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As Ohio Goes, So Go the Midterms -- and Possibly 2012
If current polls are correct and the election were held tomorrow, it's a good bet the GOP would sweep the board in Ohio, taking back the governorship, at least a couple of U.S. House seats, the state House and hold onto the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Republican George Voinovich.
Voters in Ohio, either already unemployed or concerned about losing their jobs soon, are angry -- and in a mood to take it out on Democrats.
This manufacturing and heavily union state has lost jobs at a steady clip, and the lousy local economy has become the focus of this election.
The overall unemployment rate in Ohio was 10.3 percent in July, above the national average. But the economy differs significantly depending on where you are in the state. More than half of Ohio's 88 counties had an unemployment rate above 11 percent and a dozen of them were over 13 percent, including Clinton County in southwestern Ohio, which had a July jobless rate of 16.7 percent. Highland and Meigs counties, close to the Kentucky and West Virginia borders, both had rates above 15 percent.President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden both made appearances in Ohio this past week and are expected to visit at least several more times before the November midterm election in an effort to shore up embattled Democrats.
Obama, who has visited Ohio 10 times since being elected president, gave a speech at Cuyahoga Community College in a Cleveland suburb Wednesday. The president unveiled additional economic measures intended to spark the economy. He also laid into Republicans, specifically House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio, who wants to be the next speaker of the House, for having no new policies or ideas and simply pushing tax cuts for the rich.
But some in the invited audience, handpicked by Democratic state officials, were unconvinced. Jackie Capasso, 50, works in the accounting department of a manufacturing facility outside Cleveland that remains open but has downsized significantly and went through a closure scare. Capasso said she has never voted for a Republican for president and normally votes for Democratic candidates. But not this year.
Capasso said she is expecting to vote for former Republican congressman John Kasich for governor over Democratic incumbent Ted Strickland. "We've lost way too many jobs, and whether it's right or wrong he's going to take the fall for it," Capasso said of Strickland.
Obama may be planning to spend so much time in Ohio this election season not only to assist fellow Democrats but also to help his own sagging approval ratings. A recent Ohio poll conducted by Public Policy Polling revealed a startlingly negative view of the Obama presidency. In answer to the question "Who would you rather have as president: George W. Bush or Barack Obama?," 50 percent said Bush as opposed to 42 percent for Obama. Two groups that preferred Obama were minority voters and those under the age of 30, constituencies it will be critical for the Democrats and Obama to mobilize in this election and in 2012, if they are to carry Ohio.
Joe Biden, who is more popular with union voters and Reagan Democrats than Obama, appeared at a Labor Day parade in downtown Toledo alongside Strickland. The vice president, who sprinted from one side of the street to the other shaking hands, posing for pictures and kissing babies throughout the mile-long route, received an enthusiastic welcome from the crowd. But afterward, talking to some of the same union members who had marched in the parade, it was clear that Strickland and the rest of the Democratic ticket did not have their wholehearted support.
Two members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers said they planned to vote Republican. They both declined to give their names because they said "this is a union town" and disloyalty to the Democrats is frowned upon.
One of the men told me he's been out of work since January and 400 of the 1,800 members of his union -- more than 20 percent -- are currently unemployed. Referring to Obama's 2008 call for change, one of the men said: "The first change didn't work. Everything that was promised isn't happening. Something's got to be done."
The Republican Governors Association has been running television ads in Ohio this summer blaming Strickland for the loss of 400,000 jobs in the state. A number of companies have left Ohio for more favorable economic environments in other states. NCR Corp., maker of the first mechanical cash register, announced in June that it was relocating from Dayton, its home since 1884, to an Atlanta suburb.
All of the bad economic news is creating a headwind for Democrats and that could have long-term implications for the party's fortunes in the state. It's not just at the top of the ticket that Democrats are in trouble. Right now they hold 10 of the state's 18 U.S. House seats, an increase of three seats from 2006, but defending those seats could prove problematic.
Three Ohio Democratic House freshmen, Steve Driehaus of Cincinnati, Mary Jo Kilroy of Columbus and John Boccieri of Canton, are all running behind their Republican opponents. In addition, several other congressional Democrats, including Marcy Kaptur of Toledo, now in her 14th term, and Betty Sutton who represents a solidly Democratic district that includes Akron, are facing tougher races than they had expected.
Former Republican congressman Rob Portman, who served as U.S. trade representative and director of the Office of Management and Budget in the George W. Bush administration, is running to replace Voinovich. His Democratic opponent for U.S. Senate is Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, a former state attorney general.
