Photo courtesy the Ohio House of Representatives ON TO NOVEMBER —Voters in Ohio’s 96th House District choose incumbent state Rep. Ron Ferguson (pictured in this file photo) over challenger Frank Hoagland, in Tuesday's Republican primary.

STEUBENVILLE — Incumbent state Rep. Ron Ferguson emerged from Tuesday’s primary election with the Republican nomination for another term in Ohio’s House of Representatives locked up.

Ferguson, a Wintersville resident, will now take on Democrat Charrie L. Foglio in the November general election for the right to represent the 96th District, which encompasses Jefferson County and parts of Belmont and Monroe counties.

Unofficial tallies show Ferguson garnering 7,003 votes districtwide compared to 4,165 for Hoagland, a former state senator.

He carried all three counties, with Jefferson County voters delivering 4,053 votes to him compared to 2,265 for Hoagland; Belmont County residents cast 2,147 votes for Ferguson and 1,447 for Hoagland; and in Monroe County, 803 votes were cast for Ferguson and 453 for Hoagland.

Hoagland was pragmatic in defeat, saying, “I tried.”

“Congratulations to Ferguson,” he said, later adding that “I did what I was asked to do to the best of my ability.”

Ferguson, though, said he was “more grateful than excited.”

“I’ve put my heart and soul, my best effort into the office for the three terms that I’ve had it, I think voters recognize that, and it was reflected in the final numbers,” he said. “I can tell everybody that they are going to continue to get that same 100 percent effort out of me. And for people who didn’t vote for me in the primary, it’s very important to me to earn your vote in November and to make sure you have a representative who you feel truly represents you.”

Ferguson acknowledged it was a rough primary campaign, adding, “I just think everybody is happy that it’s over.”

“(But) I’m going to be holding those in Columbus accountable who have tried to buy this seat, and I am never, ever going to let Eastern Ohio be second fiddle to Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati,” he said, adding that he’ll do that by “making sure that Ohioans across this state know the exact culprits who pulled the strings in Columbus to help their buddies, instead of helping the people of Ohio. (I’ll do that) by being 100 percent transparent, 100 percent of the time.”

He said he thinks it’s his “authenticity” that appeals to voters. “I’m a Christian, first and foremost, and a family man who is devoted to my wife, Emma, and my two girls, Ava and Eloise,” he said. “I like to tell people faith is first in my life, my family is first in my heart and eastern Ohio is first in my work, every single day.”