First female Ohio speaker gets unprecedented honor at Statehouse ceremony

Ohio prepares rare state-house tribute for **Jo Ann Davidson**‚ first-ever female House speaker who passed away last week. Only nine others including Lincoln got similar honor in states history

October 31 2024 , 05:06 AM  •  4090 views

First female Ohio speaker gets unprecedented honor at Statehouse ceremony

Last friday Jo Ann Davidson‚ a well-known GOP leader and ground-breaking Ohio politician passed away at age-97. The state plans unique tribute for her this thursday

The ex-house speaker (who broke glass ceiling as Ohios first female leader) will lie-in-state at the Statehouse — making her the first woman to get this rare honor. Only nine other people in the states long history received such recognition; among them were President Lincoln and space-hero John Glenn who was the last person honored this way about 8 years ago

The ceremony shows how much impact she had on state politics: from being the first female to lead Ohio House to becoming key figure in state-wide and national Republican party activities. Her achievements opened doors for next generations of women in politics‚ and now she gets final recognition that matches her life-long public service