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Columbus, OH — Frank LaRose’s unending quest to make voting more difficult in Ohio has once more revealed itself to be about more than just greasing the skids for his reelection campaign to the Secretary of State’s office. Yesterday, LaRose proved yet again that he’s got his eyes on the U.S. Senate when he attacked U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown for doing the job that LaRose should be doing and protecting Ohioans’ voting rights. But instead of doing the job he collects a taxpayer salary for, LaRose is busy pushing a strictly partisan anti-voter bill and further attempting to rig the game in his favor to bolster his own political ambitions.

“Frank LaRose was elected to protect the voting interests of the people of Ohio, but the only political interests he’s pushing are his own. As LaRose continues transparently campaigning for Senate, he’s even using his office to push anti-voter legislation he surely believes will benefit his short and long-term goals by putting up roadblocks that will keep Ohio voters from holding him accountable. LaRose clearly doesn’t want to do the job he has now, and Ohio Democrats are more than happy to make sure he doesn’t keep it much longer,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

LaRose has been repeatedly called out in recent weeks for playing political games to further his own personal ambitions and for failing to call out his fellow Republicans when they question the integrity of Ohio elections, because that might lose him support within his own party. LaRose is a purely political animal, and anything he says or does should be treated that way.

Read more here:

• ICYMI: Frank LaRose Once Again Plays Politics with Election Integrity, Refuses to Stand up to His Own Party as They Continue to Lie about Ohio Elections
• Twice in One Week: Frank LaRose Gets Called Out AGAIN for Playing Politics with Ohioans’ Right to Vote
• Frank LaRose Gets Called Out for His Election Hypocrisy
• It’s a Day that Ends in Y, So Frank LaRose is Playing Politics with Voting Rights

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Columbus, OH — Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine’s politically charged decision not to recuse himself from the redistricting Supreme Court cases surrounding his father Mike DeWine is putting the DeWine family in hot water for putting their political interests over the needs of Ohio voters.

Amid such a blatant conflict of interest, several media outlets in Ohio are asking the same question: Why hasn’t Justice DeWine recused himself from the cases involving dear old Dad’s unconstitutional vote? 

“If you look up ‘conflict of interest’ in the dictionary, there’s now a family picture of the DeWines. Pat DeWine’s refusal to recuse himself from a case involving his own father is as clear cut as you can get when it comes to conflicts of interest, and it’s far past time for him to put politics aside, do the right thing for Ohioans and recuse himself from the case,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party. 

Read more coverage of what many are calling an “unprecedented move” by DeWine below:  

Statehouse News Bureau: Justice DeWine Won’t Recuse Himself in Case Involving His Father

Andy Chow

“Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine is refusing to recuse himself from three court cases involving state House and Senate maps approved last month by the Ohio Redistricting Commission on which his father, Gov. Mike DeWine, sits.

“Cleveland State University’s Marshall College of Law Professor Doron Kalir says it would have been proper for Justice DeWine to recuse himself from hearing the cases for two reasons. One, because the case went straight to the state’s high court and his father, Gov. DeWine, is directly involved as a defendant.

… 

“Secondly, Kalir says Justice DeWine should’ve stepped down on the redistricting cases because Gov. DeWine sits on the commission that made the maps being challenged.

“Kalir cites precedent that shows the mere appearance of bias is a reason enough to step down from hearing a case. And he notes the U.S. Supreme Court might be slightly more interested in picking up one of the Ohio redistricting cases if they are asked because it could be used as a vehicle since it could be used to overturn that earlier precedent.”

Cleveland.com: Has Any Ohio Judge Ever had the Conflict of Interest Justice Pat DeWine has?

Laura Johnston

“Justice Pat DeWine’s refusal to recuse himself from a trio of redistricting lawsuits, in which his father — Gov. Mike DeWine — is a defendant who will testify as a witness seems unprecedented. We can’t find any similar cases.”

