U.S. House of Representatives
Elections ;2002 Turner received 58% of the vote following the retirement of 23-year incumbent Democrat
Tony P. Hall from Congress after President
George W. Bush named Hall U.N. special envoy for hunger issues. Earlier that year, Turner won the Republican nomination when he defeated Roy Brown with 80% of the vote. Brown was the son and grandson of former area Republican congressmen
Bud Brown and
Clarence J. Brown and operated a local newspaper company, Brown Publishing. In the general election, Turner defeated Congressman Tony Hall's chief of staff, Rick Carne, after Carne won the Democratic nomination. Turner got a substantial assist from the 2000s round of redistricting. The old 3rd had been a fairly compact district centered on Dayton, but redistricting added some Republican-leaning suburbs to the east. ;2004 In
2004, Turner defeated former businesswoman Jane Mitakides with over 62% of the vote. The district was considered a key area in the swing state of Ohio in that year's presidential race. ;2006 In
2006, the Democrats planned to target Turner for defeat. Three Democrats entered the Third District primary to run against Turner in the general election.
Veterinarian Stephanie Studebaker defeated local bankruptcy attorney David Fierst and recalled Waynesville mayor Charles W. Sanders. Studebaker had previously affiliated with former Vermont governor
Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign in Ohio. After winning the nomination, she and her husband Sam were both arrested for domestic violence. Studebaker subsequently dropped out of the race, citing her family concerns and impending legal issues. After her withdrawal, four Democrats entered a special primary to face Turner, won by former assistant
United States attorney Richard Chema. Turner defeated Chema with 58% of the vote. ;2008 Jane Mitakides beat Sanders in the Democratic primary and faced Turner in a rematch from 2004. Turner again focused largely on economic issues of job creation and protection for workers affected by the national and regional recession. In a difficult political climate for Republicans, Turner defeated Mitakides with 64% of the vote, his largest margin of victory in any election. ;2010 Turner was challenged by first-time Democratic nominee 25-year-old Joe Roberts in the general election and won with 68% of the vote. ;2012 After redistricting, Turner's district was renumbered the
10th district. It absorbed much of the neighboring
7th district, represented by fellow Republican
Steve Austria. The district was made significantly more compact than its predecessor, absorbing all of Dayton. It initially looked like Turner would face Austria in a primary, but Austria dropped out of the race, handing Turner the nomination. Turner then defeated Democratic attorney Sharon Neuhardt with 60% of the vote. ;2020 Turner was challenged in the 2020 Republican primary by Kathi Flanders.
Tenure in 2015
Donald Trump in 2020 Turner is a member of the
Armed Services and
Government Reform committees. In 2009, he was named Ranking Member on the Strategic Forces Subcommittee of the
United States House Committee on Armed Services. In January 2003, Turner was appointed to the Armed Services Committee, a position he has used to advocate for the
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in his district, and to the Government Reform Committee. Due to his urban background, focus on the economic redevelopment of cities, and service as Dayton's mayor, Turner is sometimes described as an "urban Republican". Recognizing Turner's work on urban development, then-House Speaker
Dennis Hastert appointed Turner chair of the Saving America's Cities working group. The group was formed to work with the Bush administration to "foster economic development and redevelopment and streamline government services in America's cities to help them prosper and grow." During the 109th Congress, Turner served on the
House Veterans' Affairs Committee, in addition to his work on his two other committees, the House Armed Services and Government Reform Committees. Serving on the Armed Services Committee, Turner advocated for an expansion to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, providing testimony to the
Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC). This effort proved successful in 2008, when the Air Force announced that 1,000 jobs and over $230 million in federal funding would move to Wright-Patterson AFB. Turner has said that this is the largest single investment in Wright-Patterson since World War II. In 2006, the Dayton Development Coalition (DDC), a nonprofit and nominally nonpartisan group (though most of the trustees have contributed to Turner's campaigns) that advocates for federal funds for economic development in the Miami Valley, began a regional branding campaign. Turner's wife's company Turner Effect was awarded a contract without competitive bidding to conduct the marketing research associated with the campaign. In April 2008, Turner Effect withdrew from the branding implementation contract after more details of the agreement became public, including details about the more than $300,000 awarded to her company. The DDC said that its members were "unanimous" in their decision that there was "no conflict [of interest]" in their having chosen Turner's company, but watchdog groups and media reports raised concerns about a possible conflict of interest. In the same year, Turner's campaign committee Citizens for Turner contracted with Turner Effect for professional services, such as the production of literature. On July 7, 2008, Turner wrote an op-ed in the
