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Ohioans in Marietta Condemn Jon Husted For Taking More Than $116k From Epstein Co-Conspirator

Husted continues dodging basic questions that Ohioans deserve answered

MARIETTA, OHIO — In case you missed it, Ohioans in Marietta called out Senator Jon Husted for taking more than $116,000 directly from Epstein co-conspirator Les Wexner, including a maximum donation just a few weeks before he voted to block the release of the Epstein files. 

The rally in Marietta comes as Husted continues to dodge questions and accountability after voting against the release of the Epstein files. Recently, Husted ran away from a reporter when asked why he accepted money from an Epstein co-conspirator. 

Ohioans have also protested Husted in Columbus, Toledo, Youngstown, Westlake, Steubenville, and Lima, and Husted was called out for being a “pedophile protector” at an event in Norwalk. Husted is the only Senator up for re-election to take Wexner’s money, and has taken 10 times as much money from the Epstein co-conspirator than any other sitting Senator.

See For Yourself:

WTAP: Marietta protest targets Ohio Sen. Jon Husted

  • WTAP: [Organizers] allege Husted accepted more than $116,000 tied to billionaire Les Wexner. Wexner has been publicly linked to Jeffrey Epstein, and has been described by protesters as an Epstein co-conspirator.
  • Geneva Cech, concerned Ohioan: It’s important that our representatives are looking out for our best interest. It’s important that our representatives care for us. And if we have a senator who is willing to accept donations from somebody covering up for a child predator, it’s important that we know this information.
  • Cech: And come election time, I hope people can recognize that Jon Husted is not looking out for the everyday Ohioan. He’s looking to support and protect his billionaire donors.

Marietta Times: Picture This: Speakers criticize Husted donations

  • The Ohio Democratic Party held what organizers described as a protest Wednesday in Marietta focused on U.S. Sen. Jon Husted’s campaign contributions from Les Wexner, who had worked with Jeffrey Epstein from the late 80’s into the late 2000’s
  • Speakers criticized Husted for accepting contributions from Wexner and for his vote on a procedural motion related to the release of Epstein-related files. Several speakers said the issue raised broader concerns about political accountability, transparency and support for survivors of sexual abuse.
  • “Survivors have to face the double-edged sword, first the abuse, and then the disbelief,” said Joy Cowdery, a former teacher from Marietta, arguing that elected officials should support the release of information related to Epstein.
  • Organizers said Husted has received $116,892 from Wexner over more than 20 years, including a maximum legal contribution last year. The Marietta event was billed by organizers as the seventh Ohio protest on the issue, following events in Columbus, Toledo, Youngstown, Westlake, Steubenville and Lima.

TiffinOhio.net: Ohioans call out Jon Husted over donations from Epstein ‘co-conspirator’, now in Marietta

  • Ohioans in Marietta this week became the latest residents to publicly call out U.S. Sen. Jon Husted over the $116,892 he accepted from billionaire Les Wexner and his 2025 vote on an amendment to release federal records related to Jeffrey Epstein.
  • The Marietta gathering follows months of similar events in Columbus, Toledo, Youngstown, Westlake, Steubenville, Lima and Norwalk. Most of the people stepping to the microphone have been local residents — teachers, city and school-board officials and, in at least one case, a survivor of sexual abuse — who say they want answers about Husted’s judgment.
  • Campaign finance records from the Federal Election Commission and the Ohio Secretary of State, reviewed by TiffinOhio.net, show Husted accepted $116,892 from Wexner across 21 contributions between 2001 and 2025. The most recent was a $3,500 maximum donation to his Senate campaign on July 3, 2025. According to those records, Husted is the only senator up for re-election in 2026 who took money from Wexner during the current election cycle.
  • About two months after that July contribution, on Sept. 10, 2025, Husted voted against an amendment offered by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer that would have directed the attorney general to publicly release documents related to Epstein. The amendment, attached to the annual defense authorization bill, failed on a largely party-line vote of 51–49.

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NEW DATA: Ohio Families Have Spent $483 More on Gas Since Trump Began His Reckless War With Iran

COLUMBUS, OH – As Donald Trump’s deadly and costly war with Iran continues on, with no end in sight, newly released data from the Senate Joint Economic Committee reveals that Ohio households have spent $483 more on the gas they need to drive to work, pick up their kids, and run their daily errands since the start of Trump’s reckless and unpopular war.

