Ohio's first female speaker of the House of Representatives, Republican Jo Ann Davidson, a champion of GOP women, has died at age 97

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Jo Ann Davidson, Ohio's first female speaker of the House of Representatives and an advocate for putting effective Republican women in office, died Friday. She was 97.

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a longtime friend, announced Davidson's death in a statement, calling her “an exemplary public servant of wit, intelligence, class and skill.”

Over his nearly 60-year political career, Davidson went from being a volunteer in suburban Columbus to being elected to the local city council, where he led the Ohio House and served as co-chair of the Republican National Committee.

As speaker, Davidson succeeded the retiring Vernal G. Riffe, a powerful Democrat who held the post for a record 20 years.

With her business suits, her friendly but matter-of-fact demeanor, and her penchant for keeping policy decisions hidden, Davidson began putting Republicans in leadership positions and tackling the major political challenges of the day. She accompanied welfare reform but fended off attempts by other Republicans to pass concealed-weapons laws, although successors ultimately passed those laws.

“Jo Ann was very good at building consensus,” Bruce Johnson, a former Ohio lieutenant governor whose district overlapped with hers as a state senator, once told The Associated Press. “Some people do it with brute force or other unseemly tactics. Jo Ann did it by being better, smarter, doing her homework and having the facts.”

Davidson led President George Bush's regional re-election effort in 2004, helping him win Ohio's decisive victory over Democrat John Kerry and capture the White House. She also managed Republican Gov. Bob Taft's successful 2002 campaign.

To her embarrassment, Davidson betrayed her line at the 2008 Republican National Convention. She was given the honor of introducing the party's first female vice presidential nominee, Sarah Palin, and accidentally called her “Sarah Pawlenty,” conflating Palin's name with that of another candidate for the office, then-Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty .

It was a rare misstep in an otherwise largely flawless public life.

After a decade out of the public spotlight, Davidson became a close adviser to then-Republican Gov. John Kasich, and he appointed her chair of the state Casino Commission in 2011. In 2012, she was among Kasich's allies who helped him organize the ouster of the state GOP party chairman.

After leaving the Ohio House in 2001 due to term limits, Davidson devoted his time to the Jo Ann Davidson Ohio Leadership Institute. She founded the Columbus-based training center in 2000 to give potential female candidates the confidence and leadership skills they need for public office, nonprofit work and party leadership. Over the years, she personally mentored nearly 500 women.

“Jo Ann Davidson was kind, resilient, steadfast in her principles and a true public servant,” Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, said Friday. “She was a trailblazer at a time when there were few women in politics. Her leadership not only changed Ohio’s political landscape, but also gave countless women the opportunity to find their own voice.”

Davidson encouraged women to be proud of their strong leadership styles and to pursue public service despite other professional pressures.

“We tend to build consensus,” Davidson told the AP in 2007. “Our leadership styles are different because most of us who are a little older learned our leadership skills in voluntary organizations where you can't take a top-down approach.”

Davidson was born on September 28, 1927 in Findlay, Ohio.

Her life in politics began with defeat. In 1965, she ran for the all-male Reynoldsburg City Council and lost. Davidson persevered, won election two years later and spent the next decade as a councilman – eventually rising to head the powerful Finance Committee.

After more than a decade in local office, she was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1980. She stayed there for the next 20 years, quickly building a reputation for hard work, team building and smarts.

Lawmakers elected her as the first female speaker after the Republican Party captured the 99-member House of Representatives in 1994.

After the first year, no one questioned whether she was up to the job.

“Some people thought I wasn't tough enough for the job,” she said in a December 1995 interview with The Columbus Dispatch. “Maybe some of them think I’m being too harsh.”

Terry Casey, who served as executive director of the Franklin County Republican Party in the early days of Davidson's career, marveled at her “steel-trap spirit” and amazing energy.

“A lot of people get into higher office and just hang out in their office,” he said. “Not Jo Ann. She was constantly on the go and on the move.” That continued until recently, when health concerns slowed Davidson down.

Republican Jason Stephens, current Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, said: “A true leader, Speaker Davidson is distinguished by strength, grace and servant leadership. She fostered a culture of mentorship that changed the lives of many for the better.”

In addition to her legislative work, she served as vice president of special programs for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.

After leaving the House of Representatives, she founded her institute and a consulting firm, JAD and Associates, where she provided advice on public policy, strategic planning and political campaigns.

From the start, Davidson knew she would be a role model.

“I don’t necessarily feel like a trailblazer,” she said in a 1995 Dispatch interview. “I try to do a good job so that other women also have a chance in the future. This weighs heavily on me.”

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