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As ethics concerns surround LaRose’s shadow campaign, report shows close ties between LaRose and the largest corruption scandal in state history

On the same day Larry Householder will be sentenced in federal court, a new report is exposing Frank LaRose’s close ties to the largest corruption scandal in Ohio’s history – including new information that LaRose’s super PAC is being led by a former Householder operative. 

Ohioans have slammed LaRose for his sketchy shadow campaign which continues to be dogged by ethics concerns. The Daily Beast found that LaRose had “possibly trigger[ed] campaign finance regulations” by admitting he was raising money into a super PAC this year.

“Frank LaRose owes Ohioans answers about his close ties to the largest corruption scandal in Ohio’s history,” said ODP spokesperson Reeves Oyster. “As more details come out about the shady dealings surrounding his shadow campaign for Ohio’s Senate seat, it’s becoming increasingly clear that LaRose is just another unethical, corrupt politician who will do and say anything to gain power.”

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​​Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio Sec. of State Frank LaRose won’t discuss Householder connections 
Marty Schladen
June 29, 2023

• LaRose’s name came up repeatedly earlier this year during Householder’s seven-week federal felony racketeering trial. In addition, a consultant working with a LaRose-aligned super PAC also worked with Householder’s campaign committee at the height of the massive bribery conspiracy.
• In addition to the questionable logic of LaRose’s claim that Issue 1 would protect Ohio from corruption like Householder’s is the fact that LaRose apparently didn’t raise any alarms during the former speaker’s 38-month racketeering conspiracy. In fact, some of the corrupt bailout’s central figures said they were in communication with LaRose during critical parts of it.
• “LaRose is expecting us to be publicly supportive of him,” Borges said, according to messages displayed during his and Householder’s trial. Borges explained that LaRose expected public calls to recuse himself from the Ohio Ballot Board, which had a say over the repeal election, “because of ‘conflicts.’ He [LaRose] can be our friend in this process, so let’s be prepared to speak for him.”
• And as repeal signatures were gathered, FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones texted John Kiani, the chairman of the FirstEnergy subsidiary that was to receive $1 billion of the bailout. Jones’ message indicated that — despite LaRose now saying everybody knew Householder was a crook — both he [LaRose] and Householder had been providing the FirstEnergy CEO with “private” information on the repeal effort.
• FirstEnergy, which signed a deferred-prosecution agreement over its involvement in the conspiracy, gave LaRose more than $25,000 during his 2018 race for secretary of state.
• LaRose’s office hasn’t responded to repeated requests for comment on the secretary of state’s involvement in the Householder scandal. Nor did Andrea Martin. 
• Her firm, ANM Consulting, is raising money for a super PAC, the Leadership for Ohio Fund, that is expected to support a likely bid by LaRose to unseat Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown next year. ANM Consulting in 2019 received $7,600 from Friends of Larry Householder, the now-convicted speaker’s political action committee.
• Martin’s firm last year also received $45,000 from Protect Ohio Values, a super PAC that supported Republican J.D. Vance’s U.S. Senate bid. The PAC is now the subject of a complaint to the Federal Election Commission that it illegally coordinated its activities with the Vance campaign during the 2022 election.

See also: Ohioans Slam LaRose for Sketchy Fundraising, “Campaigning Out of His Office;” Ohioan Calls Out Frank LaRose: “Stop the Sketchy Political Tactics;” Editorial Board Calls On LaRose to “Do Better” After His “Shadow Campaign” Raises Ethics Concerns; Ethics Concerns Surround Frank LaRose’s “Shadow Campaign” for Ohio’s Senate Seat; New Reporting Raises Ethical, Legal Questions For Frank LaRose  

Ohioans continue to call out Frank LaRose for his sketchy tactics as ethics concerns surround his “shadow campaign” for Ohio’s Senate seat:

• Tribune Chronicle: “It’s unacceptable that LaRose is clearly more focused on running for higher office than on doing the job he was elected to do.”
• The Intelligencer: “To any thinking Ohioan, LaRose is campaigning out of his office… He should know better.”

