Republican state Sen. Michael Rulli projected to win congressional election

With Tuesday's vote mostly counted, Republican state Senator Michael Rulli is projected to win the special election to represent Ohio's 6th Congressional District, according to News 5 election partner Decision Desk HQ.

With 89% of the results in, Rulli garnered 54% of the vote over Democratic Air Force veteran Michael Kripchak.

This election is due to former Republican United States Representative Bill Johnson resigning from his seat in January so he could take a job as president of Youngstown State University.

The 6th Congressional District includes Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Jefferson, Mahoning, Monroe, Noble, Stark, Tuscarawas and Washington counties.

Meet Rulli

Rulli is currently a lawmaker representing the 33rd District, which includes Columbiana, Mahoning and Carroll Counties. He has been in his role for six years after his presidency on the Leetonia School Board. He works as director of operations for his family's 100-year-old grocery store, Rulli Bros. Markets, in Youngstown. He graduated from Emerson College.

He is known for sponsoring and passing bipartisan legislation. He is the chair of the General Government Committee and vice chair of the Workforce and Higher Education Committee.

Rulli would like to be on both the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Ways and Means Committee. Rulli is a self-described "big natural gas guy," and also likes hydro, solar and wind.

He admires the work of U.S. Reps. Dave Joyce (OH-14) and Mike Carey (OH-15). Joyce, from the suburbs of Cleveland, was named the 15th most bipartisan lawmaker in 2023 from Georgetown University. Carey, from the suburbs of Columbus, received 120th. For reference, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (OH-4) got last, 436th.

Joyce and Carey were two of the four Ohio representatives who voted in support of protecting the right to same-sex marriage.

Rulli calls himself the Trump candidate.

Get to know him

We did two separate 45-minute long interviews with both him and Kripchak ahead of the election.

RELATED: Meet the candidates for Ohio’s Tuesday special congressional election

Here is the gist of his views on the hot topics:

Inflation? Cut 5% of each government department.

Immigration? Shut the border and encourage legal immigration.

Ukraine aid? Yes, with oversight.

Israel aid? Yes.

Ceasefire? Yes, but only if Hamas was destroyed.

Aid for Palestinians? Yes, as long as it doesn't get into Hamas' hands.

Federal abortion restrictions? No.

Contraception restrictions? No.

Trump trial? Sham.

Biggest threat to democracy? Election deniers.

Federal regulations impacting guns? There is room for common ground.

Watch his interview below:

Kripchak responds

Kripchak issued the following comment to me, via text, after his loss:

"Tonight’s results have not diminished our spirit. Though historically a red district, our campaign outperformed expectations, proving the doubters wrong. We were able to achieve so much within so little time. I cannot wait to see what we can accomplish when we have more time. I am immensely proud of our volunteers and every supporter who has passionately championed our cause.

This experience has deepened my commitment to Eastern Ohio. In the coming months, I plan to spend even more time in the district, listening and learning from its remarkable residents to find ways we can unite and revive our community.

Our journey is far from over. This election has only strengthened our resolve to continue fighting for a prosperous future. Thank you to everyone who stood with us. I am excited to move forward together, building on the progress we have made."

Ohio GOP responds

Ohio Republican Party Chairman Alex Triantafilo issued the following statement in regard to the result:

"Congratulations to Ohio's next congressman, Michael Rulli! The people of Ohio's 6th Congressional District are patriotic, hard-working, and want to see Washington DC start putting America First again. I am confident he will do a tremendous job for his constituents, and I look forward to working with him to support our Republican candidates up and down the ballot in November."

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on Twitter and Facebook .