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DeWine Under Pressure as Republicans Reject His Agenda & He’s Too Weak to Do Anything About It

Columbus, OH — Today, the Ohio Democratic Party released the following statement on provisions inserted into the Ohio Senate budget by GOP politicians that cut key funding for Ohio priorities like broadband internet, healthcare and public schools all to pay for tax cuts that disproportionately benefit the wealthiest Ohioans. The budget passed today along a party line vote.

Senate Republicans also inserted a strictly political provision into the budget that would list party affiliation on ballots for the Supreme Court and state appeals court, a push that gained steam in the GOP-controlled legislature after recent success by Democrats in Supreme Court races. The provision has been panned by members of both parties, including Republican Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor.

Senate Republicans are once again putting Mike DeWine in an increasingly tough spot: sensing DeWine’s weakness, GOP legislators continue to cut his budget priorities but DeWine doesn’t have the Republican support or the moral courage to do anything about it.

“Budgets reflect priorities, and the Senate GOP’s priorities are wrong for working Ohioans. Rather than investing in critical needs like broadband, healthcare or public education, Senate Republicans would rather give yet another tax break to their wealthy friends and donors. Mike DeWine will soon face a choice: will he reject these radical provisions and risk more Republican attacks or will he cave to the extreme members of his party once again,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

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Columbus, OH — Today, two-time statewide loser Jim Renacci announced another bid for Ohio Governor, forcing Mike DeWine into a tough primary and deepening the divisions within the Republican party that spell trouble for the embattled Governor. DeWine is increasingly under attack by fellow Republicans and struggling to find a base of support both inside and outside of his own party.

“Jim Renacci flew across the state in a private plane owned by a strip club owner, and still has a shot in a Republican primary against Mike DeWine. The fact that Renacci is even in this race says a lot about the amount of support left for Mike DeWine in Ohio,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

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Columbus, OH — In June 2020 — one year ago today — the unemployment rate in Ohio was 10.9 percent. At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio, more than 13,000 COVID-19 cases in Ohio were confirmed in one day, with deaths and hospitalizations in the hundreds. Ohioans were told to prepare for the worst, with some experts predicting the country would remain at limited capacity until 2022.

This weekend, just over 100 days into President Joe Biden’s first term in office, Ohio reached a benchmark of less than 50 cases per 100,000 residents. Ohio’s unemployment rate is 4.7 percent. And Ohioans are getting back together with loved ones, safely gathering in person and celebrating at restaurants after they get their vaccines.

Thanks to the leadership of President Biden, Senator Brown and Ohio’s Democratic Congressional Delegation — and no thanks to Ohio Republicans in Congress who all voted against the American Rescue Plan — Ohio is back on the road to recovery, with shots in arms, money in pockets and workers in jobs. But Ohio Democrats know our work isn’t done yet. As President Biden said to a Cleveland audience last month, building back isn’t good enough, we have to Build Back Better.

And that’s exactly what Ohio Democrats are doing. Last week, Sen. Sherrod Brown toured the state calling for critical infrastructure investments that will continue to move the state forward, by not only fixing Ohio’s roads and bridges, but also creating jobs for Ohioans and providing important support for Ohioans returning to work. Brown and Ohio Democrats are making their case directly to Ohio voters: we’re investing in you because we’re on your side.

“Thanks to Democratic leadership, Ohio is back on the right track after a long, hard year. But we’re not settling for good enough. We’re building back better, pushing for critical investments in infrastructure and working families that will create jobs and help Ohioans get ahead,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

Read more about Brown’s tour here:

• Lima News: Brown: Lima on right path, would benefit from Biden plan
• WCMH: The Spectrum: Brown stumps for Biden’s infrastructure plan
• WNWO Toledo: Sherrod Brown visits Toledo to talk federal infrastructure plan
• Zanesville Times Recorder: Sen. Brown: Good-paying jobs, broadband on horizon with federal infrastructure bill

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Watch WLWT Cincinnati’s Coverage of the Freedom to Vote Tour HERE

Columbus, OH — As Ohio House Democrats continue their ‘Freedom to Vote Tour’ today, Ohio voters around the state have made their voices heard in opposition to the anti-voter bill that has been introduced by statehouse Republicans. Among other things, Ohio voters are speaking out about language that would eliminate a day of early voting the Monday before Election Day, limit the use of dropboxes, cut early voting by a week and require Ohioans to submit two forms of identification in order to vote absentee.