Hillsboro Times-Gazette in support of the
Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, referred to as the GI Bill. In May of that year, Turner opposed an earlier version of the GI Bill. Turner has been endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars PAC. In October 2008, Turner joined then Senator
Hillary Clinton, First Lady
Laura Bush, Senator
Pete Domenici and Representative Brad Miller to announce the introduction of bipartisan legislation that would permanently authorize two historic preservation grant programs. The bill, H.R. 3981, would permanently authorize the programs known as "Save America's Treasures", established by the Clinton administration, and "
Preserve America", established by the Bush administration. It was introduced in the House by Turner and Miller as co-chairs of the Congressional Historic Preservation Caucus and in the Senate by Clinton and Domenici. The two grant programs are complementary.
Preserve America supports "community efforts to demonstrate sustainable uses of their historic and cultural sites, focusing on economic and educational opportunities related to heritage tourism." The Save America's Treasures grant program "funds 'bricks-and-mortar' projects by helping local communities develop sustainable resource management strategies and sound business practices for the continued preservation and use of heritage assets." In June 2009, Turner introduced H.J. Res 57, the "Preserving Capitalism in America" amendment to the
United States Constitution. This amendment, which has 104 cosponsors in the House, would prohibit the United States government from owning any stock in corporations. The amendment did not become law. In February 2010, Turner released a report on "The Impact of the Housing Crisis on Local Communities and the Federal Response" in conjunction with the Northeast-Midwest Institute and the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition. The report included testimony and proposals from Dayton community leaders such as Commissioner Dean Lovelace and Miami Valley Fair Housing Center CEO Jim McCarthy, who participated in an August 2009 housing and foreclosure crisis forum in Dayton. Turner indicated he would offer legislation based on the recommendations of the report. Turner voted against the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the
Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and in the coming years repeatedly voted for its repeal. He opposed the "$1 trillion government takeover of our nation's health care system" because it would "increase budget deficits and decrease the quality of our health care services", he said. Turner was highly critical of the Obama administration's Phased Adaptive Approach and Nuclear Posture Review regarding the protection and defense of the U.S. and allies. In 2012, Turner called for a missile defense site on the east coast of the United States, to defend against missiles launched from Iran. The east coast site would be the third such site, joining two others on the west coast designed to defend against an attack from North Korea. In 2018, Turner was named to the
United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. That year, Turner pushed for the establishment of the
National Advanced Air Mobility Center of Excellence in Ohio, catalyzing the facility's eventual construction at the
Springfield–Beckley Municipal Airport. In 2018 and 2019 he "led the Ohio congressional delegation... in advocating to bring the
F-35 program" to
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, which happened in May 2019. As of May 2019, he was the top Republican on the House Armed Service's Strategic Forces Subcommittee. In April 2019, he created a panel to "independently review" the water quality in the Dayton area. Turner was one of three Ohio Republicans appointed to an Intelligence Committee that examined whether Trump had improperly withheld aid to Ukraine. He stated the conversation between Trump and the Ukrainian president was "not ok", but that impeachment was an "assault" on the electorate. On November 19, 2019, Trump praised his questioning of witnesses in the impeachment inquiry in a tweet. In February 2022, Turner promoted debunked lies about the pleadings
John Durham filed as special prosecutor, claiming that they proved that
Hillary Clinton "spied" on Trump's presidential campaign and on Trump's White House. Durham denied in open court that these allegations are a truthful interpretation of his pleadings, but Turner continued to publicly disseminate the allegations. Following accusations that
Donald Trump had kept classified documents at Mar-a-Lago after his presidency ended, Turner said on Fox News that he thought the matter was "more like a bookkeeping issue than it is a national security threat". On March 18, 2024, Turner indicated that he did not believe
Donald Trump had been calling for violence when he used the word "blood bath" in a speech. "The president's statements concerning 'blood bath' were about what would happen in the auto industry if actually the Chinese manufacturers who are coming into Mexico were permitted to import into the United States," Turner said. On January 15, 2025, Turner was removed as chair of the House Intelligence Committee by
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson ahead of Donald Trump's
second presidential term. Turner said that Johnson cited "concerns from
Mar-a-Lago" when removing him, while Johnson denied to reporters that the removal was a "President Trump decision".
