David Patrick Joyce (born March 17, 1957) is an American politician and attorney currently serving in the United States House of Representatives for Ohio’s 14th congressional district since 2013.[1] A member of the Republican Party, Joyce was previously the prosecutor of Geauga County, Ohio. He chairs the Republican Governance Group.[2]

Early life and education

Joyce was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to an Irish Catholic family.[citation needed] His father was a coal salesman. In high school, he played football, and considered joining the priesthood.[citation needed] In 1975, Joyce enrolled at the University of Dayton, a Catholic university, from which he received a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting in 1979,[3] and later his Juris Doctor.[4]

Legal career

From 1983 to 1984, Joyce was a public defender for Cuyahoga County, and from 1985 to 1988 a public defender for Geauga County. In 1989, he was hired as an assistant county attorney in Lake County. He assisted County Prosecutor Steven C. LaTourette in prosecuting serial murderer and cult leader Jeffrey Lundgren for the Kirtland cult killings.[5]

By 2012, Joyce had been appointed prosecutor of Geauga County. He prosecuted the 2012 Chardon High School shooting of six students that took place on February 27, 2012. The defendant, Thomas “T.J.” Lane, 17 years old at the time of the crime, was charged as an adult with three counts of aggravated murder, two counts of aggravated attempted murder, and one count of felonious assault. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced in 2013 to three life sentences without parole.[citation needed]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2012

In July 2012, Representative Steve LaTourette of Ohio’s 14th congressional district announced that he would retire in 2012 rather than seek reelection. Because LaTourette announced his retirement after the primary, local Republican party leaders chose Joyce as the replacement nominee.[6][7]

Joyce ran in the November general election against Democratic nominee Dale Virgil Blanchard, Libertarian David Macko and Green Party nominee Elaine Mastromatteo. He won with 54% of the vote.[8]

2014

In February 2013, Roll Call reported that Steve Israel, head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, had identified the 14th congressional district as one of the party’s top four targets in 2014. The House Majority PAC made Joyce one of its top targets to oust in the 2014 elections.[9]

In 2014, according to one news source, Joyce “survived a grueling primary against a Tea Party-backed candidate” before facing “an equally tough challenge from Michael Wager.”[10] Joyce won with 63.3% of the vote to Wager’s 33% and independent David Macko’s 3.7%.[11]

2016

Joyce defeated Wager again, 62.6% to 37.4%.[12]

2018

In April 2017, Betsy Rader, a Democrat, announced that she would run against Joyce in 2018. She is a lawyer who represents victims of employment discrimination. Rader said she supported “much” of the Affordable Care Act, but that she needed to study health care more as an issue. She criticized Joyce for opposing an increase in the minimum wage and for wanting to defund Planned Parenthood.[13]

In October 2017, Darrell Scott, a pastor involved in President Donald Trump‘s political operation, and who served as CEO of the semi-official “National Diversity Coalition for Trump” organized by Trump’s attorney Michael Cohen, said he would consider a primary challenge to Joyce.[14]

Tenure

Asked about his legislative priorities in March 2016, Joyce cited terrorist threats, job growth, government spending, the national debt, environmental protection of the Great Lakes, and health care.[15]

The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy ranked Joyce the 29th most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives during the 114th United States Congress and the most bipartisan member of the House from Ohio.[16]

In July 2017, Joyce said that U.S. political discourse had reached a “vitriolic” level. “I do know there’s a level of frustration out there,” he said. “But we need to work together. [President Donald Trump] has gotten into this tug-of-war with the national media. Now we’re six months into his presidency … and infrastructure improvements, tax changes and healthcare law are not getting covered. They are dealing with the tweet du Jour … and [Trump’s tweets] certainly don’t help.”[17]

Joyce is a member of the Republican Main Street Partnership,[18] United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus,[19] Veterinary Medicine Caucus,[20] and the Climate Solutions Caucus.[21] He co-chairs the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.[22]

During Donald Trump‘s presidency, Joyce voted in line with Trump’s stated position 91.8% of the time.[23] As of September 2021, Joyce had voted in line with Joe Biden‘s stated position 30.6% of the time.[24]

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

Political positions

Health care

Joyce opposes the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and has voted 31 times to repeal it.[33] In 2017, he voted against a Republican bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act, saying it “was too partisan”.[33][17]

Jobs

In August 2013, Joyce said that part of the problem with unemployment numbers in the U.S. is that employers “can’t find people to come to work sober, daily, drug-free and want to learn the necessary skills going forward to be able to do those jobs.”[9]

