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Columbus, OH – In case you missed it, the Canton Repository published an editorial today praising Congresswoman Emilia Sykes’ ability to deliver for Ohio’s 13th district amid the dysfunction of the current Congress. The editorial outlined Sykes’ successes so far, her ability to break through partisanship in Washington and her vision of making sure the 13th district is front and center for critical Congressional priorities in 2024. 

“During her tenure, she brought back $100 million in federal dollars to the district. The Akron Metro RTA station, for example, received a $37 million grant to build a new facility. In Stark County, SARTA is getting another $4 million in federal funds to continue to be the leader in hydrogen-powered vehicles in the country,” writes the Canton Repository editorial board. 

“What’s Sykes’ No. 1 priority for the remaining year of her freshman term? ‘So it’s pretty boring,’ she said. ‘I just want this government to work for people in this area.’ In these times of uncivil discourse and ineffective division in federal politics, we’ll take boring any day,” the board continued. 

Read more from the Canton Repository HERE and below: 

• An effective lawmaker finds ways to assist those they were elected to serve and to advocate for their community, even when gridlock makes it nearly impossible to get laws passed.

• Sykes has taken this approach with her to Washington as she begins the second year of her first two-year term representing Ohio’s 13th Congressional District, which covers half of Stark County. Rep Bill Johnson, R-Marietta, who will soon assume the presidency at Youngstown State University, covers the other half. (The two worked well together and Sykes, who belongs to the Problem Solvers Caucus along with Johnson, hopes that continues with Johnson’s successor.)

• “We did not seek out a very broad package of legislative activity because, quite frankly, I just didn’t think it was going to be very fruitful to do so,” she said. “And I’m very glad that we made that decision, because you could spin your wheels pretty significantly trying to put together a lot of legislation for it to go nowhere.”

• Sykes serves on the House’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Science, Space and Technology Committee — bodies that are important to the region, especially as the Stark Area Regional Transit Authority continues its push for a hydrogen hub and Akron seeks to capitalize off its polymer expertise.

• When the Federal Railroad Administration announced last year that Ohio is in line for service expansion but Akron and Canton weren’t part of the plans, Sykes took notice.

• “No one even bothered to mention Akron-Canton in the conversation,” she said. “It just never came up. And that is what I hear over and over. No one said it, no one said those two communities.”

• She then met with the Amtrak CEO to urge future expansions to include the region, citing such benefits as connecting travelers with the Akron-Canton Airport and workers in Central Ohio’s growing job market with Greater Akron’s more affordable housing stock. There’s no word yet whether her request will go anywhere, but at least someone is speaking up for the region.

• During her tenure, she brought back $100 million in federal dollars to the district. The Akron Metro RTA station, for example, received a $37 million grant to build a new facility. In Stark County, SARTA is getting another $4 million in federal funds to continue to be the leader in hydrogen-powered vehicles in the country.

• What’s Sykes’ No. 1 priority for the remaining year of her freshman term?

• “So it’s pretty boring,” she said. “I just want this government to work for people in this area.”

• In these times of uncivil discourse and ineffective division in federal politics, we’ll take boring any day.

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Columbus, OH – This week, the #OHSEN field threw punches at one another with accusations of collusion and name-calling. The Toledo Blade Editorial Board even took a swing, slamming Bernie Moreno for his “questionable” judgment and having significant ties to the sketchy crypto industry – a “financial tool that primarily benefits criminals.” 

Here’s a recap of what has already been called one of the “messiest“, “most expensive” and “bruising” primary battles in the country. 

BERNIE MORENO’S “DIRTY INSIDER POLITICS” 

Newly leaked audio this week revealed Frank LaRose taking a shot at Bernie Moreno for his “dirty insider politics.” 

And there’s more…

Frank LaRose on Moreno receiving J.D. Vance’s endorsement: “I think that that was a completely transactional thing between the two of them, to be very candid.”

MORENO VS. LAROSE: WHO IS THE BIGGEST LIAR?

Bernie Moreno threw gasoline on the fire this week by calling Frank LaRose a liar who is trying to salvage his “floundering” campaign. 

Then, Frank LaRose’s team shot back:

“The word of a used car salesman is not to be trusted. Especially one that is losing by double digits after spending millions of dollars on campaign ads.”

MATT DOLAN ENTERS THE RING

Matt Dolan had FOMO during Moreno and LaRose’s battle and also chimed in:

Dolan Campaign: “Bernie Moreno is an ideological shapeshifter who will say or do anything to get elected. He is unvetted, untested and gaffe-prone. The more voters learn about Bernie, the less they’re going to like him.”

