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Columbus, OH – As voters across Ohio went to the polls this week, they heard all about how J.D. Vance wouldn’t give workers a chance in the U.S. Senate. 

J.D. Vance is an out-of-touch millionaire who has profited from globalization, said “it was not necessarily bad trade deals,” and is now lying about his record of advocating to cut Social Security and Medicare. Read and watch more below: 

DAYTON

WKEF: Labor Leaders Hold Campaign Stop

WHIO: Ohio Democratic Party ‘No Chance Vance’ Event

MARTINS FERRY

Times Leader: ‘No Chance Vance’ tour makes a stop in Martins Ferry

• The Ohio Democratic Party’s “No Chance Vance” tour made a Friday stop in the Purple City, where labor leaders voiced support for Democrat U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan in the race for Ohio’s open U.S. Senate seat.
• Dave Dilly, a coal miner out of Coshocton and Ohio COMPAC coordinator for the United Mine Workers of America, said Ohio deserves a representative such as Ryan, who is “Ohio through and through” and will fight for the workers of the state. Dilley said Vance has “forgotten about Ohio.”
• “Tim Ryan is very special to me and the coal miners because of what he’s done for us as far as our health care and our pensions. … If it wasn’t for Tim Ryan, there probably would have been 10,000 coal miners without health care, 100,000 coal miners without retirement benefits. For the average coal miner, the retirement benefits are $500 a month, and that would be devastating,” he said, adding that he wants to return the favor and show his support for Ryan.
• Melissa Cropper, president of the Ohio Federation of Teachers and secretary/treasurer of the Central Labor Councils, said as an educator the opioid epidemic crisis is a big concern for her and an important issue. She said Vance has not done anything to help the issue, whereas Ryan is working on recovery and prevention efforts.
• “Vance could have put his money into helping with real efforts to combat the opioid epidemic but instead he used the money for his nonprofit (Our Ohio Renewal, which collapsed within two years) to pay his friends and a political advisor,” she said, adding that Ryan has worked across party lines to advocate for an approach that combines treatment, prevention and law enforcement efforts.

WTOV: USW Local 1238 Holds ‘No Chance Vance’ Tour

LIMA

WLIO: Local unions explain why they are backing Tim Ryan during their “No Chance Vance” tour

• Members of the Lima Building Trades, United Steelworkers, and the UAW CAP Council spoke to the media about their thoughts on Republican U.S. Senate candidate, J.D. Vance, during a “No Chance Vance” tour.
• The union officials say that Vance has voiced his objection to bills that have already passed that would create millions of dollars of infrastructure improvements in Ohio and also the growth of the electric vehicle industry. That is why they are throwing their support behind Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Tim Ryan. Especially since, he was one of the co-sponsors of the “Protecting the Right to Organize Act” or PRO Act, which has already passed the U.S. House but is still looking for Senate approval.

Lima News: ‘No Chance Vance’: Labor leaders advocate for Ryan

• Labor leaders across Ohio have joined the Ohio Democratic Party to advocate for workers in the state. The tour is titled ‘No Chance Vance’ in hopes to inform Ohioans why they should choose U.S. Senate Candidate Tim Ryan (D).
• JD Vance (R) is campaigning against Ryan in the coming election. Labor leaders advocated for Ryan on Monday morning at the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 776 Hall in Lima.
• “There is a lot at stake in the United States Senate race,” said McPheron. “Whether hard-working families will be able to get ahead or if out-of-touch millionaires will continue to rig the system for themselves and their wealthy corporate special interest donors. When you love this country, you love the people that make it work. Tim Ryan loves the workers who keep this country running.”

CLEVELAND

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Columbus, OH — In case you missed it, Theodore Decker used his column today to call out phony Frank LaRose and the election lies he’s spouting to further his own political ambitions. Decker rightly points out that LaRose knows better than the election conspiracies he’s been trafficking in, but he’s so hungry to run for Senate in two years that he’ll do or say anything to get himself ahead, even if it’s dangerous to our democracy. 

