| State: | Ohio |
| District Number: | 6 |
| Image Caption: | Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023 |
| Party: | Republican |
| Residence: | Salem |
| Distribution Ref: | [1] |
| Percent Urban: | 42.68 |
| Percent Rural: | 57.32 |
| Population: | 778,876[2] |
| Population Year: | 2022 |
| Median Income: | $57,817 |
| Percent White: | 85.6 |
| Percent Hispanic: | 3.2 |
| Percent Black: | 6.3 |
| Percent Asian: | 0.5 |
| Percent More Than One Race: | 4.0 |
| Percent Other Race: | 0.5 |
| Cpvi: | R+16[3] |
Ohio's 6th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district which is represented by Representative Michael Rulli of the Republican Party. Rulli was elected to the seat after he defeated Democrat Michael Kripchak in the June 11, 2024 special election, caused by the resignation of incumbent Bill Johnson (R) on January 21, 2024.
This district runs along the eastern side of the state, bordering West Virginia and Pennsylvania. It stretches from Marietta through several Ohio River industrial towns all the way to the city of Youngstown.[4]
When Bob McEwen was first elected in 1980, the sixth district of Ohio consisted of Adams, Brown, Clinton, Fayette, Highland, Pickaway, Pike, Scioto and Ross counties plus Clermont County outside the city of Loveland, Harrison Township in Vinton County and the Warren County townships of Clearcreek, Deerfield, Hamilton, Harlan, Massie, Salem and Wayne.[5] At that time, The Washington Post described the sixth district as "a fail-safe Republican district".[6]
The Ohio General Assembly redrew the sixth district following the results of the 1980 United States census. The boundaries from 1983 to 1987 included all of Adams, Clinton, Fayette, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Pike, Ross, Scioto, Vinton and Warren counties, plus Waterloo and York townships in Athens County; Wayne Township in Clermont County; Concord, Jasper, Marion, Perry, Union and Wayne townships in Fayette County; and Washington Township and the cities of Miamisburg and West Carrollton in Montgomery County.[7]
Beginning with the 100th Congress in 1987, adjustments were made by the legislature to the boundaries; reapportionment between censuses is unusual in American politics. A small part of the Montgomery County territory was detached, as were parts of Fayette County in Washington Court House in Union Township and the townships of Jasper and Marion. Part of Brown County was added, Jackson and Eagle Townships. These were the boundaries for the rest of McEwen's service in Congress.[8]
The district was largely rural and agricultural with no large cities. One of the major industries was the United States Department of Energy's Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant at Piketon, which manufactured uranium for nuclear weapons. The district was 97 per cent white with a median household income of $21,761.[9]
In 1992, the district was altered significantly to accommodate Ohio's loss of two House seats in redistricting. The state legislature anticipated that Clarence Miller of the neighboring Tenth District would retire, and thus combined the southern end of his district (which included Athens, Gallipolis, and Ironton) with most of the area previously represented by McEwen. Although the district did not include Miller's hometown of Lancaster, Miller decided not to retire and instead challenged McEwen in the Sixth District primary in 1992. The campaign was bitter, and McEwen eked out only a narrow victory. In November, McEwen was upset by Democrat Ted Strickland, a prison psychologist. Strickland himself was defeated in 1994 by Republican Frank Cremeans, but won the seat back in 1996.
For 2002 the district was shifted dramatically eastward. At the same time, it effectively ended the career of James Traficant in the neighboring 17th District by placing his hometown of Poland into the 6th. Traficant opted to run in his old district and lost. The district currently includes all of Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Gallia, Guernsey, Jackson, Jefferson, Lawrence, Meigs, Monroe, Noble and Washington counties, and portions of Athens, Mahoning, Muskingum, Scioto and Tuscarawas counties.
In 2010, Republican Bill Johnson defeated incumbent Democrat Charles Wilson, returning the seat to Republicans for the first time since 1997. Following the 2010 United States census, the bounds of the sixth district were changed again as Ohio lost two seats in Congress.[10]
In recent years and like much of coal country, the district has swung decidedly toward the Republican Party at local, state and national levels. After being a dead heat in presidential elections in 2000, 2004 and 2008, it swung hard to Donald Trump in 2016; Trump carried it with 69 percent of the vote over Hillary Clinton, his best showing in the state; the district swung to the right by 30 percent, more than any other in the nation. Trump won it almost as easily over Joe Biden in 2020, with 72 percent of the vote, again his best showing in Ohio.
