Bob Latta Bio
Robert Edward Latta (born April 18, 1956) is an American politician and attorney serving as the United States Representative for Ohio’s 5th congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, he has represented the district in Congress since 2007 and is currently in his tenth term. The district covers many of Toledo’s suburbs, along with Findlay, Bowling Green, Napoleon, Sylvania, Defiance, and Van Wert.
Before his time in Washington, Latta served four terms in the Ohio state legislature and worked as a private-practice attorney and Wood County commissioner. He lives in Bowling Green, Ohio, with his family.
Early Life and Background
Robert Edward Latta was born on April 18, 1956, in Bluffton, Ohio, to Del Latta and Rose Mary Kiene Latta. He grew up in Northwest Ohio and spent his formative years in a region shaped by manufacturing, agriculture, and small-town civic life. His father, Del Latta, represented Ohio’s 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1959 to 1989 and served as the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee from 1975 until his retirement.
Latta earned a Bachelor of Arts from Bowling Green State University in 1978. He then went on to receive a Juris Doctor from the University of Toledo College of Law in 1981, preparing him for a career in law. In 1995, he was inducted into Omicron Delta Kappa as an alumnus of Bowling Green State University in recognition of his continued contributions.
Path to US Politics
After completing his legal education, Latta worked as a private-practice attorney, building a professional foundation in Ohio before entering public service. His early interest in public policy was shaped in part by watching his father serve for three decades in Congress.
In 1988, Latta ran in the Republican primary for the congressional seat that opened up when his father Del Latta announced his retirement. He lost the primary by just 27 votes to Paul Gillmor, then president of the Ohio State Senate, who went on to win the general election. The narrow loss did not end Latta’s political ambitions, and he continued building a career in state and local government.
Bob Latta Career
Early Career (1991-2006)
Latta served as a Wood County Commissioner from 1991 to 1996, gaining direct experience in county-level administration and budgeting. He then moved to the Ohio Senate, representing the 2nd Senate District from 1997 to 2001.
In 2001, Latta was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he served the 6th House District until 2007. Over the course of four terms in the state legislature, he established himself as a reliable Republican voice on fiscal and local issues affecting Northwest Ohio.
Breakthrough (2007-2010)
After Paul Gillmor died suddenly in September 2007, a special election was called to fill Ohio’s 5th congressional district seat. Latta entered the Republican primary and defeated State Senator Steve Buehrer and other candidates to secure the nomination. In the December 11, 2007 special general election, he defeated Democratic nominee Robin Weirauch by a margin of 57 percent to 43 percent, and he was sworn in on December 13, 2007.
Latta won his first full term in 2010, defeating Democratic nominee Caleb Finkenbiner and Libertarian nominee Brian L. Smith. He followed this with a 2012 victory over Democratic nominee Angela Zimmann and Libertarian nominee Eric Eberly, drawing endorsements from groups including the United States Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Business, the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund, and National Right to Life.
Republican Era (2007-Present)
Since entering Congress, Bob Latta has served continuously as the representative for Ohio’s 5th congressional district, currently in his tenth term. His tenure has focused on telecommunications policy, energy, consumer protection, and government oversight.
In 2014, he introduced a bill directing the Federal Communications Commission to allow manufacturers of electronic devices with screens to display required information digitally rather than on affixed labels. He has also been active on marriage-related policy, cosponsoring in 2015 a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage. In 2021, Latta voted against establishing an independent commission to investigate the storming of the United States Capitol and introduced legislation to prohibit municipalities from building their own broadband networks.
Notable Events and Milestones
One of the most significant early moments of Latta’s career was his narrow 27-vote Republican primary loss in 1988, which he followed two decades later with a winning return to the same congressional seat in 2007. In December 2020, he was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief supporting Texas v. Pennsylvania, a United States Supreme Court case contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election; the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.
Bob Latta Career Wins
Bob Latta’s career is defined by his consistent electoral success in Ohio’s 5th congressional district, where he has won election after election since first claiming the seat in a 2007 special election.
US House of Representatives Highlights
Latta’s first congressional victory came in the December 11, 2007 special general election, when he defeated Robin Weirauch by a margin of 57 percent to 43 percent after winning the Republican special primary. He has since secured multiple full-term victories, including wins over Caleb Finkenbiner in 2010 and Angela Zimmann in 2012.
His longevity in the seat is itself a milestone, with Latta currently serving in his tenth term representing the same Northwest Ohio district his father once held.
Other Wins and Achievements
Beyond Congress, Latta won election as a Wood County Commissioner in 1991, served in the Ohio Senate starting in 1997, and joined the Ohio House of Representatives in 2001. He has earned consistently strong ratings from conservative organizations, including a 91 percent lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union, a 90 percent lifetime rating from Americans for Prosperity, a 100 percent rating from the Campaign for Working Families in 2017, a 60 percent Freedom Index rating from the John Birch Society in 2017, and a 58 percent rating from the Conservative Review in 2018.
| Position | Wins | Year |
|---|---|---|
| United States Representative, Ohio’s 5th Congressional District (Special) | 1 | 2007 |
| United States Representative, Ohio’s 5th Congressional District | 1 | 2010 |
| United States Representative, Ohio’s 5th Congressional District | 1 | 2012 |
Bob Latta Family
Family Background and Political Lineage
Bob Latta is the son of Del Latta and Rose Mary Kiene Latta. His father, Del Latta, was a long-serving Republican congressman who represented Ohio’s 5th congressional district from 1959 to 1989 and served as the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee from 1975 until his retirement. Bob Latta now holds the same seat his father once held, continuing a notable father-son tradition of public service from Northwest Ohio.
Personal Life
Latta is Catholic and an avid sportsman who has remained a lifelong resident of Northwest Ohio. He married Marcia Sloan in 1986, and the couple lives in Bowling Green, Ohio. They have two daughters together.