As Ohioans slam him for focusing more on advancing his own political career than the job he was elected to do, LaRose is refusing to answer how much his latest “screw up” of sending incorrect ballot language to all 88 county Boards of Elections – leaving elections officials to “scramble” and potentially costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars –  is costing Ohioans. 

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Tribune Chronicle: LTE: Sketchy fundraising is a cause for concern
Judie Pecorelli, Warren
June 25, 2023

• I agree with the Tribune Chronicle’s editorial that Frank LaRose should “do better than be legal just by a technicality.”
• It’s unacceptable that LaRose is clearly more focused on running for higher office than on doing the job he was elected to do.
• It’s clear LaRose is exploiting loopholes to raise money and is relying on a sketchy organization to fund his search for more power.
• According to the Columbus Dispatch, LaRose’s group can “raise limitless funds in the dark while promoting a potential U.S. Senate bid” and “campaign finance watchdogs say those disclosures are less transparent and accessible.”
• LaRose owes it to Ohioans to stop this sketchy fundraising and to hold himself to a higher standard.

The Intelligencer: Editorial: Confusing Voters in Ohio
Editorial Board
June 28, 2023

• Though an election law expert says Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose technically did not break the law, a letter LaRose sent out recently has some voters confused.
• Perhaps LaRose’s campaign should steer a little further away from “isn’t really illegal.”
• The letter in question included a return address that said “Secretary of State Frank LaRose,” and under that, “DO NOT DISCARD OR DESTROY.” It also included “REGISTERED DOCUMENT ENCLOSED.” One voter told the Capital Journal he was worried the letter had something to do with his voter registration. Instead he found inside a voter poll and request for money for LaRose’s campaign.
• To any thinking Ohioan, LaRose is campaigning out of his office. But according to the letter of the law, what he did is legal. He should know better.

See also: Ohioan Calls Out Frank LaRose: “Stop the Sketchy Political Tactics;” Editorial Board Calls On LaRose to “Do Better” After His “Shadow Campaign” Raises Ethics Concerns; Ethics Concerns Surround Frank LaRose’s “Shadow Campaign” for Ohio’s Senate Seat; New Reporting Raises Ethical, Legal Questions For Frank LaRose

Columbus, OH – LaWhoops is being called out by outlets across Ohio after he “screws up big-time” – potentially costing Ohio taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars – by sending the wrong ballot language to county elections officials for the August special election days before the deadline to mail absentee ballots to military members and overseas voters. Many counties had already started placing ballot orders, printing ballots, and testing voting machines with the incorrect ballot language – forcing employees to work extra hours and spend additional funds to reprint ballots. 
 
After his latest mistake, LaWhoops must answer: How much exactly is this blunder costing Ohio taxpayers?
 
Read / Watch More:
 
WCMH: “Boards of Elections in all 88 Ohio counties are scrambling to make corrections after Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office sent the wrong Issue 1 ballot language… We did reach out to LaRose’s office and we are waiting for comment.”
 

• Boards of Elections in all 88 Ohio counties are scrambling to make corrections after Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office sent the wrong Issue 1 ballot language. 
• LaRose’s office sent the ballot language out late last week. But this Tuesday, Boards were notified they sent the wrong language. They were ordered to update ballots, management systems, and accuracy tests. 
• Franklin County’s Elections Director Antone White tells me his office lost hours of work and some test ballots because of the mistake. 
• We did reach out to LaRose’s office and we are waiting for comment.

WDTN: “But Boards of Elections had to scramble ahead of that deadline. Elections officials had to make a last-minute change to the Issue 1 ballot language following an error from Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office… Both counties lost about a day’s worth of work because of this error, but some counties in Ohio had already placed their ballot orders…”
 

 

WTRF: Wrong information sent to county election boards in Ohio
Kathryn Ghion
June 26, 2023

• Wrong information was sent to county election boards all over Ohio.
• Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose reportedly left off a portion of the language when he sent the directives regarding the August special election for a constitutional amendment.
• It happened days before the deadline to send absentee ballots to military members and overseas voters.
• Other counties that were further along in the process may have had problems and expense involved, but Belmont County is on track to be ready for the August 8 special election.

