By Megan Alley
Sun Reporter
State Senator Joe Uecker is leaving his legislative job to work for the Ohio Department of Transportation.
Uecker, a Republican who represents Ohio’s 14th District, which includes all of Adams, Brown, Clermont, and Scioto Counties as well as a portion of Lawrence County, announced his decision in a press release on Aug. 8.
He will officially resign at the end of this month; Aug. 31 will be his last day.
Uecker will be joining ODOT’s economic development team, according to an Aug. 9 open letter from Uecker to his constituents.
“After a series of recent meetings with the Ohio Department of Transportation they have invited me to join their economic development team. It has been a difficult decision for many reasons. However, in the days following our meeting, I kept finding myself thinking about the new opportunity and the kind of impact I could have by using my experience and skills in continuing my work to expand and improve economic development in Southwest Ohio,” Uecker wrote.
Senator Joe Uecker is serving his second term in the Ohio Senate. Notably, he serves on the Senate Committee on Transportation, Commerce and Labor, as well as others.
“Often times, businesses wish to relocate to our great state, but are unable to do so due to insufficient roads and transportation infrastructure. When those needs aren’t met, the business usually goes to a different state. In this new role, my responsibility will be to work with businesses looking to move or expand in Ohio and to ensure their infrastructure needs are met in an efficient and timely manner. As our economy continues to boom, thanks to conservative leadership on both the national and the state levels, this job is more important than ever, and I could not be more excited to contribute to our community’s economic development in a major way,” Uecker wrote.
Uecker’s term in the term in the State Senate ends in December 2020. Uecker was planning a run to be the next Clermont County Commissioner, but now, he said that he’s withdrawing his candidacy.
On Aug. 9, Senate President Larry Obhof announced that the process to fill Uecker’s vacant State Senate seat will happen at the end of August.
The instructions posted online read that the Senate Republican Caucus will accept applications for the vacancy until 4 p.m. on Aug. 23. Applicants should send a letter expressing interest in the position, a resume, and any other supporting materials that the applicant considers relevant to his or her qualifications. Application materials should be sent or hand-delivered to:
The Honorable Larry Obhof
President, Ohio Senate
Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square, Room 201
Columbus, OH 43215
Applicants are also asked to send an identical copy of the application to the Senate Chief of Staff:
Mr. John Barron
Chief of Staff, Ohio Senate
Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square, Room 201
Columbus, OH 43215
Obhof will appoint a screening committee to review the applications. Applicants are expected to be available to meet in person with the screening committee and will be contacted by the majority caucus to schedule any necessary interviews.
In his open letter, Uecker thanked the community for its support of his work.
He wrote, “It has been the honor of a lifetime to represent the 14th Senate District. Thank you all for the many years of support and for allowing me the high honor of representing you in the Ohio Senate. I am eternally grateful for all that you have done for me. I hope that I have represented you well and have made you proud.”