113th Congress: David Joyce, R-Ohio (14th District)

By Jonathan Strong, CQ Staff

Named to replace Republican Rep. Steven C. LaTourette on the general election ballot in August after LaTourette’s surprise retirement announcement, David Joyce suddenly finds himself in Congress after a long stint as a prosecutor.

Joyce has kept his ideological temperament something of a mystery.

“He’s an enigma,” state Rep. Ron Young, a Republican, told the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Joyce was appointed Geauga County prosecuting attorney in 1988 and has been regularly re-elected to the position. In his first year, he worked with LaTourette to prosecute a notorious cult murder case in Kirtland.

“Dave cares deeply about children, families and education,” according to a biography of Joyce on his county office website.

At an Oct. 23 debate for what was considered a safely Republican seat, only a few dozen people showed up, according to WKSU Ohio.

Joyce said he would help break through gridlock in Washington.

“It’s been childish what’s been taking place, and I am — just like you — frustrated with what’s been taking place in Congress,” Joyce said during the October debate. “What makes me think that I should get up off my duff at 55 years old and go to Washington, D.C., to break that gridlock? Because I care.”

The Judiciary Committee seems a likely landing spot for Joyce.