Rep. Shane Wilkin | Litter Media

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(Hillsboro) – Republican State Representative Shane Wilkin (R-Hillsboro) announced that he will be a candidate for Ohio’s 17^th Senate District in 2022. Since 2018, Wilkin has served as the state representative for Ohio’s 91^st House District and was previously elected three terms as a Highland County Commissioner.

Rep. Shane Wilkin Photo Courtesy of Ohio House of Representatives

State Senator Bob Peterson (R-Sabina), who currently serves in the senate seat, is term-limited at the end of 2022. Ohio’s 17^th Senate District includes Clinton, Fayette, Gallia, Highland, Jackson, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, and Vinton Counties.

Rep. Wilkin issued the following statement about his campaign for the Ohio Senate: “It has been a great honor for me to serve the people of the 91^stDistrict in the Ohio House. During my time as state representative, I have worked tirelessly to help businesses remain open during the pandemic and bring significant resources back to our community to create jobs so the families of our district can thrive. I have been able to use my experience as a small business owner to cut wasteful government spending and put more money back into your pocket where it belongs. I am confident that Ohio’s best days are ahead of us, and I look forward to continuing to provide conservative solutions to our most pressing issues as a member of the Ohio Senate.”

This past week, Rep. Wilkin’s legislation, the Ohio Business Fairness Act, was passed unanimously by the Ohio Senate and sent to Governor DeWine for his signature. The bill was crafted as a result of the decisions made during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, where some businesses were forced to close their doors while others were allowed to remain open. Wilkin’s legislation would end that inequity and level the playing field for all of Ohio’s businesses, particularly smaller locally-owned businesses.

In his past elections for the Ohio House, Wilkin was endorsed by the Buckeye Firearms Association, the National Rifle Association (earning an “A” rating), the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB Ohio), and Ohio Right to Life. Additionally, Rep. Wilkin earned the Award for Conservative Achievement from the American Conservative Union – one of the highest ratings for conservative leadership in Ohio issued by the founders of CPAC. Rep. Wilkin and his wife, Kristy, live near Hillsboro with their two daughters, Piper and Parker.

Wilkin is actively involved in the community. He is a small business owner and previously served as the Chairman of the Ohio Valley Regional Development Commission and board member of both the Community Improvement Corporation and the Highland District Hospital Foundation.

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State Representative Shane Wilkin, a Republican from Hillsboro, has expressed displeasure over the idea of giving away five separate one- million-dollar jackpots to Ohioans who have received a COVID-19 vaccination in an opt-in lottery that Governor Mike DeWine says was his idea.

Wilkin says staff on the Ohio Controlling Board were looking at ways that more than $5 million in funding could be revoked after it was approved in Controlling Board meetings to in 2020 and 2021 for “critical outreach to Ohio citizens,” “public awareness and media campaigns,” and “other non-testing response activities at Ohio Department of Health.”

In an interview with Columbus TV’s ABC6, Wikin said- “My gut reaction was, ‘you’ve got to be kidding me,'” Wilkin said of hearing the Vax-A-Million news last week. “Seriously: this is the best way we can do this?

“I simply disagree with this method of incentive for someone taking the vaccine,” he added.

A spokesman for Ohio’s Office of Budget and Management said Monday that the Vax-A-Million falls within those purposes and Governor Mike DeWine defended the Vax-A-Million idea during a Monday press conference.

“The CARES Act requires that the payments from the Coronavirus Relief Fund only be used to cover expenses that are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency…were not accounted for in the budget most recently approved…and were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020, and ends on December 31, 2021,” said spokesman Pete LuPiba. “The (Vax-A-Million) outreach campaign satisfies each of these three prongs.”

Both Ohio’s Attorney General and the Auditor of State have released statements to acknowledge that Vax-A-Million appears to be legal.

Ohio Department of Health director Stephanie McCloud defended the sweepstakes.

“It is legal to use the funds for what we’re using them for,” McCloud said. “We have to use this money; the idea behind this money is broadly interpreted in the statute to bring awareness, help encourage and facilitate uptake of the vaccine.”

McCloud said the money was not requested from the Ohio Controlling Board with the intent of later running a sweepstakes, but that “everything’s on the table at all points.”

“We knew we were going to find innovative ways to bring vaccine education and vaccine uptake to Ohioans,” she said.