Voters in Columbus’ 3rd congressional district have once more sent U.S. Rep. Joyce Beatty to Washington, D.C., as they have done every two years since 2012.
Beatty, a Jefferson Township resident and five-term Democratic congresswoman, won reelection to the U.S. House on Tuesday. She defeated her Republican opponent Lee Stahley, who garnered 29% of the vote, in the final unofficial election results, winning with 70% of the vote.
In a statement, Beatty stated, “I am appreciative for the support of the people of the 3rd Congressional District. “I’m eager to serve again in Congress and defend the interests of the people.”
Since she was initially elected to the vacant seat in 2012, Beatty has served as a representative for Ohio’s 3rd Congressional district, one of the state’s most strongly blue districts. Prior to that, she served as senior vice president at Ohio State University and was the first female to chair her party’s caucus during her five terms in the Ohio House.
Beatty is a congresswoman who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus and participates in numerous task forces, committees, and caucuses. Beatty is one of them and serves as the head of the subcommittee on diversity and inclusion. She is also a member of the Joint Economic Committee and the Committee on Financial Services.
She participated in efforts to get the $1.2 trillion Investment and Jobs Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and signed into law by President Joe Biden in November 2021, through the House during her previous tenure.
In addition to serving on the Whitehall City Council in the past, Stahley, a licensed optician who teaches at Ohio State’s College of Optometry, is a member of the Franklin County GOP central committee.
Reforms to health insurance, minimal federal government involvement, investments in policing and public safety, and term limits for elected officials were all part of the Republican candidate’s program.
Beatty previously stated that among her goals for a second term included codifying Roe v. Wade to restore abortion rights across the country, defending Social Security and Medicare, establishing universal pre-k to ensure that all children in Ohio are eligible for public preschool, and bringing back monthly payments through the increased Child Tax Credit.
As a result of the deadly shooting of 20-year-old Black man Donovan Lewis by a Columbus police officer earlier this year, Beatty has also committed to pressing for congressional action on police reform.