Residents of the 25th District in the Ohio House have chosen Dan Stewart to represent them at the state level, casting 12.023 votes in support of the Democrat on Election Day.

In the process, they rejected former Columbus school board member, Dave Dobos, giving the Republican 9.790 votes according to unofficial results from the Franklin County Board of Elections.

A resident of the district his whole life and an active contributor to the legislative process, Stewart has promised to work for working families of his hometown community. Stewart did not return telephone calls seeking comment about his victory.

Early in the campaign, Stewart said his focus will be to provide health care for those in need. He is working on a prescription drug release bill that would allow the state to buy in bulk. This would allow those who don't have prescription coverage to save up to 60 percent on prescription expenses, he said.

Other focal points of his campaign included the economic revitalization of corridors such as South High Street and West Broad Street.

Like Stewart, Dobos is a West Side resident. He said he's proud to have won the confidence of about 45 percent of the district's voters. Dobos said he hopes Stewart can be successful in representing his constituents at the state level.

"I called Dan and congratulated him on an impressive victory," I told him it's very important for him to be effective as possible to the West Side and the rest of the district."

Dobos said that he learned an important lesson while campaigning for the district's seat. "Principle is more important than outcome," he said.

Last week, a pivotal time for television ad campaigns, Dobos said, he pulled his ads because they were too negative toward Stewart. "That's not how I wanted to campaign," he said.

Dobos said he is looking forward to becoming a private citizen again, spending time with his wife and two sons and turning his focus on this computer supply company.

As to whether he would run again if given the chance: "Never say never," he said.