Some Butler County residents will get to decide whether to re-elect an Ohio House representative who was removed from his committees last year after allegations resurfaced of sexual misconduct with a minor.
Republican state Rep. Rodney Creech represents the Ohio House's 40th District, which includes a northern portion of Butler County including the city of Trenton, Milford and Wayne townships. The district also includes all of Preble County and part of Montgomery County.
Creech, 50, was first elected to the Ohio House in 2020 and previously represented Ohio House District 43, whichdidn't include any part of Butler. However, he started representing this northern portion of Butler County in January 2025 after a new round of state redistricting.
Creech is running against Democrat Timothy Hornbacker and Libertarian Joshua Umbaugh to retain his $73,609-a-yearseat in the Ohio House.
What were the allegations?
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations investigated the allegations of child sexual abuse, which were ultimately dismissed without Creech being criminally charged.
The allegations stem from 2023, when a minor relative of Creech said the Ohio House representative climbed into bed with her while having an erection and only wearing underwear.
Creech denied the sexual nature of the incident in a March 2024 interview with the BCI, but admitted to getting into bed with the minor while wearing only underwear.
The allegations resurfaced in 2025, around when Creech announced he was running for Ohio Senate District 5. In a Facebook post from the day after Creech announced his Senate campaign, he called the resurfacing of the investigation "some dirty politics" and said "these false allegations were investigated and dismissed."
"This is just a horrible false allegation that has turned political," his post read. "We knew it would be used at some point during our Senate run but thought they might wait until closer to the election. Those of you who know me know these false attacks won't dissuade me from representing southwest Ohio."
While Creech denied the allegations, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, a Republican, removed him from his committees, including from his role as chair of the House Agriculture Committee.
Huffman also asked him to resign.
Who's supporting Rodney Creech?
Creech did not resign and was later reinstated to his committees, though he is no longer the chair of the Agriculture Committee.
Creech ultimately ended his campaign for Ohio Senate and simultaneously announced his re-election bid for the House in February 2026.
The press release announcing his re-election campaign included an endorsement from Huffman, around nine months after the speaker had asked him to resign.
Creech was endorsed by the Ohio Republican Party in February. The Montgomery Republican Party listed Creech on promotional material encouraging constituents to vote Republican down the ballot. The Preble County Republican Party does not list an endorsement for Creech on its Facebook, but campaign finance records show the county GOP donated $1,000 to Creech's campaign in April 2026.
He does not appear on the Butler County Republican Party's list of endorsed candidates, but campaign finance records show it contributed $1,000 to his campaign in September 2025.
Republican Ohio gubernatorial nominee Vivek Ramaswamy listed Creech as one of his 38 "Key Endorsements" from Republican state representatives in a press release April 16, 2025. But the endorsement page on Ramaswamy's website now includes every state representative from this list except Creech and Ohio House Rep. Diane Mullins.
Mullins represents the Ohio House's 47th District, which covers the northern part of Butler County, including Hamilton and Oxford. Mullins, a pastor, has referenced antisemitic conspiracy theories in her sermons and falsely implied a communist cell placed taxpayer-funded sculptures in Hamilton.
Who is Rodney Creech?
Creech is running for his fourth term in the House. He won his race in 2024 with 77.1% of the vote and in 2022 with 71.7%.
Creech defeated Jeffrey Todd Smith with 58.3% of the vote in the Republican primary in May.
Rodney was born and raised on his family's farm in West Alexandria, a small village of around 1,300 in Preble County. He still lives on the farm with his wife, according to his campaign website.
Creech started a lawn care business after graduating from Morehead State University with a degree in agronomy. He also previously served as a trustee for Twin Township in Preble County and as a Preble County Commissioner, according to his House biography.
He's on the House committees overseeing agriculture, commerce and labor, local government and public safety.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Rep. Rodney Creech, who faced child sex abuse charges, on local ballot
