Republican Mike DeWine was sworn in as governor of Ohio early Monday, taking his oath of office on a stack of nine Bibles held by his wife, Fran DeWine.
DeWine’s oath was administered by his son, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine, at the DeWine home in Cedarville, Ohio, just after midnight on Monday. Each Bible was meant to represent one of Mike and Fran’s eight children, a spokesman told the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Included in the collection were Bibles belonging to DeWine’s great-grandmother, grandmother, aunt, and mother. There was also a World War I-era New Testament belonging to DeWine’s grandfather, Albert Liddle, issued to him by the United States Navy.
DeWine, who took a public oath of office at an inaugural event Monday, was elected in November 2018, succeeding John Kasich, who served two four-year terms. DeWine defeated Democratic opponent Richard Cordray with 50.4 percent of the vote, despite not winning the counties containing Columbus, Cincinnati and Cleveland.