| Member | Party | Year(s) | Cong ress | Electoral history | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District established March 4, 1813 | |||||||
| Vacant | nowrap | March 4, 1813 – April 20, 1813 | Member-elect John Stark Edwards died before commencement of term. | ||||
| align=left | Reasin Beall | Democratic-Republican | nowrap | April 20, 1813 – June 7, 1814 | Elected to finish Edwards's term. Resigned. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | June 7, 1814 – October 11, 1814 | |||||
| align=left | David Clendenin | Democratic-Republican | nowrap | October 11, 1814 – March 3, 1817 | Elected to finish Beall's term. Also elected the same day in 1814 to the next term. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Peter Hitchcock | Democratic-Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1819 | Elected in 1816. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | John Sloane | Democratic-Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1819 – March 3, 1823 | Elected in 1816. Re-elected in 1818. Re-elected in 1820. Redistricted to the . | ||
| align=left | Duncan McArthur | Democratic-Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1823 – March 3, 1825 | Elected in 1822. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | John Thomson | Jacksonian | nowrap | March 4, 1825 – March 3, 1827 | Elected in 1824. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | William Creighton Jr. | Anti-Jacksonian | nowrap | March 4, 1827 – ????, 1828 | Elected in 1826. Resigned to when appointed U.S. District Court for the District of Ohio. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | ????, 1828 – December 19, 1828 | |||||
| align=left | Francis Swaine Muhlenberg | Anti-Jacksonian | nowrap | December 19, 1828 – March 3, 1829 | Elected to finish Creighton's term. Was not elected to the next term. | ||
| align=left | William Creighton Jr. | Anti-Jacksonian | nowrap | March 4, 1829 – March 3, 1833 | Elected in 1828. Re-elected in 1830. | ||
Samuel Finley Vinton | Anti-Jacksonian | nowrap | March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1835 | Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1832. Re-elected in 1834. | |||
| Whig | nowrap | March 4, 1835 – March 3, 1837 | |||||
| align=left | Calvary Morris | Whig | nowrap | March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1843 | Elected in 1836. Re-elected in 1838. Re-elected in 1840. | ||
| align=left | Henry St. John | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1843 – March 3, 1847 | Elected in 1843. Re-elected in 1844. | ||
| align=left | Rodolphus Dickinson | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1847 – March 20, 1849 | Elected in 1846. Re-elected in 1848. Died. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | March 20, 1849 – December 3, 1849 | |||||
| align=left | Amos E. Wood | Democratic | nowrap | December 3, 1849 – November 19, 1850 | Elected to finish Dickinson's term. Died. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | November 19, 1850 – January 7, 1851 | |||||
| align=left | John Bell | Whig | nowrap | January 7, 1851 – March 3, 1851 | Elected to finish Wood's term. | ||
| align=left | Frederick W. Green | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853 | Elected in 1850. Redistricted to the . | ||
| align=left | Andrew Ellison | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 | Elected in 1852. | ||
| align=left | Jonas R. Emrie | Opposition | nowrap | March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857 | Elected in 1854. | ||
| align=left | Joseph R. Cockerill | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1857 – March 3, 1859 | Elected in 1856. | ||
| align=left | William Howard | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861 | Elected in 1858. | ||
| align=left | Chilton A. White | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1861 – March 3, 1865 | Elected in 1860. Re-elected in 1862. | ||
| align=left | Reader W. Clarke | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1865 – March 3, 1869 | Elected in 1864. Re-elected in 1866. | ||
| align=left | John Armstrong Smith | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1869 – March 3, 1873 | Elected in 1868. Re-elected in 1870. | ||
| align=left | Isaac R. Sherwood | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1873 – March 3, 1875 | Elected in 1872. | ||
| align=left | Frank H. Hurd | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877 | Elected in 1874. | ||
| align=left | Jacob Dolson Cox | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1879 | Elected in 1876. | ||
| align=left | William D. Hill | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1879 – March 3, 1881 | Elected in 1878. | ||
| align=left | James M. Ritchie | Republican | nowrap | March 3, 1881 – March 3, 1883 | Elected in 1880. | ||