 

WTRF: “Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose reportedly left off a portion of the language when he sent the directives regarding the August special election for a constitutional amendment. It happened days before the deadline to send absentee ballots to military members and overseas voters.”

Dayton Daily News: Ohio Secretary of State sent wrong Issue 1 ballot language to election offices
Jeremy Kelley
June 23, 2023

• Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office sent the wrong Issue 1 ballot language to county boards of election this month, but local elections officials say after minor adjustments, they’re on schedule for the Aug. 8 vote.
• An email Tuesday from Chris Burnett, LaRose’s director of elections, apologizes to county-level officials for what Burnett called a “transcription error.”
• On June 12, the Ohio Supreme Court ordered a rewrite of the Issue 1 ballot language, saying parts were inaccurate and potentially misleading. The next day, the Ohio Ballot Board did the rewrite, and LaRose’s office sent updated (but incorrect) language to Ohio’s 88 county boards of election.
• Alisha Lampert, director of the Greene County Board of Elections, said her office had already printed a ballot “test deck” with the incorrect language and had programmed voting machines and begun testing them. But she said the correction was only a matter of “a couple hundred” dollars and a few hours of work.
• Miami County Elections Director Laura Bruns said they were about two-thirds finished with their “logic and accuracy” testing, and starting over cost them about a day’s work. 
• This week, the Secretary of State’s office apologized for the added work their error created and said they would cover any costs required to make the change.

Last week, House Minority Leader Allison Russo and Ohio Democratic Party Chair Elizabeth Walters outlined the stakes of abortion rights for Ohio’s 2024 Senate race. 
 
“Let me make one thing clear — every single candidate running for Ohio’s seat supports an abortion ban, including bans that make no exceptions for rape or incest,” House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, said Friday morning during a press conference. “There’s no doubt in my mind that if elected, any one of these Republican candidates would support a total abortion ban without exceptions in Ohio and across the nation.” 
 
Here’s what you need to know about #OHSEN Republicans and abortion: 

• At his campaign launch, Bernie Moreno said he is “unequivocally pro-life.” He does not support exceptions for rape, incest, or life of the mother.
   
• Frank LaRose celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade and has supported an abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest.
   
• Matt Dolan celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade, calling it “exciting.”

Read more: 

Ohio Capital Journal: Russo on 2024 Senate Race: “Any one of these Republican candidates would support a total abortion ban”
Megan Henry
June 26, 2023

• As Ohio Democrats are reflecting on one year since the Dobbs decision, they are also looking ahead to next year’s U.S. Senate Race in Ohio. 
• “Let me make one thing clear — every single candidate running for Ohio’s seat supports an abortion ban, including bans that make no exceptions for rape or incest,” House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, said Friday morning during a press conference. “There’s no doubt in my mind that if elected, any one of these Republican candidates would support a total abortion ban without exceptions in Ohio and across the nation.” 
• Ohio state Sen. Matt Dolan, R- Chagrin Falls, and entrepreneur Bernie Moreno are trying to become Ohio’s U.S. Senator in 2024 by challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is also expected to throw his hat in the ring and has sent out a fundraising request disguised as an important letter to Ohioans. 
• “They would make it harder for women to access health care during the most personal difficult circumstances,” Russo said.
• “The Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Ohio would support a total abortion ban at the national level,” ODP Chair Elizabeth Walters said. “And if Republicans take back the Senate will see unprecedented attacks on women and abortion rates in this country.”

Columbus, OH — In case you missed it, the Ohio Democratic Party (ODP) spent last week laying out the stakes of abortion rights fights in Ohio to mark the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. 

“We won’t go back to a state or a country where we don’t have the right to safe, quality reproductive care. We’re in for the fight of our lives, and Ohio Democrats aren’t backing down. We’re organizing in communities across the state and standing in solidarity with the millions of Ohioans who are ready to tell these radical Republicans: we won’t go back,” said Chair Walters.

