new map after the 2024 elections. Learn more here.

Gavarone, Majewski, and Riedel received the most media attention during the primary.^[3]^[4]

Gavarone was a member of the Ohio State Senate. She was appointed to the office in 2019 after having previously served in the Ohio House of Representatives since 2016. In a campaign ad, Gavarone highlighted her legislative experience, saying that she "turned conservative principles into action," and that she "passed balanced budgets, brought parents to the table to improve our schools, and defended our men and women in uniform."^[5] Gavarone received endorsements from U.S. Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio) and the Ohio Right to Life.^[6]

Majewski worked in the nuclear industry in project management positions and served in the U.S. Air Force from 1999 to 2003.^[7] In a Candidate Connection survey submitted to Ballotpedia, Majewski described himself as "the America First Candidate" and said he would "Bring back good paying American jobs ... Maintain a strong national defense and stop the endless wars."^[8] Read his full responses here. Majewski received endorsements from U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and consultant Roger Stone.^[9]

Riedel was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives where he was first elected in 2016. Riedel said Kaptur had been in office for too long and said, "I am sick and tired of career politicians ... who always make promises, fail to deliver, then pass the buck," adding that he would "work with President Trump and ... the Freedom Caucus to push an America-first agenda."^[10]^[11] Riedel received endorsements from U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and state Rep. Derek Merrin (R).^[12]^[13]

J.R. Majewski (R) completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Click on a candidate's name to view that candidate's responses.

This page focuses on Ohio's 9th Congressional District Republican primary. For more in-depth information on the district's Democratic primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 9

J.R. Majewski defeated Craig Riedel, Theresa Gavarone, and Beth Deck in the Republican primary for U.S. House Ohio District 9 on May 3, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		J.R. Majewski	35.7	21,666
		Craig Riedel	31.0	18,861
		Theresa Gavarone	28.5	17,337
	Submit photo	Beth Deck	4.7	2,883

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 60,747
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Candidate comparison

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Theresa Gavarone

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office:

Ohio State Senate District 2 (Assumed office: 2019)
Ohio House of Representatives District 3 (2016-2019)

Biography: Gavarone received a bachelor's degree in business administration from Bowling Green State University in 1988 and a law degree from the University of Toledo in 1994. She worked as an attorney and, at the time of the primary, co-owned a restaurant, Mr. Spots, with her husband.

Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Gavarone said voters in the district were "tired of being ignored by Joe Biden and Marcy Kaptur," saying that she was "running for Congress to help make the lives of the people of Northwest and Northern Ohio ... better."

Gavarone said that, as a legislator, she "turned conservative principles into action" and "passed balanced budgets, brought parents to the table to improve our schools, and defended our men and women in uniform."

Gavarone said that she was "the HIGHEST-RATED conservative" in the primary and the "ONLY recipient of the 'Award for Conservative Excellence' by the American Conservative Union."

Show sources

Sources: YouTube, "We've Got a County to Save," Dec. 3, 2021, Facebook, "Theresa Gavarone for Congress," March 4, 2022, Facebook, "Theresa Gavarone for Congress," Feb. 24, 2022; LinkedIn, "Theresa Gavarone," accessed March 8, 2022, Theresa Gavarone's campaign website, "Bio," accessed March 8, 2022

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Ohio District 9 in 2022.

J.R. Majewski

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography: "J.R. Majewski is an Air Force Veteran and the America First Candidate for U.S. Congress from Ohio's 9th Congressional District. Majewski has managed multiple multi-million-dollar projects within the nuclear industry and earned a reputation for his leadership style and ability to transform struggling projects, programs, and portfolios into high performers. Majewski now serves as a Senior Leader in the nuclear industry working with some of the world’s largest nuclear utilities. Majewski and his wife Nichole have been married since 2003. They currently reside in the Walleye Capital of the World, Port Clinton, Ohio."

Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

America First.

Bring back good paying American jobs.

Maintain a strong national defense and stop the endless wars.

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Ohio District 9 in 2022.

Craig Riedel

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office:

Ohio House of Representatives District 82 (Assumed office: 2017)

Biography: Riedel graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the Ohio State University in 1988. After graduation, he worked as a design engineer and sales manager at Nucor Valcraft Group, a steel company, until his retirement in 2015.

Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Riedel highlighted his experience as a civil engineer, saying, "I will bring my private sector experience and knowledge to Washington" and "fight back against the runaway inflation caused by Joe Biden and Marcy Kaptur's tax and spend agenda."

Riedel said, "I am sick and tired of career politicians ... who always make promises, fail to deliver, then pass the buck," adding that he would "work with President Trump and ... the Freedom Caucus to push an America-first agenda,"

Riedel said, "it is past time for [Marcy Kaptur's] 53-year political career to end," adding that he "will stand up to the corrupt political insiders, defeat Marcy Kaptur, and stop the radical Biden agenda."

Show sources

Sources: Sentinel-Tribune, "Riedel announces candidacy for Kaptur's seat," Jan. 16, 2022, Craig Riedel's campaign website, "Issues," accessed March 8, 2022; VoteSmart, "Craig Riedel's Biography," accessed March 8, 2022, Craig Riedel's campaign website, "About," accessed March 8, 2022

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House Ohio District 9 in 2022.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Survey responses from candidates in this race

Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Expand all | Collapse all

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/JRMajewski.jpeg

J.R. Majewski (R)

America First.

