US Representative from Ohio's 5th District doesn't even live there!

I'm a former resident of NW Ohio, many years ago.  It's a rock ribbed Republican district for the most part.  But they should not be letting their US representative, Paul Gillmor. live near Columbus, way the heck out of their distrct.

I learned this from the Defiance Crescent News online.  Part of the article is posted below.  But the conclusion should be clear--hijinks like this should not be tolerated and if this Gillmor refuses to live in the district he is elected from, he should be unceremoniously tossed out on his can.  I hope someone in NW Ohio steps forward to do the job.

Crescent-News.com
Jack Palmer - Some Republican needs to challenge U.S. Rep. Gillmor
Jack Palmer
May 3, 2007
"U.S. Rep. Paul Gillmor's residency charade has apparently taken another step down the yellow brick road of brazen "representation."

Maybe the longtime congressman thinks he lives in the land of Oz. Maybe that"s the problem.

According to a story in Wednesday"s Toledo Blade, the veteran legislator and his family have moved into a new $1 million home outside of Columbus.

The property is in Union County, not far from his family's previous residence in Dublin. The home is titled in the name of a holding company of a prominent Columbus-based law firm whose political action committee has contributed funds to his campaign.

The upsetting part should not be Gillmor's substantial personal wealth (he's among the richest members of the House of Representatives) or that his new family residence is technically owned by a holding company.

Those factors make for a better story, but they miss the point.

The upsetting part is that Gillmor has no intention anytime soon of moving his family residence into the Fifth Congressional District he represents.

Gillmor, a good and decent man, has represented the district since 9[sic--I think he's been in office for 10 terms--or since 1988--moe99]. His voting record has reflected the conservative beliefs of the majority of his constituents.

His wife, Karen, currently serves as vice chairman of the State Employment Relations Board in Ohio, which is based in Columbus. He has three minor sons who attend school in Dublin. It is obviously more convenient for his family to reside in that area.

Choosing to live there does not make him a bad person. To the contrary, it makes him a better husband and father.

But it also makes him a poor representative.

Yeah, I know, he meets the requirements of living in the Fifth District. His "official" residence is a Tiffin condominium that some neighbors have said he seldom uses, according to the Blade.

Complying with the spirit of residency rules, however, is certainly open to question.

The Fifth District includes 12 full counties and parts of four others, so it is not unreasonable to expect him to establish his family home in one of them. Gillmor apparently thinks otherwise.

That"s why somebody in this vast geographical district needs to challenge him... [snip]"

•  Please add the tag OH-05

  Thanks.

  by corncam on Mon May 07, 2007 at 11:38:13 AM PDT

•  Old News

  Back when he was running for the then open seat, this was a big issue in the repuke primary.  The retiring rep was rep Latta (dad), and his son was running to take his place.  It was alleged that the Gilmors both lived just outside of C-bus as their primary residence not the address given that was in the 5th.

  The Gilmores were, at least to my memory, big wheels in the repuke party at that time, and this seat provided a vehicle for them to move up.  If memory serves me, his sponsor is the current senior Sen from ohio, Sen Voinovich (repuke).  With the party's backing (or at least the Voinovich wing)of Gilmore over jr, Gilmore won.

  Its been a while since that inital primary, and i may be a bit off on the details.  I left Ohio (CD04 Kaptur-D) shortly thereafter to move to Michigan.

  by MI Sooner on Mon May 07, 2007 at 11:45:01 AM PDT

•  The Toledo Blade

  did a huge piece about this last Wednesday.  The Blade, if you recall, nailed Tom Noe.  When they start, they don't tend to let up.  Haven't heard the last of this yet.  Ofcourse, many in Gilmore's district don't get The Blade, however, if the news channels will pick up on it, it will certainly spread.

  He was challenged back in November.  I believe he won by about 7 percentage points...quite narrowed from his win in 2004.

  by tjb22 on Mon May 07, 2007 at 11:47:20 AM PDT

•  There is no requirement

  that one live in a U.S. House district to serve as its representative.  According to the Constitution, you just need to be a resident of the state.  Given the prevalence of gerrymandering to leave specific people in or out of districts--Illinois is the king of this, a no-exception insistence on in-district residence to be elected to Congress is not a good thing.  Do you represent the values of the constituency?  Do you understand, and are you prepared to act on, local concerns?  If the answer to these two questions is yes, I couldn't care less if my Northside Chicago Congressman lived in Springfield--especially not one county over.

  by Superribbie on Mon May 07, 2007 at 12:06:54 PM PDT

  •  As I Recall

    Wasn't a lack of district residence one of the things thrown at Tammy Duckworth during her campaign last year?  My recollection is that she and her family had retrofitted their house at significant expense to accomodate her injuries and quite simply did not have the financial resources to move the half-mile or so to be within the district borders.  I remember hearing that some of Roskam's supporters repeatedly kept bringing up her residency status throughout the campaign.

    by The Maven on Mon May 07, 2007 at 12:22:17 PM PDT

    •  Yes

      My point exactly.

      by Superribbie on Mon May 07, 2007 at 12:36:43 PM PDT

•  Point of Order

  I don't know who Jack Palmer is, so I can't speak as to any of his potential biases, but when he says,

  Yeah, I know, he meets the requirements of living in the Fifth District. His "official" residence is a Tiffin condominium that some neighbors have said he seldom uses, according to the Blade.

  he unfortunately displays a lack of understanding of the U.S. Constitution.  Article I, Section 2 plainly states:

  No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

  Note that there's nothing in there about being a resident of the district.  It is not -- and cannot be -- a requirement for a member of the House to maintain a residence within the district, let alone have it as his/herprimary residence.  So long as they reside somewhere in the state, they meet constitutional requirements.  It is an issue for the voters of that district to decide; if they are dissatisfied with a non-resident, they can vote such representative out of office.

  by The Maven on Mon May 07, 2007 at 12:11:52 PM PDT

•  Tags corrected

  Original Tags

  Rep. Paul Gillmor, Ohio's 5th Congressional District, residency, fraud

  Corrected Tags

  Paul Gillmor, OH-05, fraud, residence

  Please do not add titles, like "Rep" to names in tags, since titles change over time.

  Thanks!

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  by SarahLee on Mon May 07, 2007 at 12:12:53 PM PDT