"If Rob Portman wins Ohio as the trade representative for George Bush, it is, in fact, one of the seven signs that the world is coming to an end," Chris Redfern, chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party, told Bloomberg News.
But Portman, like Kasich, is leading in the polls. Although he's no Tea Party candidate -- the GOP in Ohio seems to have largely avoided the Tea Party takeover of Republican primaries that other states experienced -- Portman has spoken to Tea Party groups and he says he believes the movement is a "net positive" for the Republicans this year.
Republicans also seem poised to take back the state House and hold onto their majority in the state Senate. If they control the governorship and both houses of the state Legislature as well as a majority of congressional seats, it would have a major impact on the redistricting of the state following this year's census, when Ohio is expected to lose two U.S. House seats. And that could have a spillover effect in 2012.
In fact, if history is any guide, it's quite likely that this will be the case: In the 51 presidential elections since 1804, Ohio has voted for the winner 43 times and the state has been right in every election since 1964. No Republican has ever won the presidency without Ohio, and only two Democrats have done so since 1900, Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944 and John F. Kennedy in 1960.
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Ohio will lead the way in replacing the liberal representatives. Its does not matter if they are republican or democrate. We the people want our elected representatives to work for us not a political party. We want small government and lower taxes. I know how to spend my money I do not need the government to do it for me. Get your hands out my pockets!
September 24 2010 at 4:14 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyCandidates are in the business of being elected, not fixing problems. They owe favors to those who got them there. Now Big Biz can spend unlimited amounts of money on campaigns. You've been bought and sold America. Enjoy being slaves to corporate America. Oh wait you already are....Less paid vacation time than any industrialized country on the planet except China, 87th in the world in health care, 2nd most suicides in the military, a wonderful bank bailout that could have given 400k to every working man in the country, and the list could go on all day.
September 20 2010 at 1:16 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyOhio, you do what you think is best for the country when you choose your leaders. For me, I will be voting for conservative candidates.
September 17 2010 at 4:58 PM Report abuse Permalink +14 rate up rate down ReplyI am a conservative and I have just 2 comments. 1) I would like to remind my loyal fellow citizens, who are Democrats, that we dont hate you. We just believe your are wrong. 2) Do you hate the rich? Ask a poor man for a job.
September 17 2010 at 2:24 PM Report abuse Permalink +18 rate up rate down ReplyThe Comments are informative and useful. As I read them, my knowledge of world affairs expands and I feel my day has been well spent. bejewe
September 17 2010 at 11:56 AM Report abuse Permalink +2 rate up rate down ReplyThe Moderate Democrats have no one to blame but themselves. The American people warned them repeatedly. Do not vote for these extreme Liberal policies, do not vote for TARP, the Bank Bailouts, Cap and Trade and particularly Health Care. They ignored us. They accepted sleazy deals and bragged about it. They continued to spend and ignored unemployment issues and the economy. They cheered on the floor of the House and the Senate as they sold us and our children to the highest bidder. They ignored Honor and Integrity. They insulted the Tea Party, played the race card, and refused to stand with Arizona in securing our borders. The polls do not begin to show the anger and disgust of the American people. And yes, since we are unemployed, we have plenty of time to attend rallies and VOTE!.
September 13 2010 at 9:34 PM Report abuse Permalink +46 rate up rate down ReplyThe key question is why did Obama visit Cugahoga Community college and not the GM (Govenment Motor) plant 50 miles away? Guess he was afraid to show his face to the union workers he forced to take pay cuts!
September 13 2010 at 9:34 PM Report abuse Permalink +22 rate up rate down ReplyThe democrats arn't going to get swept in November; they are going to get steam rolled in November. If the Republicans are the party of no the democrats are the road-kill party.
September 13 2010 at 9:10 PM Report abuse Permalink +29 rate up rate down ReplyI'm still wondering if the democrats think the country is headed in the right direction? Obama nad biden needed to campaign in Ohio before the end of "recovery summer". lol
September 13 2010 at 9:06 PM Report abuse Permalink +23 rate up rate down ReplyBased on what? Out-of-touch polls that rely on land lines?
September 13 2010 at 6:39 PM Report abuse Permalink -21 rate up rate down ReplyI think the article was pretty clear on hoe the writer came to her conclusion. It was based on historic voting trends. Phone polls were never even mentioned.
September 13 2010 at 6:46 PM Report abuse Permalink +26 rate up rate down ReplySo my Father a WWII vet who happens to have a land line is out of touch? More of the elitist attitude.
September 13 2010 at 9:31 PM Report abuse Permalink +24 rate up rate down Reply
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