“Donald Trump has said he ‘doesn’t think about’ the impact of his actions on Ohioans’ finances – and his war with Iran continues to drive up costs for Ohio families,” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Marisa Nahem. “At a time when Ohioans are struggling with sky-high prices, including for gas, healthcare, housing, childcare, and nearly every part of daily life, Trump and Washington Republicans like Max Miller, Mike Turner, and Mike Carey have proven that they can only be counted on to make life more difficult and less affordable for Ohio families. While Trump and Washington Republicans keep raising costs for everyone but their billionaire and corporate special interest donors, Ohio Democrats are fighting every day to lower costs and make life affordable for hardworking Ohioans in every corner of our state.”

A reminder: In addition to the devastating impacts of Trump’s war with Iran, Ohioans are already suffering under Trump and Washington Republicans’ economic agenda, with Ohio losing nearly one-third of Affordable Care Act enrollees after Washington Republicans refused to extend the ACA premium tax credits and raised healthcare costs. Ohioans are also paying skyrocketing rates for utilities as this summer’s electric bills could top $800, a 17% increase from last summer. President Trump and Washington Republicans’ budget bill, signed into law just over a year ago, is also getting slammed as meaning that “kids are going to have less to eat,” after it made the largest cuts to SNAP in the history of the program.

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BOMBSHELL REPORT: Jon Husted Campaign Chair Exposed For Sexual Misconduct With Minor

NBC News: Ohio man who was jailed following accusations of sexual misconduct with a minor resigns from [Husted] Senate campaign

COLUMBUS, OHIO — Bombshell reporting from NBC News has revealed that Andrew Havas, Jon Husted’s campaign chair in Ohio’s largest county, served jail time after committing sexual misconduct with a minor. Jon Husted enlisted Havas as a chair despite his 2009 guilty plea to assaulting a minor being public record.

The revelation is the latest in a disturbing pattern around Jon Husted’s top endorsers. Husted is still proudly touting the endorsement of State Representative Rodney Creech, who has been accused of sexual misconduct involving a minor relative, while his current Sandusky County campaign chair also came under fire for talking to young girls about their sex lives.

Ohio Democratic Party Senior Communications Advisor Tony Wen released the following statement:

“Andrew Havas’ record of sexual misconduct with a minor was public, but Jon Husted had no problem keeping him as a campaign chair until people started asking questions. Even now, Jon Husted continues to proudly tout two other endorsements from allies who have faced disturbing sexual allegations involving minors. Ohioans deserve to know why Husted keeps embracing predators.”

Read more: 

NBC News: Ohio man who was jailed following accusations of sexual misconduct with a minor resigns from GOP Senate campaign

  • A man who had once served jail time following accusations of sexual misconduct with a minor resigned this week from his volunteer position as a surrogate for Ohio GOP Sen. Jon Husted’s re-election campaign.
  • Andrew Havas was named a county campaign chair in Franklin County by Husted’s campaign in December, and resigned after NBC News reached out for comment on this story. Havas was one of 112 volunteers appointed to represent the campaign in Ohio’s 88 counties.
  • In 2009, Havas pleaded guilty in a case related to an incident involving a 15-year-old in Ohio’s Mahoning County. Havas, who was 22 when the crime occurred, according to court records, was sentenced to 90 days in jail, ordered to pay a fine and ordered to have no contact with the minor at the center of the case.
  • The criminal complaint from 2008 accused Havas of “being reckless” with regard to the victim’s age. He was accused of knowing that the minor was older than 13 but younger than 16. Havas was originally charged with sexual misconduct with a minor, according to the criminal complaint. His charges were later reduced to one misdemeanor assault charge, according to a copy of the case file.
  • He served his sentence in the Mahoning County jail from May to August 2009, according to records provided by the county sheriff’s office.
  • Havas, who also serves as vice chair of the Franklin County GOP executive committee, has at least twice this year appeared at events as a representative of the Husted campaign. One event, on June 12, listed Havas alongside three others as the host of a luncheon supporting Husted in Columbus. Another event, a joint meeting of the Gahanna Republican Club and the New Albany area 1776ers on June 25, listed Havas as a speaker and a “representative for Jon Husted.”
  • In December, Havas introduced Husted at a Christmas party, addressing a crowd alongside the senator and shaking his hand before passing him a microphone.
  • The previously unreported sexual misconduct case against a member of Husted’s campaign comes as Democrats have sought to highlight donations the candidate received in the past from Les Wexner, an Ohio businessman who had ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
  • In several TV ads this year, the Brown campaign has criticized Husted for accepting donations from Wexner. The FBI named Wexner, the billionaire former CEO of Victoria’s Secret, as an Epstein co-conspirator in a 2019 file that the Justice Department released this year in response to the law passed by Congress.
  • In one of Brown’s ads targeting Husted over the Wexner donations, a narrator tells viewers, “Of all 535 members of Congress, who’s taken the most money from associates of Jeffrey Epstein? Jon Husted, that’s who.”