Immigration

In March 2016, Joyce said that he had co-sponsored “several bills that ensured refugees underwent stricter scrutiny in order to prevent a Paris-style attack from happening in the United States.”[34] He supports the Visa Waiver Program in order to “ensure terrorists with Western passports don’t enter our country,” for restrictions on transferring Guantanamo detainees, and for enhancements in cybersecurity infrastructure. He said, in summary, that he was “committed to giving our soldiers and our intelligence community all of the resources they need to do the job.”[34]

Joyce voted for the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 which authorizes DHS to nearly double the available H-2B visas for the remainder of FY 2020.[35][36]

Joyce voted for the Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 1158),[37] which effectively prohibits ICE from cooperating with Health and Human Services to detain or remove illegal alien sponsors of unaccompanied alien children (UACs).[citation needed]

Transportation

In 2014, Joyce introduced the Safe Streets Act with Congresswoman Doris Matsui. The bill would nationalize transportation “design elements” so that streets would be designed with the safety of drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists in mind.[38]

Cannabis

Joyce has supported a number of congressional efforts to reform cannabis laws. He reintroduced the Rohrabacher–Farr amendment in 2018 to prohibit the Justice Department from spending funds to interfere with the implementation of state medical cannabis laws.[39] He also introduced the STATES Act in 2018 and 2019 to protect states from federal interference regarding both medical and recreational use.[40][41] Also in 2018, Joyce cosponsored the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act.[42] In January 2019, he was named a co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.[43][44]

In 2021, Joyce introduced the Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act to legalize medical cannabis for military veterans and allow Veterans Affairs doctors to prescribe the drug.[45][46] Also in 2021, he introduced the Cannabis Reform for Veterans, Small Businesses, and Medical Professionals Act to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and direct federal agencies to develop regulations for cannabis similar to alcohol.[47][48] Later in 2021, he and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced the Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement (HOPE) Act to provide grants for state and local governments to expunge cannabis offenses.[49] Joyce endorsed Ohio Issue 2 in 2023 which legalized cannabis for recreational use in his home state.[50]

Impeachments of Donald Trump

Joyce voted “no” on the first impeachment of Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress on December 18, 2019.[51] On January 13, 2021, he voted against Trump’s second impeachment for incitement of insurrection.[52]

January 6 commission

On May 19, 2021, Joyce was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the January 6 commission meant to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol.[53]

Censure of Paul Gosar

In November 2021, Joyce refused to vote to censure Paul Gosar, a House member who approvingly shared an animated video himself killing a fellow member and assaulting the president. Joyce voted “Present.”[54]

LGBT rights

On July 19, 2022, Joyce and 46 other Republican representatives voted for the Respect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.[55]

Suspending the US Constitution

In a nationally broadcast December 2022 interview, Joyce said that, regardless of Donald Trump’s calls to suspend the Constitution of the United States, he would support him for president were Trump to win the Republican nomination in 2024.[56]

SANEs Act

In February 2022, Joyce and Representative Deborah Ross introduced the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs) Act, which is designed to address the nationwide shortage of Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners and improve care for survivors of sexual violence. The bill was endorsed by RAINN, the American Nurses Association, and the National Network to End Domestic Violence.[57][58]

Personal life

Joyce married Kelly in 1990. They live in Russell Township with their three children. Joyce is a member of the National District Attorney Association and the Ohio Prosecuting Attorney Association. He is also director of Geauga Bluecoats Inc.[59]

Electoral history

Election results[60]
YearOfficeElectionCandidatePartyVotes%
2012[a]U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican183,66054%
Dale V. BlanchardDemocratic131,63838.7%
Elaine MastromatteoGreen13,0383.8%
David MackoLibertarian11,5363.4%
2014[b]U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican135,73663.3%
Michael WagerDemocratic70,85633%
David MackoLibertarian7,9883.7%
2016[b]U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican219,19162.6%
Michael WagerDemocratic130,90737.4%
2018U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican169,80955.2%
Betsy RaderDemocratic137,54944.8%
2020[b]U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican238,86460.1%
Hillary MueriDemocratic158,58639.9%
2022U.S. House of RepresentativesGeneralDave JoyceRepublican183,38961.7%
Matt KilboyDemocratic113,63938.3%
  1. ^ Write-in candidates Aaron Zurbrugg received 6 votes (<1%), Erick Robinson received 0 votes, and Steven Winfield received 0 votes.
  2. ^ a b c Write-in candidates received 171 votes (<1%)