“Considering his job is largely to ensure the accuracy of elections, LaRose has walked a razor-thin line, thin enough that he’s already lost his balance and planted his foot squarely in slop more than once. His political future, by his estimation at least, demands that he embrace the belief that when it comes to voting, something must be rotten in the state of Ohio. But as secretary of state, he knows as well as anyone that voter fraud in Ohio is ‘exceedingly rare.’ How do we know? Because he said so,” writes Decker. 

“Frank LaRose knows better than the election lies he’s spouting, but he wants so badly to run for Senate in two years, he’s willing to debase what’s left of his reputation and dabble in conspiracy theories. Frank LaRose’s phoniness is no longer just pathetic, it’s dangerous,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokesperson Matt Keyes. 

Read more from Decker HERE and below: 

• Considering his job is largely to ensure the accuracy of elections, LaRose has walked a razor-thin line, thin enough that he’s already lost his balance and planted his foot squarely in slop more than once.
• His political future, by his estimation at least, demands that he embrace the belief that when it comes to voting, something must be rotten in the state of Ohio. But as secretary of state, he knows as well as anyone that voter fraud in Ohio is “exceedingly rare.” How do we know?
• Because he said so.
• Yet with no evidence that voter fraud in Ohio is anything more than an isolated and historically tiny problem, the Republican incumbent seeking reelection is still doing plenty of talking about it lately.
• Even though he flat-out said fraud was “exceedingly rare” and that Joe Biden won the presidential election, LaRose also has poked at elections procedures in other states and raised the specter of more widespread fraud through a series of announcements and official actions.
• Earlier this year, he said on social media that a handful of potential cases of fraud were “ONLY THE BEGINNING.”
• In October, he announced a “public integrity” unit to ferret out these instances of voter fraud, a move that critics said was mostly for-show given how minuscule the problem is. As if to underscore that fact, a few weeks later he made another announcement, that his office had referred 75 cases of “potential” voter fraud tied to the 2020 election. And “potential” is the word that matters here.
• Meanwhile, there is a handy little graphic sitting on LaRose’s website that declares “OHIO’S VOTING IS SECURE.”
• But the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband underscores that hyperbole is not guaranteed to be harmless. In Arizona, a judge just stepped in to order sometimes armed, self-appointed ballot box “monitors” wearing body armor to back off. It doesn’t take much of an imagination to see this ending badly for voters, poll workers, or both.
• Fomenting distrust over our elections without evidence has and will have real-time consequences. Treating an American institution with such cavalier disregard in the name of personal political aspirations is worse than reckless. The longer it persists, the more monstrous it grows.

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Columbus, OH — Today, the Ohio Democratic Party released a list of election night parties happening across the state for Ohio Democrats to gather and celebrate victories up and down the ballot.  

“On November 8, Ohio Democrats are going to put our state back in the hands of working people. We’re excited to celebrate across the state as we watch Ohio Democrats get elected up and down the ballot and show our appreciation for the staff, activists and volunteers who helped get us across the finish line,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters. 

Media interested in attending these local events should contact their local Democratic parties. Questions about specific candidates’ plans for election night should be directed to individual campaigns.

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Columbus, OH — Today, the Ohio Democratic Party wrote to news stations around the state calling on them to pull down a false and misleading ad run by Republicans that misrepresents the records of Democrats running for the Ohio Supreme Court. Late last week, the Ohio Bar Association asked the Republican State Leadership Committee to take down the misleading ad. In its letter, the Ohio Bar Association asserts that the ad: “grossly oversimplif(ies) their (Democrats’) opinions just to score political points” and “serves to erode public trust and confidence in the judiciary.”

“Republicans are so desperate to distract from their records and cling on to control that they’ve resorted to lying about the Democratic candidates running for Ohio Supreme Court. This is exactly the kind of nasty politics Ohioans are so tired of seeing from the GOP-controlled Supreme Court. We’re asking that news stations do the right thing and stop running this irresponsible ad, especially so close to Election Day,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters.

