Former Ohio House Speaker Sentenced for $60M Bribery Scheme

Facts

• Former GOP Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, Larry Householder, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday for his role in what prosecutors have called potentially the largest corruption scandal in the history of Ohio.¹
• The state alleged that the FirstEnergy Corporation funneled $60M to Householder in exchange for him rushing through the House a bill that granted the company a bailout for two of the company's nuclear energy plants worth $1.3B in 2019. Five individuals were charged in connection, with a federal investigation still ongoing.¹
• US District Judge Timothy Black called Householder "a bully with a lust for power" at the hearing, sentencing the 64-year-old to 20 years in prison with a year of probation. The defense had requested a sentence of 12-18 months.²
• Householder and ex-GOP state chair Matt Borges were found guilty three months ago. A former strategist and a lobbyist both pleaded guilty to the charges in 2020 and testified against Householder and Borges, with FirstEnergy admitting that it bribed Householder in 2021, paying a $230M fine.³
• First investigated by the FBI in 2004 for suspected kickbacks, Householder had FirstEnergy reportedly funnel money into his dark money group Generation Now. The group bankrolled allied politicians, public relations campaigns for the nuclear bailout, and a term-limit campaign that would have benefited Householder and his allies.³
• Householder said in court that he plans to appeal his conviction. Borges is set to be sentenced on Friday for offering a bribe to a campaign operative to gain insight into the referendum campaign to repeal the FirstEnergy bailout.⁴

Sources: ¹New York Times, ²Associated Press, ³The Enquirer, and ⁴WOUB Public Media.

Narratives

• Democratic narrative, as provided by The New Republic. This is yet another example of the Republican rot that has taken hold in state and local governments across the country. While the FirstEnergy bailout was immensely unpopular with Ohio voters of all political stripes, the Republicans have continued to obstruct efforts to fully repeal the legislation — meaning Ohio's taxpayers are still paying for this dirty deal. Ohio is a profoundly gerrymandered state, and the GOP has gotten far too comfortable in power, with many of them implicated in the scandal, even if they were never charged.
• Republican narrative, as provided by Cleveland. Let's not forget that the bailout would not have passed without the support of Democrats at the statehouse, and Householder was only able to hold onto the speaker's gavel for so long because of them. It was also a Democrat speaker who established the powers that gave speakers inordinate power over the state government, power that enabled Householder in his situation. Democrats also bear some responsibility for their carelessness in enabling Householder over the years.