Thomas C. Sawyer
Encyclopedia
Thomas Charles Sawyer, usually known as Tom Sawyer, is a Democratic
member of the Ohio Senate
, who has represented the 28th District since his appointment in February 2007. He served as a U.S. representative
from Ohio
from 1987 to 2003.
. After graduating from a local public high school (Sawyer originally had attended the prestigious Western Reserve Academy
, but was expelled in his senior year for academic dishonesty
), Sawyer received a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Akron
in 1968, and was a member of the Alpha Phi Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau
Fraternity. Later, Sawyer earned a master of arts degree from Akron in 1970.
Sawyer worked as an English teacher and then was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives
, where he served from 1977 to 1983. In late 1983, he was elected Mayor of Akron.
In 1984, he bet mustaches with Akron-area Republican Tom Watkins on the outcome of the Mondale/Reagan presidential election; he has been clean-shaven ever since.
After only one term as mayor, he was elected to the House of Representatives from Ohio's 14th Congressional District, based in Akron, in 1986. He was reelected seven times, never facing serious opposition in the heavily Democratic district. However, he was severely criticized for his support of the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA).
The redistricting following the 2000 census
eliminated Sawyer's district. Most of Akron was placed in the 13th District, represented by fellow Democrat Sherrod Brown
. However, Sawyer's home was placed in the Youngstown
-based 17th District. The district had been held by Democrat Jim Traficant until his expulsion from the House in 2002. Traficant tried to run for his old seat as an independent. Traficant's former protégé Tim Ryan also ran for the seat. The new 17th district was much more heavily pro-labor than Sawyer's old district and Sawyer was seen as being insufficiently pro-labor as a result of his support of free trade. In an upset, Sawyer lost the 2002 Democratic primary to Ryan, who went on to win the seat in the general election.
Sawyer ran in the 2006 primary for . He was the front-runner, and endorsed by the major papers, but lost to Betty Sutton
in a six-way race. The Ohio AFL-CIO, pointing to Sawyer's stand on NAFTA, endorsed Sutton.
, District #7. He received 54% of the vote to Republican incumbent Deborah Owens Fink's 29%, green Candidate David Kovacs's 12%, and John Jones's 5%. The race received attention due to Fink's promotion of intelligent design creationism in the classroom. Sawyer campaigned on his experience as an educator and a politician.
In February 2007, Sawyer was elected by members of the Ohio Senate Democratic caucus to fill the Ohio State Senate seat of Kimberly Zurz, who vacated to run the Ohio Department of Commerce. In the November 2008 general election, Sawyer held his senate seat by defeating Republican James Carr.
Sawyer is a member of the standing committees of Education (as ranking member); Energy and Public Utilities; Finance; and Insurance, Commerce and Labor. He is also a member of the Controlling Board; the Legislative Service Commission; the Power Siting Board; the Ohio Accountability Task Force; and the Ohio School Facilities Commission.
A member of the Ohio House of Representatives
when collective bargaining
was put into place for public employees in 1983, Sawyer is opposed to S.B. 5, which sets forth to do away with said rights. As a member of the Insurance, Commerce and Labor committee, Sawyer is playing a pivotal role in trying to curb the legislation.
Sawyer is also deeply concerned with John Kasich
's budget proposal, calling the cuts throughout government unprecedented, but also has recognized the size and scope of the state deficit. He also would like to take a closer look at efforts of privatization
of many state entities.
Alongside Senator
Gary Cates
, Sawyer introduced bipartisan legislation to commemorate Ohioan John Glenn
’s historic space flight on Feb. 20, 1962 aboard Friendship 7.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
member of the Ohio Senate
Ohio Senate
The Ohio State Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly, the legislative body for the U.S. state of Ohio. There are 33 State Senators. The state legislature meets in the state capital, Columbus. The President of the Senate presides over the body when in session, and is currently Tom...
, who has represented the 28th District since his appointment in February 2007. He served as a U.S. representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
from 1987 to 2003.
Career
Sawyer was born in Akron, OhioAkron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
. After graduating from a local public high school (Sawyer originally had attended the prestigious Western Reserve Academy
Western Reserve Academy
Western Reserve Academy is a private, mid-sized, coeducational boarding and day college preparatory school located in Hudson, Ohio.-History:...
, but was expelled in his senior year for academic dishonesty
Academic dishonesty
Academic dishonesty or academic misconduct is any type of cheating that occurs in relation to a formal academic exercise. It can include* Plagiarism: The adoption or reproduction of original creations of another author without due acknowledgment.* Fabrication: The...
), Sawyer received a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Akron
University of Akron
The University of Akron is a coeducational public research university located in Akron, Ohio, United States. The university is part of the University System of Ohio. It was founded in 1870 as a small college affiliated with the Universalist Church. In 1913 ownership was transferred to the City of...
in 1968, and was a member of the Alpha Phi Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau is a U.S. national collegiate fraternity.-History:Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity was founded in the Union Literary Society Hall of Miami University's Old Main Building in Oxford, Ohio on March 17, 1906...
Fraternity. Later, Sawyer earned a master of arts degree from Akron in 1970.
Sawyer worked as an English teacher and then was elected to 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....
, where he served from 1977 to 1983. In late 1983, he was elected Mayor of Akron.
In 1984, he bet mustaches with Akron-area Republican Tom Watkins on the outcome of the Mondale/Reagan presidential election; he has been clean-shaven ever since.
