Mike DeWine: From Writing Ohio's Death Penalty Law to Calling for Repeal

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Mike DeWine helped write the 1980s law that restored Ohio's death penalty as a conservative Catholic state senator, then on June 16, 2026, as governor, called for abolishing capital punishment. His career began after law school in 1972 as an assistant prosecutor in Greene County, where he was elected county prosecutor in 1976. In 1993, while he was lieutenant governor, his 22 year old daughter Rebecca was killed in a car crash, and he later pushed for a 0.08 percent national blood alcohol limit and tire aging safety rules. He lost a 1992 Senate race to John Glenn after asking what on earth Glenn had done, then won a Senate seat in the 1994 Republican wave.

In the Senate he joined the bipartisan Gang of 14 to preserve the judicial filibuster and was one of two Republicans to vote against shielding gun makers from liability suits, but lost to Sherrod Brown by more than 12 points in 2006. As attorney general from 2010 he cleared a backlog of nearly 14,000 untested rape kits, sued opioid makers, and used the Art Modell law to keep the Columbus Crew in Ohio. As governor from 2018 he closed schools and events early in the COVID-19 pandemic, signed the heartbeat bill and permitless carry, vetoed a ban on gender affirming care for minors that lawmakers overrode, and weighs commuting more than 108 death sentences.

• After the 2019 Dayton shooting, a vigil crowd chanted do something and he proposed a 17 point gun plan with red flag provisions.
• His COVID measures included canceling the Arnold Sports Festival and a Vax-a-Million lottery.
• After his veto was overridden in January 2024, he issued executive orders banning gender affirming surgery for minors.
• He cited lack of deterrence, decades long appeals, and the toll on prison staff as reasons to end executions.
• In an August 2026 New York Times op-ed he paired stricter border enforcement with expanded legal immigration.