Political positions 2020 election Turner did not join the majority of Republican members of Congress who signed an
amicus brief in support of
Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the
United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election. Turner voted to certify both Arizona's and Pennsylvania's results in the
2021 United States Electoral College vote count.
China In June 2020, Turner cosponsored the Holding China Accountable Act, which would restrict visas for Chinese nationals entering the United States to study, work, or attend business meetings in “science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or a related field.”
Gun control After the
Dayton shooting in August 2019, Turner announced he would back legislation barring the "sale of
military-style weapons to civilians" and also said he would support a limit on magazines and the creation of legislation that would keep guns from people deemed dangerous by the police. He had previously "generally backed gun-rights measures during his nine terms in the House", earning a 93% approval and "A" rating from the
NRA Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) in prior years. Turner's daughter had been across the street from the attack. For the 2020 election the NRA-PVF gave Turner a "D" rating.
Syria In 2023, Turner voted against H.Con.Res. 21 which directed President
Joe Biden to remove U.S. troops from
Syria within 180 days.
Bosnia and Herzegovina Sutorina dispute involvement On March 3, 2015, Montenegrin, Bosnian, and other Balkan-based news agencies reported that Turner had involved himself in the
Sutorina dispute between
Bosnia and Herzegovina and
Montenegro, sending a letter of warning to then-
Bosniak member of the
Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bakir Izetbegović in which he suggested that if Bosnia and Herzegovina did not give up its territorial dispute over Sutorina, the United States might suspend its aid to the country. The dispute was later resolved peacefully, with Bosnia and Herzegovina ultimately dismissing its claims.
2025 Bosnian Constitutional Crisis and Republika Srpska–Dayton Accords Dispute In March 2025, Turner criticized
Milorad Dodik, the president of Bosnia and Herzegovina's
Republika Srpska entity, alleging that Dodik was undermining the
Dayton Peace Accords and seeking support from Russian president
Vladimir Putin to destabilize the
Balkans. Turner emphasized the importance of
U.S. and
NATO involvement to promote peace and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Committee assignments •
Committee on Intelligence (Ranking Member (2022-2023); Chairman (2023-2025)) •
Committee on Armed Services •
Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces Former Chairman •
Subcommittee on Strategic Forces Caucus memberships •
House Baltic Caucus •
Republican Governance Group •
Republican Main Street Partnership •
Republican Study Committee •
Congressional Taiwan Caucus • Former Mayor's Caucus • Historic Preservation Caucus • Real Estate Caucus • Urban Caucus • Census Caucus • Romanian Congressional Caucus • Saving America's Cities Working Group, Founder and Chairman • House Republican Policy Committee's Task Force on Urban Revitalization, Chairman • Congressional Manufacturing Task Force • Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition Revitalizing Older Cities Task Force, Co-Chairman •
Congressional Caucus on Turkey and Turkish Americans ==Electoral history==