After only one term as mayor, he was elected to the House of Representatives from Ohio's 14th Congressional District, based in Akron, in 1986. He was reelected seven times, never facing serious opposition in the heavily Democratic district. However, he was severely criticized for his support of the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
(NAFTA).
The redistricting following the 2000 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
eliminated Sawyer's district. Most of Akron was placed in the 13th District, represented by fellow Democrat Sherrod Brown
Sherrod Brown
Sherrod Campbell Brown is the senior United States Senator from Ohio and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the U.S. Senate, he was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Ohio's 13th congressional district from 1993 to 2007...
. However, Sawyer's home was placed in the Youngstown
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
-based 17th District. The district had been held by Democrat Jim Traficant until his expulsion from the House in 2002. Traficant tried to run for his old seat as an independent. Traficant's former protégé Tim Ryan also ran for the seat. The new 17th district was much more heavily pro-labor than Sawyer's old district and Sawyer was seen as being insufficiently pro-labor as a result of his support of free trade. In an upset, Sawyer lost the 2002 Democratic primary to Ryan, who went on to win the seat in the general election.
Sawyer ran in the 2006 primary for . He was the front-runner, and endorsed by the major papers, but lost to Betty Sutton
Betty Sutton
Betty Sue Sutton is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. She is a member of the Democratic Party.The district includes most of the western and southern suburbs of Cleveland, and includes North Royalton, Akron, Lorain, Elyria, Strongsville, Avon and Cuyahoga Falls.-Early life and...
in a six-way race. The Ohio AFL-CIO, pointing to Sawyer's stand on NAFTA, endorsed Sutton.
Ohio Senate
In 2006 Sawyer was elected to the Ohio State Board of EducationOhio State Board of Education
The Ohio Department of Education is the state education agency of Ohio, headquartered in Columbus. The Ohio State Board of Education is the governing body of the department....
, District #7. He received 54% of the vote to Republican incumbent Deborah Owens Fink's 29%, green Candidate David Kovacs's 12%, and John Jones's 5%. The race received attention due to Fink's promotion of intelligent design creationism in the classroom. Sawyer campaigned on his experience as an educator and a politician.
In February 2007, Sawyer was elected by members of the Ohio Senate Democratic caucus to fill the Ohio State Senate seat of Kimberly Zurz, who vacated to run the Ohio Department of Commerce. In the November 2008 general election, Sawyer held his senate seat by defeating Republican James Carr.
Sawyer is a member of the standing committees of Education (as ranking member); Energy and Public Utilities; Finance; and Insurance, Commerce and Labor. He is also a member of the Controlling Board; the Legislative Service Commission; the Power Siting Board; the Ohio Accountability Task Force; and the Ohio School Facilities Commission.
Policies, platforms and initiatives
After one of Sawyer's constituents was convicted of felony tampering with records crimes related to the enrolling of her children in a neighboring school district, Sawyer introduced legislation to require a thorough review of Ohio's school open enrollment policy. "The Kelly Williams-Bolar case has raised troubling questions about Ohio's open enrollment policy which has been going on for 22 years with little examination," Sen. Sawyer said in a release. "This is why I plan on introducing legislation soon to call for a comprehensive study of the economic, educational and social effect of open enrollment in our state, and then to modify the program as needed, or end it altogether."A member of 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....
when collective bargaining
Collective bargaining
Collective bargaining is a process of negotiations between employers and the representatives of a unit of employees aimed at reaching agreements that regulate working conditions...
was put into place for public employees in 1983, Sawyer is opposed to S.B. 5, which sets forth to do away with said rights. As a member of the Insurance, Commerce and Labor committee, Sawyer is playing a pivotal role in trying to curb the legislation.
Sawyer is also deeply concerned with John Kasich
John Kasich
John Richard Kasich is the 69th and current Governor of Ohio. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing from 1983 to 2001...
's budget proposal, calling the cuts throughout government unprecedented, but also has recognized the size and scope of the state deficit. He also would like to take a closer look at efforts of privatization
Privatization
Privatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency or public service from the public sector to the private sector or to private non-profit organizations...
of many state entities.
Alongside Senator
Ohio Senate
The Ohio State Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly, the legislative body for the U.S. state of Ohio. There are 33 State Senators. The state legislature meets in the state capital, Columbus. The President of the Senate presides over the body when in session, and is currently Tom...
Gary Cates
Gary Cates
Gary Cates is a Republican politician who served in the Ohio General Assembly. He was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from 1995 to 2004, and a member of the Ohio Senate from 2005 to 2011.-Life and career:...
, Sawyer introduced bipartisan legislation to commemorate Ohioan John Glenn
John Glenn
John Herschel Glenn, Jr. is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator who was the first American to orbit the Earth and the third American in space. Glenn was a Marine Corps fighter pilot before joining NASA's Mercury program as a member of NASA's original...
’s historic space flight on Feb. 20, 1962 aboard Friendship 7.
See also
- Election Results, U.S. Representative from Ohio, 14th District
- List of United States Representatives from Ohio
External links
- The Ohio Senate - Senator Tom Sawyer official OH Senate website
- Vote Tom Sawyer official campaign website
- Project Vote Smart - Senator Thomas C. 'Tom' Sawyer (OH) profile
- Follow the Money - Thomas C. Sawyer
- 2006 campaign contributions