State Rep. D.J. Swearingen, a Huron Republican, is resigning from the Ohio House to take a job as senior counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Fraud Enforcement Division, a move that will leave a western Ohio seat open with the Nov. 3 election just weeks away.
Swearingen is set to start the federal post on Oct. 5. His district covers the Huron County area along Lake Erie’s western shore, and House Republicans will need to fill the vacancy as lawmakers head into a busy fall session.
The departure comes as the House faces a packed fall calendar and with the midterm election one month out. House leadership had not announced a timeline for naming a replacement as of Sunday evening.
Under Ohio law, House Republicans caucus to choose a successor to serve the remainder of the term, while voters will elect the next full-term representative on Nov. 3.
The National Fraud Enforcement Division handles complex federal fraud cases. Swearingen’s move from the statehouse to the Justice Department marks a rare direct jump from the Ohio legislature to federal prosecution work.