Former central Ohioan Rouda elected to Congress

A Republican-turnedDemocrat with roots in central Ohio has unseated U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a GOP fixture in California who represented Orange County for 15 terms.

The Associated Press called the race Saturday night, with Harley Rouda receiving 52 percent of the vote to Rohrabacher’s 48 percent.

Rouda, 56, is the son of Harley E. Rouda Sr., who founded HER Realtors in the basement of his Upper Arlington home in 1956. This year, the son became a symbol of the Democratic efforts to win back Congress.

Rohrabacher, 71, was viewed as particularly vulnerable because he defended Russia in the midst of allegations about its efforts to intervene in elections in the United States.

In July, Rohrabacher admitted to meeting during a 2015 trip to Russia with Maria Butina, who was charged by federal prosecutors this summer with Rouda conspiracy and acting as a foreign agent. Rohrabacher was considered so valuable to the Kremlin that the FBI warned him in 2012 that Russia regarded him as an intelligence source worthy of a code name.

His support for President Vladimir Putin of Russia raised questions even among fellow Republicans.

Rouda capitalized on that in his campaign, running ads emphasizing Rohrabacher’s Putin ties and criticizing Rohrabacher for questioning the assertion by U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.

Rouda has said he is in favor of Medicare for All, a $15-anhour federal minimum wage tied to inflation, and free tuition at public colleges.