Ed DeChant is a Democratic

Ohio Democratic Party

The Ohio Democratic Party is the Ohio affiliate to the United States Democratic Party. Former Ohio House Minority Leader Chris Redfern is the Ohio Democratic Party chairman. Redfern was elected to office in December 2005...

 politician who formerly served in the Ohio House of Representatives

Ohio House of Representatives

The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....

. A native of Lorain, Ohio

Lorain, Ohio

Lorain is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio on Lake Erie, at the mouth of the Black River, about 30 miles west of Cleveland....

, DeChant was initially elected to the Ohio House in 1948. He was sworn into office in 1949, in what would be the beginning of a long career in the legislature. For the most of his tenure he represented an at-large

At-Large

At-large is a designation for representative members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent the whole membership of the body , rather than a subset of that membership...

 of Lorain County

Lorain County, Ohio

Lorain County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio, and is considered to be a part of what is locally referred to as Greater Cleveland. As of the 2010 census, its population was 301,356. an increase from 284,664 in 2000...

. However, following the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the House went to district representation. He won election to the newly apportioned 74th District in 1966.

DeChant retired from the House in 1968, after serving in the House for twenty years, or ten terms. He returned to private law practice following his retirement from politics.