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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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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 focused on provisions in the bill that will limit Ohioans’ ability to vote by absentee ballot, including language that would require two forms of identification to even request an absentee ballot and that would cut off Ohioans’ ability to request an absentee ballot 10 days out from an election, removing a week that Ohioans were previously able to do so. 

More than 3.5 million Ohioans voted absentee last year, more than half of all ballots cast. Adding more barriers to absentee voting would harm Ohioans who want to exercise their right to vote, including servicemembers serving overseas whose ballots aren’t exempt from the 10 day rule, working Ohioans who may not be able to make it to the polls on Election Day and many lower-income Ohioans who don’t have access to two forms of ID. 

“Absentee voting isn’t a luxury, it’s how many Ohioans exercise their right to vote, including Ohio servicemembers and working families. Ohioans already have enough barriers to overcome in order to make their voices heard, and now Republican politicians are inserting even more confusion and challenges into the process. That’s unacceptable,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party. 

As recent commentary from the Ohio Capital Journal succinctly put it: “These are hoops to jump through that discourage voting, not encourage it. That’s how you suppress voter engagement.”

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In Case You Missed It, Cincinnati.com today did a deep dive on Mike DeWine hemorrhaging support among Ohio Republicans, putting him in an increasingly weak position as he tries to salvage support ahead of the 2022 election. DeWine has become the favorite punching bag for Republican candidates as his support among Republican voters continues to flounder. Meanwhile, DeWine’s ties to ongoing corruption scandals at the statehouse and his weakness in standing up to extreme members of his own party make him an unpalatable candidate to voters across the political spectrum.

“If you’re looking for red flags surrounding DeWine’s Republican support, they aren’t difficult to find. A Republican lawmaker tried to impeach DeWine. The GOP-controlled Legislature forced checks on DeWine’s health orders and blocked his gun reforms.  Husted was booed at a Dayton-area Trump rally for suggesting attendees wear masks. U.S. Senate candidate Josh Mandel regularly takes shots at DeWine,” writes the Enquirer.

Expect to see a more dramatic shift from DeWine over the coming weeks and months, as Republicans continue to reject his agenda and speak out publicly against him, setting him up for a nasty primary fight. And his rightward shift will make him no friends with Democrats and Independents, leaving DeWine in a tenuous position as he looks ahead to the 2022 election.

Read the story from Cincinnati.com HERE and more below:

• The crowd gathered outside Republican Gov. Mike DeWine’s Cedarville estate wasn’t filled with Democrats protesting his signature on one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws or his support of “stand your ground” gun legislation. Instead, they were fellow Republicans flouting the governor’s COVID-19 restrictions.
• These Republicans represent more than an invasion of DeWine’s Friday night solitude. They point to an erosion of support for DeWine within the GOP base, a group of voters devoted to God, guns and former President Donald J. Trump.
• “I never in my life thought that he would pull the kind of antics and unethical and potentially illegal stunts that he has pulled, up to and including his latest Vax-a-Million program,” Phelps said. “Mike DeWine is a sellout. He doesn’t have conservative values. He is a hypocrite, and I see him as losing big time to Joe Blystone.” 
• If you’re looking for red flags surrounding DeWine’s Republican support, they aren’t difficult to find. A Republican lawmaker tried to impeach DeWine. The GOP-controlled Legislature forced checks on DeWine’s health orders and blocked his gun reforms.  Husted was booed at a Dayton-area Trump rally for suggesting attendees wear masks. U.S. Senate candidate Josh Mandel regularly takes shots at DeWine.

• Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale recently shared a poll that showed DeWine under water with Republican voters: 52% viewed DeWine somewhat or very unfavorably and 54% somewhat or strongly disapproved of his job performance, NBC News first reported. 
• DeWine’s foes are emboldened by Trump’s November 2020 tweet, hinting at a primary challenge for DeWine after the Republican governor urged Trump to begin the transition to President-elect Joe Biden.

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