Find the full letter to TV news stations HERE and below: 

Dear Station Manager:

I am legal counsel for the Ohio Democratic Party. I write with regard to an advertisement by the Republican State Leadership Committee (“RSLC”). The text of the advertisement is attached. This advertisement is a gross oversimplification to the point that it is deliberating false, misleading and deceptive, and knowingly misstates the legal rulings of Justice Jennifer Brunner, and Judges Terri Jamison and Marilyn Zayas. The Ohio State Bar Association (“OSBA”) has asked the RSLC to take down the advertisement, as it “grossly oversimplifies their (Democrats’) opinions just to score political points” and “serves to erode public trust and confidence in the judiciary.” Their letter to the RSLC is attached. While we agree with OSBA’s opposition to the misleading advertisement, we have no faith that the RSLC will take down the advertisement themselves. However, stations like yours have FCC licensing requirements to adhere to, which are grounded by the public interest against misleading political advertisements. For these reasons, your station should refuse to continue to air this advertisement.

The RSLC advertisement makes several factual assertions that are false, misleading, and/or deceptive. To begin, the advertisement mischaracterizes the DuBose case with this accusation: “Jennifer Brunner and Democrat justices on the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in favor of lowering an alleged murderer’s bail.” First, this statement is deliberately false, as it was a bipartisan decision by the Ohio Supreme Court to lower the unconstitutionally excessive bail at issue from $1,500,000 to $500,000 for a defendant that had no financial means to pay.

Additionally, the Ohio Supreme Court’s decision took no issue with a 24-hour lockdown enforced by electronic monitoring for DuBose, among other restrictions.

Next, the advertisement accused Judge Marilyn Zayas of throwing out a murder conviction. In fact, Judge Zayas was part of a majority decision that set aside an aggravated murder conviction but only to set the matter for a new trial for murder or felony murder, because prosecutors failed to demonstrate that the defendant acted with “prior calculation and design” as required by law.

The advertisement wants the viewer to draw the conclusion that Judge Zayas set a murderer free, when the truth is far from RSLC’s mischaracterization. Last, Judge Jamison was accused of writing an opinion that “would have thrown out evidence of drugs seized legally by police.” This is flat out false, as Judge Jamison’s dissenting opinion in the referenced matter was that the drugs were seized illegally because they were obtained without a search warrant. Every assertion in this ad was intentionally designed to deliberately mislead and deceive voters, and accordingly, we ask you to cease airing it.

Additionally, I must point out the following concerning the media’s responsibility with regard to blatantly false, misleading, or deceptive ads like this one.

Unlike candidates for office, independent political organizations like RSLC do not have a “right to command the use of broadcast facilities.” See CBS v. DNC, 412 U.S. 94, 113 (1973). Because you need not air this advertisement, your station bears responsibility for its content when you do grant access. See Felix v. Westinghouse Radio Stations, 186 F.2d 1, 6 (3rd Cir.), cert. denied, 314 U.S. 909 (1950). 

Moreover, you have a duty “to protect the public from false, misleading or deceptive advertising.” Licensee Responsibility With Respect to the Broadcast of False, Misleading or Deceptive Advertising, 74 F.C.C.2d 623 (1961). Failure to prevent the airing of “false and misleading advertising” may be “probative of an underlying abdication of licensee responsibility” that can be cause for the loss of a station’s license. Cosmopolitan Broad. Corp. v. FCC, 581 F.2d 917, 927 (D.C. Cir. 1978).

The advertisement by RSLC is false, misleading, and deceptive, and we demand that you refuse to continue to air it.

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Columbus, OH — Frank LaRose, looking to run for Senate in two years, is removing all appearances of trying to shoot straight as Ohio’s chief elections official. After amplifying election lies and creating taxpayer-funded solutions to problems that don’t exist, LaRose is now donating campaign funds to two of Ohio’s premier election deniers. 

Financial disclosures show LaRose’s campaign directly donated to Madison Gesiotto Gilbert and J.R. Majewski, a pair of radical MAGA Republicans who each refuse to acknowledge that Joe Biden won the 2020 election. 

• LaRose to Madison Gesiotto Gilbert:

• LaRose to J.R. Majewski:

“Frank LaRose is once again putting his own pathetic political ambitions over doing the job he was elected to do. As Ohio’s chief elections officer, LaRose should be condemning election deniers. Instead, he’s bankrolling them,” said Ohio Democratic Party spokesperson Matt Keyes. 

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