BERNIE “GOOD FOR THE GROWTH OF RUSSIA” MORENO

The Toledo Editorial Board slammed Bernie Moreno this week for his “questionable” judgment citing Moreno’s close ties to the sketchy crypto industry – a “financial tool that primarily benefits criminals.” 

The Editorial Board listed a number of reasons to question Moreno including the positive impact he would have on “the growth of Russia.” 

SLUGFEST LIVE! COMING SOON TO A STAGE NEAR YOU

On January 22, Bernie Moreno, Frank LaRose, and Matt Dolan will duke it out on the debate stage in Cleveland. 

Get more details here.

SLUGFEST COUNTDOWN

67 days left until this Slugfest comes to a head and the infighting just keeps getting worse. 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Dolan Campaign: “Bernie Moreno is an ideological shapeshifter who will say or do anything to get elected. He is unvetted, untested and gaffe-prone. The more voters learn about Bernie, the less they’re going to like him.”

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Columbus, OH – Today, the Ohio Democratic Party announced the winners of this week’s elections for district-level delegates for President Biden for the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Candidates elected this week will be certified in March, following Ohio’s primary election. 

“Ohio Democrats are excited to head to Chicago in August, mark the progress we’ve made over the last four years and look ahead to the work that remains to move our state and country forward. We’re ready to elect a broad, diverse coalition of delegates to Chicago and show off our Ohio pride at the 2024 Democratic National Convention,” said Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters.  

A full list of election winners for district level delegates can be found below:

Ohio’s 1st Congressional District

Male: Reggie Harris, Gavi Begtrup, Ethan Nichols

Female: Patricia Bruns, Kathleen Hofmann, Michele Fisher, Bonnie Dunkelman

Alternates: Kevin Ryan Shearer
 

Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District

Male: Terry Williams

Female: Dona Meyer, Amy Petit
 

Ohio’s 3rd Congressional District

Male: Kevin Boyce, Hearcel Craig, Josh Hickman, Dontavius Jarrells, Ismail Mohamed

Female: Tina Pierce, Melissa Hedden, Tommie Radd, Morgan Harper

Alternates: Niel Jurist

Ohio’s 4th Congressional District

Male: Randy Weston, Christian Pearson

Female: Venita Shoulders, Chau-Sa Dang

Ohio’s 5th Congressional District

Male: Corey Barnes, Joe Miller

Female: Lili Sandler, Sophia Rodriguez

Ohio’s 6th Congressional District

Male: Michael Dossie, Joseph Stephon

Female: Kathleen Purdy, Elizabeth Klintworth

Ohio’s 7th Congressional District

Male: Matt Patten, Michael O’Shea, Sean Brennan

Female: Kelly Kosek, Jeanne Gallagher, Bride Rose Sweeney

Alternates: Tiffiny Underhile

Ohio’s 8th Congressional District

Male: Brian Hester, Patrick Houlihan

Female: Jennifer Richardson, Deloris Rome Hudson, Katherine Louagie

Ohio’s 9th Congressional District

Male: Tony Totty, Mark Buford, Ron Birchfield, Jr.

Female: Erika White, Lisa Sobecki, Pierrette Talley

Alternates: Elgin Rogers, Jr.

Ohio’s 10th Congressional District

Male/Female/Non-Binary: Sean Michael, Desiree Tims, Zach Zugelder, Lynne Donahue, Austin Smith, Andrea VanSickle

Alternates: Wendy Dyer

Ohio’s 11th Congressional District

Male: Blaine Griffin, Terrence Upchurch, Anthony Hairston, Erik Meinhardt, Richard Starr

Female: Cindy Demsey, Meredith Turner, Yvonne Conwell, Pamela Gray-Mason

Alternates: TBD

Ohio’s 12th Congressional District

Male: Jason Adams, Cameron Hill

Female: Adrienne Bowden, Christine Rahrig


Ohio’s 13th Congressional District

Male: Robert Thompson, Sr., Vernon Sykes, Peter Zeigler

Female: Sarah Yuronka, Barbara Sykes, Mandy Wagner

Alternates: N.J. Akbar

Ohio’s 14th Congressional District

Male: Kevin Malecek, Tom Moscovic

Female: Kathy DiCristofaro, Janet Carson, Maureen Kelly

Alternates: Christopher Clevenger
 

Ohio’s 15th Congressional District

Male: Dennis Ginty, Adam Miller, Brian Perry

Female: Barb Niemeyer, Anita Somani

DNC Delegates help nominate the Democratic candidate for President. A total of 83 district delegates from Ohio and eight district alternates will be elected to represent Ohio at the 2024 DNC, in addition to at-large delegates and others representing the Ohio Democratic Party. 