Cincinnati Enquirer: Justice Pat DeWine won’t Recuse Himself from Lawsuits over Maps Approved by Father Gov. Mike DeWine

Jessie Balmert 

“The Ohio Code of Judicial Conduct requires a judge to disqualify himself from “any proceeding in which the judge’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned.” That includes when a judge has a personal bias or prejudice concerning a party to the case.

…

“The DeWine family can’t seem to help themselves when it comes to bending the rules to fit their own political interests,” Ohio Democratic Party spokesman Matt Keyes said. “Even though Justice DeWine has recused himself before on cases involving his father, they’re deciding to play by a different set of rules now that the political future of our state is at stake.

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“Pat DeWine recused himself from a case on whether to delay the state’s 2020 primary amid COVID-19, a decision made by Mike DeWine’s state health department.

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“DeWine also recused himself from weighing in on whether Mike DeWine had the power to stop $300 in weekly federal unemployment benefits early.

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“Pat DeWine said he stepped away from those cases out of an abundance of caution because Mike DeWine was the primary or exclusive decisionmaker.”

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Columbus, OH — According to a new NBC News report, two-time Senate loser Josh Mandel is putting Trump’s bogus Big Lie claims at the front-and-center of his campaign. 

Mandel has used his extreme position to attack the other GOP Senate candidates and is dragging them down the election fraud conspiracy rabbit hole. The Big Lie is the defining issue in Republican primary races around the country – and Mandel is doing his part to keep this conspiracy theory in the news in Ohio.  

“There is no bottom for Mandel, and his need to elevate this Trumpian lie puts pressure on every GOP Senate candidate to follow his extreme lead. Mandel will do or say anything to earn Trump’s endorsement and does not care about the consequences of lying about the results of an election in order to further his own political career, ” said Michael Beyer, a spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party. 

Key points below: 

NBC News: Trump’s stolen election lie is on the ballot in 2022, thanks to these candidates

Jane C. Timm and Henry Gomez

October 16, 2021 

• “The single biggest issue — the issue that gets the most pull, the most respect, the biggest cheers — is talking about the election fraud of 2020’s presidential election,” Trump said last week at a rally in Iowa, again pushing the lie that a second term was stolen from him and that Joe Biden is not the legitimate president.
• “I’m the only candidate in this race who’s willing to stand up all over Ohio, and all over America, and say that I believe the election was stolen from Donald J. Trump,” Josh Mandel, a Republican Senate candidate in Ohio who has made the stolen election lie central to his campaign, told NBC News.
• “It’s the right thing to do for our country,” Mandel added, when asked if he worried his position might hurt him in a general election. “And I don’t care how it impacts me politically.”
• The dynamics could make GOP primaries particularly relevant next year. Steve Bannon, the former Trump adviser who hosts a podcast with a large right-wing audience, has described a candidate’s position on the 2020 election results as a “litmus test” for 2022.
• Mandel, a former state treasurer, also has called for 2020 election reviews in all 50 states, including Republican-controlled Ohio, which Trump won by 8 points. He downplayed the suggestion that, by questioning the validity of election results everywhere, he risks discouraging Republicans from voting.
• Trump himself has fed this uncertainty, raising doubts without evidence about whether future elections will be conducted fairly and sending mixed messages about whether Republicans should bother casting ballots.“If we don’t solve the Presidential Election Fraud of 2020, Republicans will not be voting in ʼ22 or ʼ24,” Trump said in an emailed statement Wednesday. “It is the single most important thing for Republicans to do.”

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Columbus, OH — Remember when a bunch of people tried to warn Mike DeWine that Sam Randazzo was too close to Big Energy, but Mike DeWine appointed him to be Ohio’s top energy regulator anyway? Well, this week the Ohio Supreme Court joined the Feds in reminding DeWine why that was a terrible decision after they ruled that Randazzo should not have approved a FirstEnergy affiliate’s ability to help Ohioans shop for utilities, because it was too closely tied to the utility itself. As a note for those of you watching at home, this is AFTER Randazzo took a multi-million dollar bribe from FirstEnergy.

