Keith Faber

Keith Faber (born January 19, 1966) is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the 84th district, which includes Mercer County as well as portions of Auglaize, Darke and Shelby counties. Faber previously served as 94th President of the Ohio Senate and as the state senator for the 12th District. He also previously served in the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the same district, from 2001 to 2007. He is a Republican.

Faber is the principal partner with Faber and Associates in Celina, a law firm specializing in civil litigation and mediation, helping courts and parties resolve matters without trial. He earned his Juris Doctorate from The Ohio State University in 1991.

With incumbent Jim Buchy unable to run for another term in the House in 2000, Faber sought to replace him. He faced a primary race with fellow Republican Terry Haworth, and won by about 1,300 votes. He defeated Democrat Bill Sell in the general election by about 14,000 votes. He won reelection in 2002, 2004, and 2006.

When Jim Jordan vacated his state Senate seat after winning a seat in Congress, Faber was one of seven who sought to replace him, along with Derrick Seaver, Gene Krebs, Robert J. Luckey III, Toni Slusser, Vincent Foulk and Kreg Allison. Faber won the support of Senate Republicans, and took the seat in the Senate in February 2007. Soon after the appointment, Senate President Bill Harris appointed Faber to the Senate Finance and Financial Institutions Committee.

For the 128th General Assembly, Faber served as Senate majority floor leader, and in the 129th General Assembly, he served as President pro tempore, the second highest post in the Senate. As President pro tempore, Faber was also vice chairman of the Senate Rules and Reference Committee. Faber won reelection to a second term in 2012, defeating Libertarian Paul Hinds with 79.07% of the vote. Faber served as the 94th President of the Ohio Senate throughout his last term in the upper chamber, before being ineligible to run again in 2016 due to term limits.

In 2016, state Representative Jim Buchy, who had returned to the House after Faber had succeeded him in 2000, again decided to retire, in what perhaps strategically opened up the seat for Faber, who himself was term-limited from his seat in the Senate, where he had served as the body's President since 2013. He easily won election, receiving over 83% of the vote against Democrat Ed Huff in the 2016 general election.

Many have commented that Faber's move back to the House is a temporary stop to keep him in office until he makes a potential run for statewide office in 2018, perhaps for Ohio State Auditor or Ohio Attorney General. The move is seen as similar to what Jon Husted did after being term-limited from the Ohio House after serving as its Speaker in 2008.

Faber is married to Andrea Faber, and together they have two children. They reside in Celina, Ohio.