Dem rep, in first video since hit-and-run crash, opens up about wreck

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, has released a video on X saying she and her congressional staff involved in a Toledo, Ohio, car accident earlier this month are in good shape, thanking the well-wishes for helping fuel her “very rapid recovery.”

“As I move to physical rehabilitation, sharing a message with the thousands who shared good wishes from our community, across our region, our country, and around the world,” the longest-serving woman in U.S. House history, Kaptur, 80, wrote on X and sharing the video.

“It’s made a huge difference in my very rapid recovery. Each of you continue to uplift my spirit as we move forward. Thank you!”

Kaptur, a 22-term House member serving since 1983, and her staffer Keegan Zimmerman were in a vehicle traveling to a church service when it was struck in what police described as a “hit-skip” crash near Detroit and Central avenues in Toledo. Ohio law uses the term hit-skip for a driver’s failure to stop following a crash.

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“Dear friends, first of all, thank you so very, very much for the thousands of good wishes that are coming from our community, across our region, our state, our country, and even around the world,” Kaptur says in the video, where she is seated what appears to be a wheelchair in front of an office window. “Really, it’s made a huge difference in my very rapid recovery.

“I want to thank all of you on behalf of myself, my beautiful staff, including Keegan Zimmerman who was with me on that fateful day on Sunday a week ago. He also is in good shape. And I’m working my way back and am so grateful for all of the help that has been given to me in this effort.”

The House is on August recess, giving her additional time to recover before returning to Washington, D.C.

“We will not return to Washington until next month, so I’m blessed to have time to recover fully and I want to thank the first responders, the fire and rescue squads, the police, and all of medical personnel that served us at such a fateful moment,” she added in the video.

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She is seeking another term in November in a rematch against former Ohio State Rep. Derek Merrin after narrowly defeating him in 2024. The race will be a key battleground in the bellwether state of Ohio.

In 2024, she won by just more than the 0.5% margin that would have triggered an automatic recount, with a Libertarian candidate snagging about 4% of the vote.

But, she is recovering after the crash where she suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was active and alert after the collision, her office reported after the crash.

“It was not a pleasant experience and there were wounds that resulted, but let me tell you we have to be very grateful in this region to have the kind of dedicated medical staff that exists at Mercy St. Vincent’s treating patients from across this region, many of are underserved,” she said in the video. “Absolute dedication to saving lives. I was just so impressed.”

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Kaptur closed the video by showing viewers a handmade get-well card she received from a child. The card included a drawing of a brown dog named Charlie, whom Kaptur jokingly described as “half-human.”

“We’ve heard from many people of many ages, and I received this card from a young gentleman named Avery,” she said. “Isn’t this sweet? That’s his dog, Charlie. And he and I happen to be friends. And he was worried about me. So he did this card for me.

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“And I’ll just read it for you: It says, ‘Get well soon’ – with Charlie, with hearts, because I really love this dog, Charlie. He’s half-human. And signed Melanie, Adam, Eli, and Avery.”

“These are wonderful people, and they uplift your spirits, and each of you uplift my spirit as we move forward.”