Jeff Givan and his husband were the second same-sex couple to marry in rural Allen County, Ohio, in 2015. Nearly 11 years later, Givan is running for the state House of Representatives in the Lima County seat, defeating Republican Matt Huffman, the current Ohio speaker of the house.
Givan said Lima is tired of Huffman dismantling the public school system. Givan also wants to protect marriage equality and raise funding for preventive health services.
He would also utilize his position to facilitate others understand that queer people are on the front lines in the fight for everyone’s civil rights, he said.
“I don’t think many people realize that what happens to us happens to others. It’s the same with people of color,” Givan said. “We need to get to the point where it’s not as big of a problem anymore. We’re only human.”
Background
Givan was born in Colorado and raised in Texas. He said he lived in California for most of his adult life, working in sales and management positions. When his partner began to battle cancer, Givan moved to his partner’s hometown of Lima in 2012. They married in 2015, and his husband died a year later.
Givan said he stayed in Lima and became involved in the community. After Trump’s election in 2016, Givan worked with LGBTQ+ congregants at his local Unitarian Universalist church to build a more evident queer community in Allen County.
“The LGBTQ+ community was really missing,” Givan recalled. “We’re one of those cities where kids finish high school and leave, especially LGBTQ+ kids, because there’s nothing for them here.”
With the facilitate of the Allen County Democratic Party, Givan and other volunteers organized Lima’s first Pride event, a picnic, last July. Later, Givan co-founded the more formal Lima Pride Alliance.
In addition to supporting LGBTQ+, Givan also volunteered at the local YMCA, particularly helping those seeking addiction recovery.
“I really care about the community.”
After the United States passed a great feat in Venezuela, kidnapping the country’s president last January, Givan had had enough. He called the chairman of the county’s Democratic headquarters and asked if they had the resources to support an LGBTQ+ candidate.
He suggested other LGBTQ+ leaders in Allen County, but Givan said they didn’t want to run.
“I have never been involved in politics before, but someone has to do it,” he said.
Huffman introduced Ohio’s current state budget, Sub. HB 96, which led to dramatic reduction in state financing of public schools. Huffman continues supports private school vouchers and wants to expand the program’s eligibility requirements.
Givan said Huffman’s support for vouchers instead of public school funding has embittered Lima residents.
“Our school districts have that received a serious blow“, he said. “Not only is their money taken away, but they also have to provide services [to private schools] which – especially in many small towns – will take away bus transportation.”
In addition to education, Givan wants to restore and raise funding for preventive health care programs that serve low-income Ohioans.
“I think we need to change a few things in the system configuration at the lower level,” he said. “We will be setting up a committee to deal with different types of health care [leaders] and really see what needs to happen [for] potential policies.”
If elected, Givan said he would continue to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and protect transgender youth from harmful legislation. People came up to him and thanked him for running away because they have LGBTQ+ children who feel unsafe.
“I had a very good friend who moved to Portugal to escape [the U.S.]” said Givan. “They don’t feel protected, so we need to feel protected in our communities. That’s one of the reasons we started the Lima Pride Alliance – we need to feel protected.”
Progress so far
Givan filed his petition to run on the deadline, so he said he was just starting to spread the word about his campaign. He faces an uphill battle as 70% of Allen County voters chose Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election and more than two-thirds of the area turned out to vote.
Givan thinks it’s midterms announcement of the “blue wave” will get him through it, despite the numbers. He said he has already made progress with his neighbor across the street, who votes Republican. His campaign convinced him to vote against Huffman in this year’s midterm elections, which will be held in November.
“We have quite a large group of independent voters here, although they tend to choose red or blue,” Givan said. “People are a bit tired. Time for new thoughts. ” 🔥
START ACTION
- To learn more about Lima Pride Alliance, click Here for your Facebook page.
- To learn more about Jeff Givan’s candidacy, click Here on your campaign website.
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- To find the contact information for your Ohio State Representative, click here.
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