References

  1. ^ David Joyce, R (Ohio-14) : Roll Call
  2. ^ “David Joyce elected new chair of Republican Governance Group”. July 27, 2022.
  3. ^ “David Joyce”. Roll Call. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  4. ^ “Ohio, 14th House District”. National Journal. Atlantic Media Company. Archived from the original on May 9, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  5. ^ Gomez, Henry J. (August 11, 2012). “Northeast Ohio GOP leaders choose David Joyce to replace outgoing Rep. Steve LaTourette on ballot (updated)”. cleveland.com.
  6. ^ Sherman, Jake (July 30, 2012). “Steve LaTourette blames polarizing climate for departure”. Politico. Retrieved July 11, 2014.
  7. ^ Gomez, Henry (August 10, 2012). “Northeast Ohio GOP leaders choose David Joyce to replace outgoing Rep. Steve LaTourette on ballot”. Cleveland.com. Retrieved July 11, 2014.
  8. ^ “2012 Ohio House Results”. Politico. Retrieved July 11, 2014.
  9. ^ a b “GOP Congressman On Unfilled Jobs: Businesses Can’t Find Enough ‘Sober,’ ‘Drug-Free’ Workers”. HuffPost. August 23, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  10. ^ Warsmith, Stephanie. “U.S. Rep. David Joyce faces another serious challenge as Democrat Michael Wager seeks 14th District seat in pricey race”; Akron Beacon Journal; October 22, 2014; https://www.ohio.com/akron/news/politics/u-s-rep-david-joyce-faces-another-serious-challenge-as-democrat-michael-wager-seeks-14th-district-seat-in-pricey-race
  11. ^ Ohio Election Results; New york Times; https://www.nytimes.com/elections/2014/ohio-elections
  12. ^ “Ohio U.S. House 14th District Results: David Joyce Wins”. The New York Times. August 1, 2017. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  13. ^ Jeremy Pelzer, cleveland com (April 19, 2017). “Democrat Betsy Rader to challenge U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce”. cleveland. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  14. ^ Andrew J. Tobias, cleveland com (October 24, 2017). “Pro-Trump pastor Darrell Scott may challenge U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce in 2018 Republican primary”. cleveland. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  15. ^ David Joyce, candidate for U.S. Representative Ohio 14th District seat, March 2016 primary election;The News Herald; http://www.news-herald.com/government-and-politics/20160308/david-joyce-candidate-for-us-representative-ohio-14th-district-seat-march-2016-primary-election Archived February 15, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ The Lugar Center – McCourt School Bipartisan Index (PDF), The Lugar Center, March 7, 2016, retrieved April 30, 2017
  17. ^ a b Schunk, Andrew; Congressman Dave Joyce talks health care, discord over discourse; MyTown NEO; July 6, 2017; http://www.mytownneo.com/news/20170706/congressman-dave-joyce-talks-health-care-discord-over-discourse Archived February 15, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ a b “Members”. Republican Mains Street Partnership. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2017.
  19. ^ a b “Our Members”. U.S. House of Representatives International Conservation Caucus. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  20. ^ a b “Members of the Veterinary Medicine Caucus”. Veterinary Medicine Caucus. Archived from the original on September 21, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
  21. ^ a b “90 Current Climate Solutions Caucus Members”. Citizen´s Climate Lobby. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  22. ^ a b Eaton, Sabrina (January 9, 2019). “Rep. Dave Joyce to co-chair Congressional Cannabis Caucus”. cleveland.com. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  23. ^ Bycoffe, Aaron (January 30, 2017). “Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump”. FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  24. ^ Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (April 22, 2021). “Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?”. FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  25. ^ “Congressman David Joyce : Committees & Caucuses”. joyce.house.gov. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved July 31, 2018.
  26. ^ a b “Granger Announces Republican Committee Assignments | Committee on Appropriations Republicans”. republicans-appropriations.house.gov. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  27. ^ Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601. “David P. Joyce (Ohio (OH)), 117th Congress Profile”. Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved March 17, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  28. ^ “Membership”. Select Committee on the Modernization on the Congress. U.S. House Of Representatives. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  29. ^ “Member List”. Republican Study Committee. Archived from the original on January 1, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  30. ^ Kuznicki, Jen (April 25, 2017). “Who are the members of the Tuesday Group?”. Jen Kuznicki. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  31. ^ “Featured Members”. Problem Solvers Caucus. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  32. ^ “Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute”.
  33. ^ a b “Analysis | The Health 202: This Republican congressman released an ad touting his vote against Obamacare repeal. Yes, against”. Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  34. ^ a b David Joyce, candidate for U.S. Representative Ohio 14th District seat, March 2016 primary election;The News Herald; March 8, 2016; http://www.news-herald.com/government-and-politics/20160308/david-joyce-candidate-for-us-representative-ohio-14th-district-seat-march-2016-primary-election Archived February 15, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