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Mike Turner Faces Ethics Complaint over Misuse of Campaign Funds

COLUMBUS, OH – In a new ethics complaint filed with the Office of Congressional Conduct, the Chair of the Montgomery County Democrats stated that “the facts strongly suggest that Rep. Turner and his campaign appear to have violated federal law and the Rules of the House of Representatives by filing a false campaign finance report and converting campaign funds to personal use.” This complaint details Turner’s campaign spending of over $55,000 on restaurants and tens of thousands of dollars on lodging, not only to Trump’s defunct “Trump International Hotel DC,” but also in Dayton and Washington, D.C. – both cities where Turner already has a property.

“Ohioans deserve answers from Mike Turner about why he’s using campaign dollars to fund his lavish lifestyle – and why he seemingly lied about it on his campaign finance report,” said Ohio Democratic Party Communications Director Marisa Nahem. “At a time when backroom deals in Columbus and Washington have led to a culture of corruption that is hurting hardworking families, Mike Turner has made clear with his repeated campaign finance controversies that he is part of the problem. Ohioans deserve better, and they’ll send Turner packing in November.”

As this most recent ethics complaint emphasizes, “there are no violations that undermine the public’s faith in the election system and in our elected officials more than a candidate using their campaign as a personal ATM and lying to the public about how those funds were actually used.” Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Turner has faced scrutiny over his campaign finances. A nonpartisan watch group has called outTurner as one of the most corrupt members of Congress and in 2020, Turner was hit with complaints with the FEC and Office of Congressional Ethics over misusing campaign funds after it was found that he spent $70,000 in campaign cash on meals.

Read the new ethics complaint facing Mike Turner here.

Background on Turner’s Ethics Violation:

  • In 2025 alone, Mike Turner’s “Citizens for Turner” re-election campaign committee reported to the FEC that it spent over $55,000 on restaurants, all with the purpose description of “meeting expense.” This includes expenses at luxury restaurants such as Nobu, and a restaurant in Honolulu, Hawaii.
  • Turner’s campaign also reported spending over $23,000 on lodging expenses — including  over $10,000 for multiple hotels in Washington, D.C. (despite the fact that Turner owns a home near the Capitol), and over $8,000 for lodging expenses in Dayton (despite this being Turner’s hometown). These expenses were not reported as officially-connected expenses for travel for official staff.
  • Additionally, Turner’s campaign allegedly spent over $2,500 at the Trump International Hotel DC in the first quarter of 2025 – despite the fact that the hotel has not existed since 2022. With this reporting of a disbursement to a defunct entity, Turner’s campaign appears to have violated the law, lied to the public, and now has called into question the truthfulness of other information reported in campaign finance filings.

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Ohioans in Marietta Call Out Jon Husted For Taking More Than $116k From Epstein Co-Conspirator

REPORTING: Husted Took $116,892 From Les Wexner, Including A Max Donation Just A Few Weeks Before Blocking Epstein Files Release

MARIETTA, OHIO — This week, Ohioans in Marietta called out Senator Jon Husted for taking more than $116,000 directly from Epstein co-conspirator Les Wexner, including a maximum donation just a few weeks before he voted to block the release of the Epstein files. 

The rally in Marietta comes as Husted continues to dodge questions and accountability after voting against the release of the Epstein files. Recently, Husted ran away from a reporter when asked why he accepted money from an Epstein co-conspirator. 

Ohioans have also protested Husted in Columbus, Toledo, Youngstown, Westlake, Steubenville, and Lima, and Husted was called out for being a “pedophile protector” at an event in Norwalk. Husted is the only Senator up for re-election to take Wexner’s money, and has taken 10 times as much money from the Epstein co-conspirator than any other sitting Senator.

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