Bring back good paying American jobs.

Maintain a strong national defense and stop the endless wars.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

J.R. Majewski (R)

As Congressman for Ohio’s 9th District my foremost responsibility is to ensure the people of Ohio have a voice in the legislative ongoings of Congress in Washington D.C. moreover, I will represent their voice with the utmost level of equity, security, and dignity.

1. The American people must defend innocent life and upholding the Judeo-Christian values of our founding. 2. Strong National Defense. 3. Protect our nations border. 4. Families make the best decisions regarding their children’s health, education, jobs, and welfare. Not the government. 5. American Energy Independence and I support Nuclear Energy.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Politically Ronald Reagan. President Reagan showed the world how to lead with a high heart and good humor. He remained true to the American people first, and ensured that his actions represented the best national interests of all Americans.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Honesty, Integrity, Bravity, and the ability to communicate.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

J.R. Majewski (R)

To Represent the will of the people whom elected them.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

J.R. Majewski (R)

watching Ronald Reagan’s second inaugural address in 1985

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

J.R. Majewski (R)

United States Air Force - 4 years

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

J.R. Majewski (R)

The House has several powers assigned exclusively to it, including the power to initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an Electoral College tie. Of all federal government institutions, the House of Representatives is designed to be closest to American voters, most closely reflecting the individual cares and concerns of American taxpayers. In fact, the House is the only institution that has been directly elected by American voters since its formation in 1789.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Not necessarily.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Our national sovereignty and control of our borders.

If you are not a current representative, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Energy and Commerce due to my longstanding experience in the nuclear industry. Veterans Affairs due to being a veteran is the US Air Force.

Do you believe that two years is the right term length for representatives?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Yes

What are your thoughts on term limits?

J.R. Majewski (R)

I agree with the intent of term limits as an attempt to limit the ability for politicians to become entrenched in power and remain in office.

However, I believe that this is a band-aid over a wound that requires stitches and that other reforms in areas such as campaign financing, would be a better means to meet this intent. We must restore competition as a means to gain office, not money and political relationships. If anyone could run for office, without being a millionaire as a prerequisite, competition would course correct the challenge of life long politicians.

Terms should end at the ballot box.

Is there a particular representative, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Jim Jordan

Both sitting representatives and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Yes, that they do not feel as if they understand what their Representative does.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

J.R. Majewski (R)

Yes so long as compromise falls within the auspices of our constitution and does not place undue burden on the American public.

Campaign advertisements

This section includes a selection of up to three campaign advertisements per candidate released in this race, as well as links to candidates' YouTube, Vimeo, and/or Facebook video pages. If you are aware of other links that should be included, please email us.

Beth Deck

Ballotpedia did not come across any campaign ads for Beck Deck while conducting research on this election. If you are aware of any ads that should be included, please email us.

Theresa Gavarone

April 28, 2022

Dec. 3, 2021

View more ads here:

J.R. Majewski

March 3, 2022

Nov. 28, 2021

Sept. 16, 2021

View more ads here:

Craig Riedel

April 3, 2022

View more ads here:

Endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

Click the links below to see official endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites for any candidates that make that information available. If you are aware of a website that should be included, please email us.

Election competitiveness

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

We provide results for polls that are included in polling aggregation from FiveThirtyEight and RealClearPolitics, when available. No polls were available for this election. To notify us of polls published in this election, please email us.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.^[14]
Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.^[15]^[16]^[17]

Race ratings: Ohio's 9th Congressional District election, 2022
Race tracker	Race ratings
	November 8, 2022	November 1, 2022	October 25, 2022	October 18, 2022
The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic	Lean Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Election spending

Campaign finance

This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.^[18] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.^[19]

Name	Party	Receipts*	Disbursements**	Cash on hand	Date
Beth Deck	Republican Party	$0	$0	$0	Data not available***
Theresa Gavarone	Republican Party	$293,282	$289,320	$3,962	As of December 31, 2022
J.R. Majewski	Republican Party	$1,185,047	$1,178,922	$6,126	As of December 31, 2022
Craig Riedel	Republican Party	$617,691	$617,691	$0	As of December 31, 2022
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2022. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). * According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election. * Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

Satellite spending

See also: Satellite spending

Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.^[20]^[21]^[22]

If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.

By candidate	By election
Theresa Gavarone J.R. Majewski Craig Riedel	Open Secrets Federal Election Commission

Election context

District election history

2020

See also: Ohio's 9th Congressional District election, 2020

General election

General election for U.S. House Ohio District 9

Incumbent Marcy Kaptur defeated Rob Weber and McKenzie Levindofske in the general election for U.S. House Ohio District 9 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Marcy Kaptur (D)	63.1	190,328
		Rob Weber (R)	36.9	111,385
	Submit photo	McKenzie Levindofske (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	39

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 301,752
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 9

Incumbent Marcy Kaptur defeated Peter Rosewicz in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Ohio District 9 on April 28, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Marcy Kaptur	90.7	52,433
	Peter Rosewicz	9.3	5,370

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 57,803
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.