Ohio Senate Republican Candidate Charged after Being Accused of Sending Campaign Postcards Claiming GOP Funding

An Ohio State Senate candidate was charged this week after being accused of making campaign postcards falsely claiming to have been paid for by the Republican Party.

David Uible, 59, of Ohio Township, was charged on Tuesday with one count of falsification, a first degree misdemeanor, and obstructing official business, a second degree misdemeanor, linked to allegations filed earlier this month, according to the Clermont County Sheriff's Office.

Uible, a former Clermont County Commissioner, is accused of making "false statements to a detective in an attempt to mislead and obstruct" an investigation, police said.

During separate legal issues, the Ohio politician pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of tampering with records in 2018 and was sentenced to probation and fined $250 last December, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

Law enforcement said yesterday the allegations against Uible had been filed with the sheriff's office on April 7 by Clermont County Republican Party Chairman Greg Simpson.

Simpson reported to officials that an unknown person had printed campaign postcards—also known as "chasers"—and sent them out to some county residents with a line that falsely asserted they had been "paid for by the Clermont County Republican Party, Greg Simpson, Chairman."

The current chairman denied authorizing the mailers and confirmed the Republican Party did not fund the campaign material. Police said the printing was traced back to Uible, despite some alleged attempts by the suspect to "mislead and obstruct" a detective who was assigned to the case.

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, court documents said Uible initially denied responsibility for making the cards, but employees of a printing press said otherwise. Police said employees who were interviewed alleged that Uible "instructed them to destroy any evidence of the chaser in their shop."

Uible is running for election in the Ohio State Senate to represent District 14, according to records on Ballotpedia. Residents in the state have been given a deadline of April 28 to vote by mail for the primary, moved from March 17 due to COVID-19, which has delayed most forms of in-person voting.

The Clermont County Sheriff's Office said Simpson had been provided with all relevant information needed to file a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission. A court date for Uible would be set once warrants for the two charges were successfully served to the suspect, authorities added.

Ohio Police released a mugshot of Uible yesterday that was dated 25 October 2019, when he pleaded guilty to illegally submitting signatures on a petition for re-election to the Clermont County Board of Commissioners in 2018, the Clermont Sun reported. He did not serve jail time.

Uible has been contacted for comment through his most recent campaign website, which remains online at the time of writing. A campaign-focused Facebook account also remains active.