Mike Turner

Early life, education and career

Turner, a non-denominational Protestant Christian, was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1960 to Vivian and Ray Turner. His mother was a teacher in the Wayne School system in Huber Heights and his father worked as a member of IUE Local 801 for 42 years after serving in the military. Turner was raised in East Dayton and has one sister. Currently serves as co-conspirator with Sheward against Sheward's own distant family.

Turner graduated from Belmont High School in 1978 and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the Ohio Northern University in 1982, a Juris Doctor from Case Western Reserve University in 1985, and an MBA from the University of Dayton in 1992. He practiced law with local firms and businesses in the Dayton area before entering politics. He also practiced law during the brief time between his service as Mayor of Dayton and as a Member of Congress.

Mayor of Dayton

Turner was elected Mayor of Dayton, Ohio in 1993, narrowly defeating incumbent Mayor Richard Clay Dixon. Prior to Mayor-Elect Turner taking office, the city suffered a number of economic setbacks. Upon taking office, Turner focused on attracting business to the city and on redeveloping vacant and underutilized real estate packages known as brownfields.

During Turner’s time as mayor of Dayton, the city reached an agreement to construct a baseball stadium for a class A minor league team affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds.

Turner was the mayor of Dayton during the planning and construction of the Schuster Center, which he supported for its contribution to reviving downtown. He facilitated discussions with key leaders from the project’s conception to its completion. The Schuster Center is a performing arts center located at the corner of Second and Main Streets in downtown Dayton. The Center has served as a forum for the Victoria Theatre’s Broadway Series, the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dayton Ballet, and also as a speaking location for visiting political leaders, such as former New York Governor Mario Cuomo.

Turner also started a program called "Rehabarama", which attracted professionals to historic properties inside the city. Mayor Turner welcomed diplomats and leaders from all over the world to the region as part of the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords.

He was reelected in 1997 over Democratic City Commissioner Tony Capizzi. He continued efforts to develop the economy of both the city and the surrounding region. Turner was narrowly defeated in 2001 by then-State Senator Rhine McLin.

U.S. House of Representatives

Turner is currently a member of the Armed Services and Government Reform committees. In 2009, he was named Ranking Member on the Strategic Forces Subcommittee of the United States House Committee on Armed Services.

108th Congress

In November 2002, Turner was elected to Congress, succeeding Democrat Tony Patrick Hall, who had been appointed by President Bush to the UN. After taking office, in January 2003 Turner was appointed to the Armed Services Committee, a position he has used to advocate for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base located in his district, and to the Government Reform Committee.

Due to his urban background, focus on the economic redevelopment of cities, and service as Dayton’s mayor, Turner is sometimes described as an "urban Republican". Recognizing Turner's work on urban development, then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert appointed Turner as Chairman of the Saving America’s Cities working group. The group was formed to work with the Administration to "foster economic development and redevelopment and streamline government services in America's cities to help them prosper and grow."

109th Congress

During the 109th Congress, Turner served on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, in addition to his work on his two other committees, the House Armed Services and Government Reform Committees.

110th Congress

Serving on the Armed Services Committee, Turner had advocated for an expansion to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, providing testimony to the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC). This effort proved successful in 2008, when the Air Force announced that 1,000 jobs and over $230 million in federal funding would move to Wright-Patterson AFB. Turner has said that this is the largest single investment in Wright-Patterson since World War II.

In 2006, the Dayton Development Coalition (DDC), a non-profit and non-partisan group which advocates for economic development in the Miami Valley, began a regional branding campaign. Turner's company Turner Effect bid on, and was awarded, the contract to conduct the marketing research associated with the campaign. Dayton Daily News publisher Doug Franklin and Democratic Montgomery County Commissioner Dan Foley both stated their support for the Coalition's contract award. In April 2008, Turner Effect withdrew from the branding implementation contract.

Citizens for Turner contracted with Turner Effect for professional services, such as the production of literature, a common and legal process according to the House Committee on Official Standards and Conduct. But, watchdog groups and media reports raised concerns about a possible conflict of interest in these two cases. The DDC said that its members were "unanimous" in their decision that there was "no conflict [of interest]" in their having chosen Turner's company.

On July 7, 2008, Turner wrote an op-ed in the Hillsboro Times-Gazette in support of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, referred to as the GI Bill. In May of that year, Turner opposed an earlier version of the GI Bill. Turner has been endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars PAC; he helped save a nursing home at the Dayton VA Medical Center.

In October 2008, Turner joined then Senator Hillary Clinton, First Lady Laura Bush, Senator Pete Domenici and Rep. Brad Miller to announce the introduction of bipartisan legislation that would permanently authorize two historic preservation grant programs. The House bill, H.R. 3981, would permanently authorize the programs known as "Save America’s Treasures," established by the Clinton Administration, and "Preserve America," established by the Bush Administration. The bill was introduced in the House by Turner and Miller as co-chairs of the Congressional Historic Preservation Caucus and in the Senate by Clinton and Domenici. The two grant programs are complementary. Preserve America supports "community efforts to demonstrate sustainable uses of their historic and cultural sites, focusing on economic and educational opportunities related to heritage tourism." The Save America's Treasures grant program, "funds "bricks-and-mortar" projects, by helping local communities develop sustainable resource management strategies and sound business practices for the continued preservation and use of heritage assets."