• One year after the fall of Roe, Ohio Republicans have continued their assault on reproductive rights in Ohio, sneaking through a $15 million, taxpayer-funded election in August with the goal of preventing an abortion rights ballot initiative from passing in November. Frank LaRose even said the quiet part out loud, admitting that the August election is ‘100 percent’ about abortion. 

• On the federal level, every Republican running for U.S. Senate in 2024 holds out-of-step positions on abortion, including supporting abortion bans that make no exceptions for rape or incest. 

Ohio Democrats are fighting like hell to mobilize voters to vote NO on Issue 1 in August and vote to support abortion rights in November, and have collected more than 100,000 signatures to put the abortion rights issue on the ballot this November.  

Read more from local outlets below on Ohio Democrats’ efforts to protect abortion rights in Ohio and tell out-of-touch, corrupt politicians, we won’t go back:

Cleveland.com: Ohio Democrats collect more than 100,000 signatures for abortion-rights measure

Andrew Tobias

June 20, 2023

• Leaders of the Ohio Democratic Party say they have collected just more than 100,000 voter signatures ahead of a key state deadline to set a statewide election in November for a ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.

• “We’re excited about what this means for the campaign, and what it means for mobilization efforts, and what we’ve been able to build and maintain,” Walters said.

• Walters said the Ohio Democratic Party’s 100,000-plus signatures include at least one from all of Ohio’s 88 counties. She said counties where the party is ahead of its goals include a variety of rural and/or heavily Republican areas: Athens, Defiance, Knox, Morgan, Hancock and Warren counties.

• Walters said the abortion-rights and anti-Issue 1 campaigns are giving Ohio Democrats a chance to fire up their base of supporters while building out a statewide political operation, including in more rural areas. This is part of the case the state party will make to national donors and party leaders, who are increasingly wary of Democrats’ chances in Ohio, heading into 2024, when Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown will be seeking reelection.

• “We’ve been reinvesting heavily in our rural community to build our county parties up, build volunteer infrastructure and mobilize the grassroots over the last two and a half years,” Walters said. “And I think what you’re seeing here is that Democrats, when they have the support they need activists when they have the support they need, they show up.”

WOSU: Debate over abortion continues in central Ohio a year after Roe v. Wade was overturned

George Shillcock

June 23, 2023

• The Ohio Democratic Party on the other hand has not been shy about its success in gathering signatures. The party is part of a coalition of several groups collecting signatures and said it has collected over 100,000 so far.

• Ohio Democratic Party Chair Liz Walters and Ohio House of Representatives Assistant Minority Leader Allison Russo marked Friday with a press conference looking back on the Dobbs decision last year and previewing the next few months of fighting for an abortion rights amendment.

• “We’re organizing in communities across the state, and we’re standing in solidarity with the millions of Ohioans who are ready to tell these radical Republicans we won’t go back. The easiest way to send that message is to vote,” Walters said.

• Russo and Walters also criticized many Ohio Republicans and U.S. Senate candidates for their positions on abortion. They also urged voters to vote against Issue 1 that is on the ballot in August.

• If passed, Issue 1 would make it harder to pass constitutional amendments in Ohio by raising the threshold to amend the Ohio Constitution to 60% of voters.

• Walters, Russo, Copeland and even Harrington are clear that the August election and the November abortion rights amendment are connected.

• “It’s a corrupt power grab by special interest in the politicians who continue to do their bidding, and it’s clear what their end goal is. It is a total ban on abortion,” Russo said.

WSYX-TV Columbus: Ohio in center of maelstrom a year after Roe v. Wade overturn

Darrel Rowland

June 23, 2023

• Saturday marks the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that abortion is not a constitutional right.

• “It was a turning point for our nation to be sure, but also a turning point here at home in Ohio,” said Liz Walters, Ohio Democratic chair, on a party Zoom call Friday to mark the year since Dobbs v Jackson was decided.

• But groundbreaking changes could be coming in the next few months. Abortion rights supporters are wrapping up a petition drive to bring a statewide vote in November on whether the right to have an abortion should be enshrined in the Ohio Constitution.