| align=left | William D. Hill | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887 | Elected in 1882. Re-elected in 1884. | ||
| align=left | Melvin M. Boothman | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1887 – March 3, 1891 | Elected in 1886. Re-elected in 1888. | ||
| align=left | Dennis D. Donovan | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1893 | Elected in 1890. Redistricted to the . | ||
| align=left | George W. Hulick | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1893 – March 3, 1897 | Elected in 1892. Re-elected in 1894. | ||
| align=left | Seth W. Brown | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1897 – March 3, 1901 | Elected in 1896. Re-elected in 1898. | ||
| align=left | Charles Q. Hildebrant | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1901 – March 3, 1905 | Elected in 1900. Re-elected in 1902. | ||
| align=left | Thomas E. Scroggy | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1905 – March 3, 1907 | Elected in 1904. | ||
| align=left | Matthew Denver | Democratic | nowrap | March 4, 1907 – March 3, 1913 | Elected in 1906. Re-elected in 1908. Re-elected in 1910. | ||
| align=left | Simeon D. Fess | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1915 | Elected in 1912. Redistricted to the . | ||
| align=left | Charles Cyrus Kearns | Republican | nowrap | March 4, 1915 – March 3, 1931 | Elected in 1914. Re-elected in 1916. Re-elected in 1918. Re-elected in 1920. Re-elected in 1922. Re-elected in 1924. Re-elected in 1926. Re-elected in 1928. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | James G. Polk | Democratic | nowrap | March 3, 1931 – January 3, 1941 | Elected in 1930. Re-elected in 1932. Re-elected in 1934. Re-elected in 1936. Re-elected in 1938. Retired. | ||
| align=left | Jacob E. Davis | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1943 | Elected in 1940. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Edward Oscar McCowen | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1949 | Elected in 1942. Re-elected in 1944. Re-elected in 1946. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | James G. Polk | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1949 – April 28, 1959 | Elected in 1948. Re-elected in 1950. Re-elected in 1952. Re-elected in 1954. Re-elected in 1956. Re-elected in 1958. Died. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | April 28, 1959 – November 8, 1960 | |||||
| align=left | Ward Miller | Republican | nowrap | November 8, 1960 – January 3, 1961 | Elected to finish Polk's term. Was not a candidate for the next term. | ||
| align=left | Bill Harsha | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1981 | Elected in 1960. Re-elected in 1962. Re-elected in 1964. Re-elected in 1966. Re-elected in 1968. Re-elected in 1970. Re-elected in 1972. Re-elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Retired. | ||
| align=left | Bob McEwen | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1993 | Elected in 1980. Re-elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Ted Strickland | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1995 | Elected in 1992. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Frank Cremeans | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 1995 – January 3, 1997 | Elected in 1994. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Ted Strickland | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2007 | Elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Retired to become Governor of Ohio. | ||
| align=left | Charlie Wilson | Democratic | nowrap | January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2011 | Elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Lost re-election. | ||
| align=left | Bill Johnson | Republican | nowrap | January 3, 2011 – January 21, 2024 | Elected in 2010. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Re-elected in 2022. Resigned to become president of Youngstown State University. | ||
| Vacant | nowrap | January 21, 2024 – June 25, 2024 | 118th | ||||
| align=left | Michael Rulli | Republican | June 25, 2024 – present | Elected to finish Johnson's term. | |||
The following chart shows historic election results.
| Year | Democratic | Republican | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | Cleona Searles 30,903 | √ Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 38,044 | — | |
| 1922 | William N. Gableman 28,939 | √ Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 32,416 | — | |
| 1924 | Edward N. Kennedy 29,283 | √ Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 33,064 | — | |
| 1926 | Edward H. Kennedy 24,730 | √ Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 27,688 | — | |
| 1928 | George D. Nye 33,020 | √ Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 43,519 | — | |
| 1930 | √ James G. Polk: 37,158 | Charles C. Kearns (Incumbent): 33,300 | — | |
