JON HUSTED TRIAL TRACKER: Jon Husted Surpasses 100 Mentions in FirstEnergy Criminal Corruption Trial

JON HUSTED TRIAL TRACKER: Jon Husted Surpasses 100 Mentions in FirstEnergy Criminal Corruption Trial

February 24, 2026

Columbus, Ohio - Jon Husted reached a new milestone yesterday - his 100th mention in the ongoing FirstEnergy criminal corruption trial. As the trial continues, Husted's ties to the largest corruption scandal in Ohio history continue to deepen.

Throughout the trial, new phone calls, text messages, and previously unreported secret meetings have surfaced between Husted and indicted FirstEnergy executives, underscoring Husted's pivotal role in the scheme that delivered a billion dollar bailout to utilities while sticking Ohio families with higher energy bills.

Here are the latest revelations on Husted's role in the center of Ohio's largest corruption scandal:

Heartland Signal: Jon Husted had deeper ties to Ohio's largest bribery scandal than previously thought

• New reporting from News 5 Cleveland revealed that U.S. Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) met with one of the architects of Ohio's largest bribery scandal two days before bribery legislation was introduced in the state legislature.

• A public records request shows that Husted had a scheduled phone call with former Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) Chairman Sam Randazzo on April 6, 2019. Two days later, House Bill 6 was introduced in the Ohio legislature.

• HB 6 provided $1 billion in consumer-funded subsidies to FirstEnergy Corp., an electric utility company headquartered in Akron, Ohio.

• In 2021, FirstEnergy admitted to federal prosecutors that it paid more than $60 million in bribes to Ohio officials to pass HB 6, including $4.3 million to Randazzo in January 2019.

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Husted had 9 calls with FirstEnergy exec accused of bribery, records show

• U.S. Sen. Jon Husted talked with a FirstEnergy executive nine times around the time prosecutors say the executive and his boss paid a $4.3 million bribe to the man Husted and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine chose to lead the state's energy regulatory body, trial testimony showed Friday.

• Husted's calls came in late 2018 and early 2019, months after he was elected Ohio's lieutenant governor on DeWine's Republican ticket. That was around the time the two landed on appointing Sam Randazzo as the chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

• Husted spoke for a total of 51 minutes with FirstEnergy's then-top lobbyist, Michael Dowling, in the calls made from Nov. 19, 2018 through Jan. 24, 2019. Randazzo was appointed to the commission in February 2019 and began work in April of that year.

• The phone records were displayed and read into the record in the trial of Dowling and former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones.

Columbus Dispatch: DeWine, Husted messages to execs come into focus at FirstEnergy trial

• Jurors viewed text messages and emails on Feb. 19 showing that high-ranking elected Ohio officials worked behind the scenes to pass the $1.3 billion nuclear bailout - House Bill 6 - and appoint Sam Randazzo as Public Utilities Commission of Ohio chair.

• In another message, Dowling said DeWine and Husted performed "battlefield triage" to get Randazzo elected as PUCO chair.

• In the lead-up to July 23, 2019, when lawmakers approved HB 6, Dowling spoke to Husted, who wanted to extend the bailout.

MeidasTouch News: Husted Pushed Energy Bill at The Center of Largest Public Corruption Scandal in Ohio History

• While Lt. Governor, Republican U.S. Senator Jon Husted pushed for an energy bill in Ohio that was at the forefront of the biggest public corruption scandal in the state's history.

• New reporting has revealed that Husted "helped lead the charge" to pass HB 6, with FirstEnergy executives writing to each other that Husted was "a good friend of FirstEnergy" who was "highly engaged" and "fighting to the end" in support of the measure.

• Even before coming to office, Husted had been "lobbying [Ohio Governor Mike] DeWine to support the [FirstEnergy] bailout" and was described by FirstEnergy's CEO as "a good friend of FirstEnergy."

• Then, according to Husted's own calendar, on October 10th, 2019 Husted had a previously unscheduled call with Ohio Public Utilities Commission Chair Sam Randazzo.

• Randazzo is accused of authoring the bailout bill after taking millions in bribes from FirstEnergy. Randazzo had been appointed to his position by DeWine with the backing of Husted.

Read more about Jon Husted's role in Ohio's largest corruption scandal:

• New evidence at trial revealed nine calls between Jon Husted and Mike Dowling in the months preceding a $4.3 million bribe to former Utilities Commission Chair Sam Randazzo.

• New reporting reveals Jon Husted held secret meetings with indicted FirstEnergy executives, including with the "mastermind of Ohio's largest public corruption scheme two days before scandal-ridden bribery legislation was introduced."

• Neil Clark, a FirstEnergy lobbyist and co-defendant with former House Speaker Larry Householder, referred to Husted as FirstEnergy's "golden boy."

• Text messages between Husted and FirstEnergy Executives reveal that the trio were in constant communication "before, during and after his campaign."

• Indicted FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones said Husted was a "good friend of FirstEnergy" who was "highly engaged" and "fighting to the end" in support of the massive bail out.

• Just weeks after Husted and DeWine were elected in 2018, they had dinner with Jones and Dowling at the Athletic Club of Columbus.

• Public records show that FirstEnergy funneled $1 million in dark money to a nonprofit backing Husted in 2017 - part of the same corrupt scheme that led to federal indictments.

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