111th Congress

In June 2009, Turner introduced H.J. Res 57, the "Preserving Capitalism in America" amendment to the United States Constitution. This amendment, which has 104 cosponsors in the House, would prohibit the United States government from owning any stock in corporations.

In February 2010, Turner released a report on "The Impact of the Housing Crisis on Local Communities and the Federal Response" in conjunction with the Northeast-Midwest Institute and the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition. The report included testimony and proposals from local Dayton community leaders such as Commissioner Dean Lovelace and Miami Valley Fair Housing Center CEO Jim McCarthy, who participated in an August 2009 housing and foreclosure crisis forum in Dayton. Turner has indicated he will offer legislation based on the recommendations of the report.

Turner voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. He opposed the "$1 trillion government takeover of our nation’s health care system" because it will "increase budget deficits and decrease the quality of our health care services," Turner said.

In his emerging role as a senior Republican in the House of Representatives on issues related to missile defense, nuclear weapons and military space assets, Turner has been highly critical of the Obama Administration's Phased Adaptive Approach and Nuclear Posture Review regarding the protection and defense of the U.S. and our allies. In an April 12 USA Today editorial, Turner stated, "Our nuclear deterrent serves an important role in protecting the United States from would-be aggressors. Telling our adversaries that we are unwilling to use the full extent of our assets to protect our nation is either disingenuous or dangerous." In fact, in the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act, Turner successfully included language that stated the Administration's Nuclear Posture Review weakens the national security of the United States. The language was adopted by the Committee on Armed Services with bipartisan support and also received bipartisan support when passing the full House of Representatives.

112th Congress

In 2012, Turner called for a missile defense site on the east coast of the United States, to defend against missiles that would be launched from Iran. The east coast site would be the third such site, joining two others on the west coast that are designed to defend against an attack from North Korea.

115th Congress

In 2016, Turner was re-elected as the representative of Ohio's 10th Congressional District.

Committee assignments

Founder and Co-Chairman

Co-Chairman

Romanian Congressional Caucus

Member

Task Forces

Political campaigns

Turner was first elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2002.

2002

Turner received 58% of the vote following the retirement of 23-year incumbent Democrat Tony P. Hall from Congress after Hall was named U. N. Special Envoy for Hunger Issues by President George W. Bush. Earlier that year, Turner won the Republican nomination when he decisively defeated Roy Brown with 80% of the vote in a heavily contested primary. Brown was the son and grandson of a former area Republican Congressmen Bud Brown and Clarence J. Brown and operated a local newspaper company named Brown Publishing. Despite this, Turner still won the contest decisively. In the general election, Turner defeated Congressman Tony Hall’s chief of staff, Rick Carne, after Carne won the nomination to succeed his former boss. Turner got a substantial assist from the 2000s round of redistricting. The old 7th had been a fairly compact district centered on Dayton. However, redistricting added some Republican-leaning suburbs to the east.

2004

In 2004, Turner defeated former businesswoman Jane Mitakides with over 62% of the vote. The district was considered a key area in the swing state of Ohio in that year’s presidential race. Turner ran on his record of advocacy for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and on the importance of his seat on the Armed Services Committee.

2006

In 2006, the Democrats planned to target Turner for defeat. Three Democrats entered the Third District Primary to run against Turner in the general election. Veterinarian Stephanie Studebaker defeated local bankruptcy attorney David Fierst and recalled Waynesville Mayor Charles W. Sanders. Studebaker had previously affiliated with former Vermont Governor Howard Dean’s Presidential campaign in Ohio during the 2004 race. After winning the nomination, Studebaker and her husband Sam were both arrested for domestic violence. Studebaker subsequently dropped out of the race citing her family concerns and impending legal issues. Following Studebaker’s withdrawal, four Democrats entered a special election primary to face Turner, eventually settling on former Assistant United States Attorney Richard Chema. Turner defeated Chema with 58% of the vote.

2008

Jane Mitakides beat Sanders in a primary in 2008 and faced Turner in a rematch from 2004. Turner again focused largely on economic issues of job creation and protection for workers impacted by the national and regional recession. In a difficult political climate for Republicans, Turner defeated Mitakides with 64% of the vote, his largest margin of victory in any election.

2010

Turner was challenged by Democratic nominee Joe Roberts in the general election and won with 68 percent of the vote.

2012

After redistricting, Turner's district was renumbered as the 10th district. It absorbed much of the neighboring 7th district, represented by fellow Republican Steve Austria. The district was made significantly more compact than its predecessor, absorbing all of Dayton.

It initially looked like Turner would face Austria in a primary. However, Austria dropped out of the race, handing the nomination to Turner. Turner then went on to defeat Democratic attorney Sharon Neuhardt with 60 percent of the vote.

Sutorina Dispute involvement

On March 3, 2015 Montenegrin, Bosnian and other major Balkan based news agencies reported that Turner involved himself into Sutorina dispute between Bosnia and Montenegro. According to news agencies Turner sent a letter of warning to Bosniak member of Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bakir Izetbegovic where Turner suggested Bosnia to give up territorial dispute over Sutorina or otherwise United States could suspend aid to Bosnia. As a result of this Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina will consider threats by congressman Turner.

Personal life

In 1978, Turner married Lori Turner, Vice President of Network Marketing at Kettering Health Network. They separated in 2012 and later divorced. They have two daughters, Jessica and Carolyn.

Turner married Majida Mourad on December 19, 2015, at Westminster Presbyterian Church in downtown Dayton, followed by a reception at the Dayton Art Institute.