Timothy Grady named Army veteran and advocate Andrea Neutzling as his running mate in his independent campaign for Ohio governor this week. The campaign will now shift its focus on ballot access for the general election.
According to details in a July 15 statement by the campaign, Neutzling is a lifelong Ohio resident from Meigs County. She is a former intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army who currently works as a substitute teacher in both Athens and Meigs counties. A list of her policy priorities includes reforming Ohio’s education funding system, expanding support for disabled veterans, and protecting students from bullying.
The campaign adds that Neutzling is a vocal proponent of military justice reform and was an advocate for the Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022, where she cited her exposure to the burn pit at Iraq’s Camp Bucca. That legislation authorized nearly $800 billion to expand healthcare and disability compensation for veterans exposed to toxic substances during their service.
Grady, a former chair of the Ohio Forward Party and graduate student in economics at the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, first announced his candidacy late last month.
Having filled the lieutenant governor position, the Grady–Neutzling ticket stated that it will immediately begin petitioning for general election ballot access. To qualify, they must collect at least 5,000 valid signatures from Ohio voters by the May 4, 2026 deadline. The full statement submitted to Independent Political Report is republished below:
Andrea Neutzling joins Independent Ohio Gubernatorial Ticket
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2025Contact:
Timothy Grady
Email: [email protected]
Phone: [Number redacted]Andrea Neutzling joins Independent Ohio Gubernatorial Ticket as Lieutenant Governor Candidate
Mansfield, OH – July 15, 2025 – Andrea Neutzling, army veteran, advocate, and Southeast Ohio native, has officially joined the Independent campaign of Timothy Grady for Governor of Ohio as running mate and candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio.
Neutzling’s top policy priorities include fixing Ohio’s broken education funding system, protecting students facing school bullying, and expanding support for disabled veterans.
“What Andrea brings to this campaign is grit, compassion, and deep commitment to public service,” said Grady. “She has a long history of advocacy and as Lieutenant Governor she will serve Ohio with the dedication and integrity we desperately need. I couldn’t be more proud to team up with her.”
Grady and Neutzling are united in their commitment to public trust, independent leadership, and putting Ohioans above party politics.
“I believe that as an Independent I can help cross the aisle between the Republicans and Democrats to help make this state better for all of Ohio citizens and not just the select few,” Andrea said, “I have gotten tired of seeing those in the two main political parties not listen to those who put them into their positions.”
A native of Meigs County, Andrea grew up active in 4-H, FFA, Girl Scouts (earning her Gold Award), and spent a year in Police Explorers with Athens County. She worked for 3 summers as a tomato field picker and then got certified as a lifeguard, working at local public pools from her freshman summer until she left for Basic Training. She served Active Duty from 2000–2004 as an Intelligence Analyst. She then became an Army Reservist with a Military Police unit out of Columbus, Ohio, getting deployed in 2005–2006 with a unit from Michigan.
Neutzling has been a strong advocate for reforming the military justice system in response to her own experiences with harassment and assault during her service. She was also exposed to the Burn Pit on Camp Bucca Iraq, leading to her advocating with others to get the PACT Act passed in 2022.
Today, she works as a substitute teacher for districts in Athens and Meigs County and remains active in veteran leadership. She was the first female Post Commander of a veteran service organization in Meigs County and currently serves as Senior Vice Commander of VFW District 12, where she previously served as District Commander.
More details on Andrea can be found at: timgradyforohio.com/about/lieutenant-governor
With a lieutenant governor candidate named, petitioning for ballot access will begin immediately.#
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