• “In Ohio, we are in the fight of our lives to protect abortion rights,” said Upper Arlington Rep. Allison Russo, House Democratic leader, in the Zoom call.

• But opponents are seeking to blunt that effort through a measure on Ohio’s Aug. 8 special election ballot. If voters approve, that issue would raise the threshold needed to pass a constitutional amendment from the current 50% plus 1 to 60%.

• “It’s a corrupt power grab by the special interests and the politicians who continue to do their bidding,” Russo said.

• “They’ve made clear what their ultimate goal is: Leading the country on a complete and total ban on abortion,” said Walters about those who oppose abortion rights.

Findlay Courier: Ohio is Ground Zero

Angela LaRosa

June 25, 2023

• The battle over reproductive rights was commemorated over the weekend, with both sides marking the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade.

• On Friday, the Ohio Democratic Party hosted a press conference to mark the one-year anniversary with Party Chair Liz Walters and Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington.

• Ohio Democrats, independents and others are circulating petitions across the state to add a state constitutional amendment protecting reproductive rights. Signatures from Ohio voters on the petitions will continue being collected up until early next month. The deadline to file the petition to qualify for the November ballot is July 5.

• It’s a call to arms for everyone who believes in equal rights and freedom, according to Walters. 

• “We won’t go back to a state or a country where we don’t have the right to safe, quality reproductive care,” she said. “We’re in for the fight of our lives and Ohio Democrats aren’t backing down.” 

• A recent NBC News poll found that 61% of all registered voters disapprove of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, a number that has been consistent since the ruling.

Ohio Capital Journal: Russo on 2024 Senate Race: “Any one of these Republican candidates would support a total abortion ban”

Megan Henry

June 26, 2023

• As Ohio Democrats are reflecting on one year since the Dobbs decision, they are also looking ahead to next year’s U.S. Senate Race in Ohio. 

• “Let me make one thing clear — every single candidate running for Ohio’s seat supports an abortion ban, including bans that make no exceptions for rape or incest,” House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, said Friday morning during a press conference. “There’s no doubt in my mind that if elected, any one of these Republican candidates would support a total abortion ban without exceptions in Ohio and across the nation.” 

• Ohio state Sen. Matt Dolan, R- Chagrin Falls, and entrepreneur Bernie Moreno are trying to become Ohio’s U.S. Senator in 2024 by challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is also expected to throw his hat in the ring and has sent out a fundraising request disguised as an important letter to Ohioans.

• “They would make it harder for women to access health care during the most personal difficult circumstances,” Russo said.

• LaRose has admitted that Issue 1, which Ohioans will vote on during Aug. 8’s special election, is, “100% about keeping a radical pro-abortion amendment out of our constitution.” 

• “The Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Ohio would support a total abortion ban at the national level,” ODP Chair Elizabeth Walters said. “And if Republicans take back the Senate will see unprecedented attacks on women and abortion rates in this country.”

WTVG-TV Toledo: Ohio Democratic Party Press Conference on Anniversary of Roe v. Wade Reversal

• Tomorrow marks one year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. The Ohio Democratic Party held a virtual news conference today to discuss the future of abortion access. 

• This November, Ohioans will vote to decide whether or not to enshrine abortion access into the state’s constitution. The Chair of the ODP says they’re not backing down. 

• “We’ve collected more than 103,000 signatures from all 88 counties here in Ohio, we’ve made nearly 25,000 phone calls, we’ve trained more than 150 grassroots volunteer leaders across the state, we’re organizing in communities across the state and we’re standing in solidarity with the millions of Ohioans who are ready to tell these radical Republicans: we won’t go back.” 

• In August, a special election will determine whether to raise the threshold for approving constitutional amendments in the future from a simple majority to 60 percent.

WBNS-TV Columbus: Roe v. Wade Overturned: One Year Later

• “What this is really about is that healthcare choices belong to women, their families and medical professionals. What we should never support is politicians inserting themselves into those very private, personal and important decisions.”

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