Read more about what Ohio voters have to say about these harmful bills below:

Akron Beacon Journal: Democratic leaders and local advocates express concerns over new ‘anti-voter bill’

“David B. Cohen, a voting rights expert and professor of political science at the University of Akron’s Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, questioned why the Ohio Legislature would want to make sweeping changes to the state’s voting process.

‘“The actions that states are taking in this area, including Ohio, further undermine people’s faith in their institutions at a time when that faith is very low. … This bill in Ohio does little to improve access to the franchise for Ohio citizens or improve a system that Ohio officials have said is working well already,’ Cohen said. 

“Cohen said that H.B. 294 would impose burdens on voters and that Republicans are justifying it on ‘false premises’: false allegations of mass voter fraud by prominent members of the Republican Party and perpetuation of President Donald Trump’s false claim that he won the 2020 election.  

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“Ray Greene Jr., executive director of the Freedom Bloc, a political organization that works to create better policies for Northeast Ohio’s Black, poor and formerly incarcerated residents, said Republicans ‘have a duty to be truthful’ with their constituents and urged leaders to dispel myths about mass voter fraud and a stolen election.

‘“Anything that inhibits people from getting to the polls has to be stopped. We should not be limiting people’s access, we should be creating more access for people,’ said Greene. 

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‘“This is just the most recent and current attempt to write legislation and build systems whose sole intent is to discriminate against people of color and reduce the number of opportunities people have to vote and install leaders who will work for the people,’ said Teresa LeGrair, president and CEO of the Akron Urban League.”

Cincinnati.com: ‘I’m angry.’ Cincinnati Democrats sound alarm on Republican-led changes to early voting

‘“If these restrictions move forward, they will not be the last to be put before the state,’ said Alissa Mayhaus. The 33-year-old White Oak resident is a member of the Westside Democratic Club. ‘We cannot allow this to move forward. Thank you for taking action. I’m angry and ready to fight with you.’

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“As House Bill 294 makes its way through the legislature, expect to see busloads of Democrats from Cincinnati make their way to Columbus to protest. Cincinnati NAACP President Joe Mallory told the lawmakers and group on Wednesday that the NAACP plans on renting a bus when it’s time for the public to testify before the legislature on the bill. 

“‘We’re trying to fight for our rights to vote,” Mallory said. “We will be in Columbus.’

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“The biggest applause of the night came after a speech from 9-year-old Amara Brookins, of North College Hill. She’s the cousin of Cincinnati civil rights activist Iris Roley, who accompanied her to the podium. 

“She advocated for online voting. 

‘“In nine years, I will be old enough to vote,’ Brookins said. ‘So can you please spend some time between now and then figuring out how I can vote safely online.’”

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Columbus, OH — As Ohio House Democrats continue their weeklong Freedom to Vote Town Hall Tour, every day this week the Ohio Democratic Party will be digging in deeper to harmful provisions included in statehouse Republicans’ anti-voter legislation that takes Ohio backward in the fight for voting rights.

Today, ODP is highlighting the GOP hypocrisy surrounding the anti-voter bill. Ohio Republicans continue to claim credit and tout the success of the 2020 elections, which was due in large part to absentee voting and dropbox availability, the same methods of voting that are under attack in this bill. If the 2020 election was a success, we should be expanding Ohioans’ access to absentee voting and dropboxes, not attacking it.

Republicans also like to claim that their anti-voter bill is about election integrity, but we know that also rings hollow as even Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose has admitted that voter fraud is ‘exceedingly rare.’ Meanwhile, LaRose continues to stand by silently as his fellow Republicans spout lies about election fraud in the 2020 election and continue to promote the Big Lie. So if LaRose is really worried about election integrity, he should start condemning statements made by Josh Mandel and Jane Timken.

“For Ohio Republicans, partisan politics will always trump election integrity. While Democrats have offered proposals that would make our elections safer while expanding access to the voting booth, the Ohio GOP is only interested in fabricating solutions to problems that don’t exist,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

As Gayle King said on CBS This Morning recently about the bill: “It seems like fixing a problem that doesn’t exist, doesn’t it?” 

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