When Larry Householder was removed as Speaker of the House after felony racketeering charges involving a nuclar bailout law he championed, who knew Robert Cupp would replace him?
You may remember Mr. Cupp from when he was Justice Cupp. He served one 6-year term, during which he voted with the majority that FirstEnergy would not be permitted to pass along increases in coal prices to its customers as “distribution costs.” He also voted to permit Ohio citizens to both register and vote on the same day. And he voted to uphold the newly redrawn Congressional district map. He was defeated in 2012 by Justice William O’Neill.
After serving as a state senator for 16 years and as Justice for 6 years, Cupp was elected as state representative for Lima. Although he received no votes from the Democrats for the Speaker position (Cupp is a Republican), Democratic Minority Leader Emilia Sykes has acknowledged that he has worked closely with Democrats in the past.
According to Cupp, his first legislative priority will be the nuclear bailout law. Interestingly, he voted for the law. There is currently a proposed bill to repeal it.
As reported in Statehouse News Bureau on August 4, 2020.
Eye on Ethics 