COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. David Hobson, whose 18 years in Congress included successful efforts to improve military housing and boost federal funding for defense research at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, died Sunday. He was 87.
Hobson died at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton after a short illness, his family said in a statement.
“To us, he was a husband and a dad, but he played countless other roles of which we’ve been reminded: a leader, a problemsolver, a counselor, a business partner, a friend — the list goes on," they said in a statement. "Even in our sadness we have laughed hearing old stories, and it has reminded us all over again why so many people loved him. We miss him desperately but are also grateful that he’s at peace.”
Hobson was a moderate Republican known as compassionate, hard-working and effective. His willingness to work with both parties was evident Monday as condolences rolled in from both Democratic and Republican former colleagues.
“In some ways, he served as an older brother and guide for me during some intense times in Washington,” Republican John Kasich, a former congressman who went on to become Ohio's governor and to run for president, wrote on X. “The work we did together gave us an opportunity to become dear friends.”
His GOP successor in Congress, Steve Austria, said Hobson “will best be remembered in Columbus, Washington and at home for his ability to solve problems and make deals to deliver for the Springfield area.”
Former Republican House Speaker John Boehner, a fellow Ohioan, said, “I loved working with him. He will be greatly missed and long remembered.”
Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, another former House colleague, said Hobson is one of the reasons Ohio is tops in aerospace. He “embodied the best of Ohio, the state he loved and served his entire life,” Brown said in a statement.
Former U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, another Democrat, said he remembered Hobson working with the late Rep. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones on projects beneficial to the Democratic stronghold of Cleveland. “Far from his district. It was about OH,” Ryan wrote on X.
Hobson was first elected to Congress in 1990 to fill a southwestern Ohio seat vacated when fellow Republican Mike DeWine, now Ohio governor, became Ohio’s lieutenant governor. Hobson served until 2009. He worked to improve and privatize military housing and to fund research and development programs at Wright-Patterson, located in his district, and at NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.
In a statement, DeWine said people appreciated Hobson's good judgment and ability to reach common ground. “He was extremely effective in each position, achieving tangible results for his district and the country,” he said. DeWine said the two remained in touch as Hobson continued to work steadily through his retirement and that he would miss his old friend's wise counsel.
In 2004, while representing Ohio's 7th Congressional District, Hobson helped establish a visitor center and memorial at the American Cemetery in Normandy, France, which honors U.S. soldiers killed in World War II. Hobson helped secure funding for the $30 million project.
The memorial, dedicated in 2007, features photos and audio recounting when soldiers stormed the French coastline on D-Day, June 6, 1944, in a pivotal battle. It leads onto the 172.5-acre (70-hectare) cemetery, which overlooks Omaha Beach. The site also features Walls of the Missing, inscribed with 1,557 names of the lost or unidentified in a semicircular garden and a Garden of the Missing.
Hobson was born in Cincinnati in 1936. He earned a bachelor's degree from Ohio Wesleyan and a law degree from Ohio State University. Hobson also served in the Air National Guard from 1958 to 1963, later earning a spot in the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame.
Before being elected to Congress, he spent nearly a decade in the Ohio Senate, where he was president pro tempore and majority whip. While serving in the chamber, he authored Ohio’s first comprehensive AIDS legislation and passed the first grant programs for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
“He was truly a good man who cared about his neighbors, his neighborhood, and the people of Ohio,” the chamber said in a statement, which added that Hobson was “very well respected by his colleagues.”
After leaving Congress, Hobson served as president of Vorys Advisors LLC, an affiliate of the Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease law firm.
Hobson is survived by his wife Carolyn, three children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
