COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) – On Thursday afternoon, a Franklin County judge heard arguments in a lawsuit against Speaker of the Ohio House Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill), brought forward by members of his own party .
Republican infighting has plagued the Ohio Statehouse for more than a year now. Last January, a group of 22 Republicans broke from the rest of the party and joined Democrats to elect Stephens to speakership — beating out Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova Township), who was originally poised to win the position, and received the vote from a majority of Republicans .
New witness comes forward, causing delay in Jason Meade murder trial
Representatives Ron Ferguson (R-Wintersville), Phil Plummer (R-Dayton) and Merrin are suing Stephens and Rep. Jeff LaRe (R-Violet Township) over campaign finance account disputes . Right now, Stephens has control over the account, which has just over $3 million in it, despite the plaintiffs in the case saying a majority of Republicans elected Plummer to control the account known as OHRA.