  35. ^ “Text – H.R.1865 – 116th Congress (2019-2020): Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020”. December 20, 2019.
  36. ^ “Roll Call 689 Roll Call 689, Bill Number: H. R. 1865, 116th Congress, 1st Session”. December 17, 2019.
  37. ^ “H.R. 1158: DHS Cyber Hunt and Incident Response Teams Act … — House Vote #690 — Dec 17, 2019”.
  38. ^ Martin, Aaron. “Bipartisan measure would improve road safety” Archived 2014-02-11 at archive.today. Ripon Advance. February 10, 2014. (Retrieved 02-11-14).
  39. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (May 17, 2018). “Rep. Dave Joyce secures bill language to block federal interference with state medical marijuana laws”. cleveland.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  40. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (June 7, 2018). “Rep. Dave Joyce introduces bill that would let states decide their own marijuana laws”. cleveland.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  41. ^ “Joyce Unveils Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Protect States Rights” (Press release). house.gov. April 4, 2019. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
  42. ^ “All Information (Except Text) for H.R.1227 – Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017”. congress.gov. March 16, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  43. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (January 9, 2019). “Rep. Dave Joyce to co-chair Congressional Cannabis Caucus”. cleveland.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  44. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (January 31, 2019). “Cannabis Caucus co-chair Dave Joyce has high hopes for marijuana legislation in the new Congress”. cleveland.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  45. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (April 16, 2021). “Rep. Dave Joyce introduces bill to let VA prescribe medical marijuana”. cleveland.com. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  46. ^ Jaeger, Kyle (April 16, 2021). “Bipartisan Bills To Legalize Medical Marijuana For Military Veterans Introduced In Congress”. Marijuana Moment. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  47. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (May 15, 2021). “Rep. Dave Joyce, former prosecutor, introduces bill to take marijuana off the federal controlled substances list”. cleveland.com. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  48. ^ Jaeger, Kyle (May 12, 2021). “Congressional Bill To Federally Legalize Marijuana Filed By Republican Lawmakers”. Marijuana Moment. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  49. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (December 2, 2021). “Rep. Dave Joyce introduces cannabis conviction expungement bill with Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez”. cleveland.com. Archived from the original on December 3, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  50. ^ Jaeger, Kyle (August 18, 2023). “GOP Congressman Says He’ll Vote For Legal Marijuana On Ohio Ballot, As Governor Calls The Reform A ‘Real Mistake’. Marijuana Moment. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  51. ^ “How your U.S. representative voted on impeachment”. WBNS. December 17, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  52. ^ Cass, Andrew (January 13, 2021). “U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce votes against impeachment of Donald Trump”. The News-Herald. Archived from the original on January 31, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  53. ^ LeBlanc, Paul (May 19, 2021). “Here are the 35 House Republicans who voted for the January 6 commission”. CNN. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  54. ^ Weisman, Jonathan; Edmondson, Catie (November 17, 2021). “House, Mostly Along Party Lines, Censures Gosar for Violent Video”. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  55. ^ Schnell, Mychael (July 19, 2022). “These are the 47 House Republicans who voted for a bill protecting marriage equality”. The Hill. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  56. ^ Schonfeld, Zach (December 4, 2022). “House Republican won’t denounce Trump over call to terminate Constitution’s election rules”. The Hill. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  57. ^ “Representatives Ross, Joyce Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Address Shortage of SANE-certified Nurses, Improve Care for Survivors of Sexual Violence”. Congresswoman Deborah Ross. February 15, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  58. ^ “H.R.6735 – SANE Act”. Congress.gov. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  59. ^ “Geauga County Prosecutor – James R. Flaiz, Prosecuting Attorney”. prosecutor.co.geauga.oh.us. Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  60. ^ “Election Results”. Ohio Secretary of State. Archived from the original on August 15, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2015.

External links

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Ohio’s 14th congressional district

2013–present
Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by

Chair of the Republican Governance Group
2022–present
Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by

United States representatives by seniority
131st
Succeeded by