The convention will take place in Chicago from August 19 – 22, 2024.

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Columbus, OH – Frank LaRose took a shot at Bernie Moreno in new audio released today, calling out Moreno for his “dirty insider politics.” LaRose also claimed Moreno received a “transactional” endorsement from J.D. Vance, sparking *another* round of infighting between Moreno and LaRose. 

Frank LaRose: “I don’t think J.D.’s endorsement matters much at all. And I think that that was a completely transactional thing between the two of them, to be very candid. Last year, when J.D. Vance asked Bernie Moreno to drop out, Bernie Moreno dropped out, they cut a deal, and now, you know, J.D. is paying it back. I think that that’s the kind of dirty insider politics that people don’t like, candidly.” 

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Columbus, OH – In case you missed it, Marty Schladen of the Ohio Capital Journal today broke news that Republican Supreme Court candidate Meghan Shanahan has been touting her support from anti-abortion groups on social media, indicating how she’d rule on any abortion rights issues that come before the Ohio Supreme Court. While it’s bad enough that Shanahan is touting endorsements from the same anti-abortion groups behind November’s Issue One campaign, she’s also breaking her own rules in the process after she penned an op-ed for the Ironton Tribune writing, “What’s not fine, is having strongly formed opinions about how cases should be decided before they reach your courtroom.”

“In other words, Shanahan boasted of being endorsed by a group that helped lead the fight against an amendment she will have to interpret if she wins a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court. Almost certainly, the court will hear cases regarding the constitutionality of abortion restrictions that are already on the books, and conservative lawmakers are proposing additional restrictions despite the 14-point margin by which Ohioans passed the abortion-rights amendment last November. So in Ohio, Shanahan eight years ago boasted of the endorsement of a single-issue group whose cause is sure to come before the Ohio Supreme Court,” writes Schladen. 

“It’s clear that abortion rights are once again on the ballot in 2024, and Judge Shanahan has already shown her true colors: rubbing elbows with anti-abortion activists and touting endorsements from the very groups who tried to take away abortion rights last fall. With our fundamental rights at stake, we can’t afford someone who has shown so clearly that she will side with anti-abortion groups over Ohioans,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party. 

Ohio is the only state in the nation with the opportunity to flip the partisan makeup of its state Supreme Court this year. The Court elected in November will likely make decisions on key issues facing our state including, abortion, redistricting and voting rights.

Read more from Ohio Capital Journal HERE and below: 

• Megan Shanahan, a candidate for Ohio Supreme Court, has publicly slammed a Wisconsin jurist for anti-gerrymandering comments she made as she was running last year for that state’s high court.

• But Shanahan, a Cincinnati Republican, in the past has touted the endorsement of Ohio’s most prominent anti-abortion group.

• Once-sleepy state supreme court elections have taken on huge stakes as state’s high courts are becoming the final arbiters in some of the bitterest disputes of the day. 

• In May, Shanahan, the Ohio candidate, published a column in the Ironton Tribune taking the Wisconsin judge to task over her anti-gerrymandering rhetoric.

• But that raises questions about what is proper for a judicial candidate to say and how long ago she can have said it. On Shanahan’s account on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, is a tweet from 2016.

• “So proud to be at the Cincinnati Right to Life’s Evening for Life,” it says, referring to anti-abortion group that helped lead the fight against last year’s abortion-rights amendment.

• Also in 2016, as a Hamilton County common pleas judge, Shanahan tweeted that she was “Proud to be endorsed by Greater Cincinnati Right to Life PAC and CCV.”

• In other words, Shanahan boasted of being endorsed by a group that helped lead the fight against an amendment she will have to interpret if she wins a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court.

• Almost certainly, the court will hear cases regarding the constitutionality of abortion restrictions that are already on the books, and conservative lawmakers are proposing additional restrictions despite the 14-point margin by which Ohioans passed the abortion-rights amendment last November.

• So in Ohio, Shanahan eight years ago boasted of the endorsement of a single-issue group whose cause is sure to come before the Ohio Supreme Court. Meanwhile in Wisconsin, Protasiewicz last year called that state’s legislative and congressional maps “rigged” as she campaigned for a court that’s just as likely to hear cases regarding that issue.

• What’s the difference?

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