| 1932 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 50,913 | Mack Sauer 39,668 | — | |
| 1934 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 42,340 | Albert L. Daniels 38,538 | Mark A. Crawford: 312 | |
| 1936 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 54,904 | Emory F. Smith 45,733 | — | |
| 1938 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 43,646 | Emory F. Smith 42,847 | — | |
| 1940 | √ Jacob E. Davis: 52,769 | Chester P. Fitch 48,257 | — | |
| 1942 | Jacob E. Davis (Incumbent): 31,793 | √ Edward O. McCowen: 33,171 | — | |
| 1944 | John W. Bush 42,167 | √ Edward O. McCowen (Incumbent): 45,284 | — | |
| 1946 | Franklin E. Smith 33,013 | √ Edward O. McCowen (Incumbent): 39,992 | — | |
| 1948 | √ James G. Polk: 46,944 | Edward O. McCowen (Incumbent): 41,402 | — | |
| 1950 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 40,335 | Edward O. McCowen 38,996 | — | |
| 1952 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 67,220 | Leo Blackburn 66,896 | — | |
| 1954 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 54,044 | Leo Blackburn 49,531 | — | |
| 1956 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 72,229 | Albert L. Daniels 60,300 | — | |
| 1958 | √ James G. Polk (Incumbent): 76,566 | Elmer S. Barrett 46,924 | — | |
| 1960 | Franklin E. Smith 65,045 | √ Bill Harsha: 80,124 | — | |
| 1960 s | Gladys E. Davis 61,713 | √ Ward Miller: 76,520 | — | |
| 1962 | Jerry C. Rasor 47,737 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 72,743 | — | |
| 1964 | Franklin E. Smith 57,223 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 86,015 | — | |
| 1966 | Ottie W. Reno 35,345 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 74,847 | — | |
| 1968 | Kenneth L. Kirby 40,964 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 107,289 | — | |
| 1970 | Raymond H. Stevens 39,265 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 82,772 | — | |
| 1972 | — | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 128,394 | — | |
| 1974 | Lloyd Allan Wood 42,316 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 93,400 | — | |
| 1976 | Ted Strickland 67,067 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 107,064 | — | |
| 1978 | Ted Strickland 46,313 | √ Bill Harsha (Incumbent): 85,592 | — | |
| 1980 | Ted Strickland 84,235 | √ Bob McEwen: 101,288 | — | |
| 1982 | Lynn Alan Grimshaw 63,435 | √ Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 92,135 | — | |
| 1984 | Bob Smith 52,727 | √ Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 150,101 | — | |
| 1986 | Gordon R. Roberts 42,155 | √ Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 106,354 | Amos Seeley: 2,829 | |
| 1988 | Gordon R. Roberts 52,635 | √ Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 152,235 | — | |
| 1990 | Ray Mitchell 47,415 | √ Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 117,220 | — | |
| 1992 | √ Ted Strickland: 122,720 | Bob McEwen (Incumbent): 119,252 | — | |
| 1994 | Ted Strickland (Incumbent): 87,861 | √ Frank Cremeans: 91,263 | — | |
| 1996 | √ Ted Strickland: 118,003 | Frank Cremeans (Incumbent): 111,907 | — | |
| 1998 | √ Ted Strickland (Incumbent): 102,852 | Nancy P. Hollister 77,711 | — | |
| 2000 | √ Ted Strickland (Incumbent): 138,849 | Mike Azinger 96,966 | Kenneth R. MacCutcheon (L): 4,759 | |
| 2002 | √ Ted Strickland (Incumbent): 113,972 | Mike Halleck 77,643 | — | |
| 2004 | √ Ted Strickland (Incumbent): 223,884 | None | John Stephen Luchansky (Write-in): 145 | |
| 2006 | √ Charles A. Wilson Jr.: 131,322 | Chuck Blasdel 80,705 | — | |
| 2008 | √ Charles A. Wilson Jr. (Incumbent): 176,330 | Richard Stobbs 92,968 | Dennis Spisak (G): 13,812 | |
| 2010 | Charles A. Wilson Jr. (Incumbent): 91,039 | √ Bill Johnson: 101,580 | Richard Cadle (C): 4,963 Martin Elass (L): 4,424 | |
| 2012[11] | Charles A. Wilson Jr. 144,444 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 164,536 | ||
| 2014 | Jennifer Garrison 73,561 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 111,026 | Dennis Lambert (G): 6,065 | |
| 2016 | Michael L. Lorentz 88,780 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 213,975 | ||
| 2018 | Shawna Roberts 76,716 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 172,774 | — | |
| 2020 | Shawna Roberts 85,661 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 249,130 | ||
| 2022 | Louis Lyras: 90,500 | √ Bill Johnson (Incumbent): 189,883 | ||
| 2024 s | Michael Kripchak: 27,062 | √ Michael Rulli: 32,627 |
Election results from presidential races:
| Year | Office | Results | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | President | George W. Bush 49 - Al Gore 47% | |
| 2004 | President | George W. Bush 51 - John Kerry 49% | |
| 2008 | President | John McCain 50 - Barack Obama 48% | |
| 2012 | President | Mitt Romney 55 - Barack Obama 43% | |
| 2016 | President | Donald Trump 69 - Hillary Clinton 27% | |
| 2020 | President | Donald Trump 72 - Joe Biden 26% |