The latest repudiation of Randazzo comes as DeWine faces more and more questions about his ties to FirstEnergy and the largest public corruption scandal in state history. DeWine has continued to defend his selection of Randazzo to serve as chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, even after the FBI raided his home. This week’s ruling only further confirms that DeWine’s connections to Randazzo will continue to be a problem.

“It seems like every week, Mike DeWine is further embroiled in another scandal that betrays Ohio voters. This week was no different. DeWine ignored warnings about Randazzo, putting the needs of Big Energy above the interests of Ohioans, leaving Ohio voters to pay the price. Mike DeWine can’t be trusted,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.

Read more below from the Cincinnati Enquirer:

• In April 2020 the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio led by chairman Sam Randazzo approved FirstEnergy Advisors as a “competitive retail electric service provider” – essentially an energy broker and aggregator that shops for electricity for customers.
• These brokers are an alternative to purchasing energy directly from a distribution company like FirstEnergy’s Ohio Edison.
• The Ohio Consumers’ Counsel and the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council opposed FirstEnergy Advisors’ application, saying that the applicant shared a parent company, FirstEnergy Corp., and several executives with the distribution companies.
• A 2018 independent audit raised the same corporate-separation concerns
• PUCO staff ultimately disagreed with consumer advocates, saying in a two-paragraph finding that FirstEnergy Advisors intended to comply with all commission rules and recommended that it be approved. 
• On Thursday the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the PUCO should not have approved FirstEnergy Advisors’ application.
• FirstEnergy has been under scrutiny for connections to its subsidiaries past and present after five were arrested in connection with a nearly $61 million bribery scheme to pass a $1 billion bailout for two nuclear plants then-owned by FirstEnergy Solutions
• FirstEnergy Corp. admitted to bribing two public officials, including Randazzo, and will pay a $230 million penalty as part of a deferred prosecution agreement.

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 October 15, 2021

Happy Friday, and welcome to a special edition of “Buckeye Brawl,” a weekly newsletter from the Ohio Democratic Party highlighting the nasty, chaotic, and expensive Republican primary for Senate. This out-of-control primary is making conservatives “deeply worried” about the prospects of Republicans losing this seat. 

As the Republican Senate primary continues to sink lower and lower, these GOP candidates are injecting even more nasty personal attacks, more chaos, and more money into this race. We’re here to help you keep track of all of it. 

Last night’s forum was a time for the out-of-touch millionaires to preview what attacks may make it to the airwaves since the ‘Foul Five’ have admitted they would spend $10 million each in order to stand out in this crowded primary. Here’s what you may have missed:

DUCKING THEIR PRO-DEWINE PAST. Moreno took a shot at the GOP Senate field for staying silent while DeWine issued a stay-at-home order to protect the health and safety of Ohioans last year. He said, “It’s one of the most popular things to do on this circuit, to say nasty things about DeWine. But where were they last April [2020], last May?” That would put Timken, Vance, Gibbons, and Mandel in the hot seat, showing these politicians will change their positions or do or say anything to help advance their own political agendas. It also further exposes deep divisions within the Ohio Republican Party, as one of the top applause lines of the night was an attack on a fellow Republican. 

WHO’S AN INSIDER? Some guy named Mark Pukita who’s apparently also running (?) took a shot at the entire Republican Senate field on stage and called them all insiders. Gibbons also had a similar attack in his opening statement, saying, “I firmly believe we don’t need another politician or party insider in Washington.” Timken’s a former GOP party chair, Mandel’s a former treasurer, Moreno and Gibbons are GOP donors, and Vance has been rubbing elbows with major GOP figures for years. And oh, yeah, Gibbons ran for Senate in 2018. 

TIMKEN AND VANCE ATTACKING JUDEO-CHRISTIAN BEDROCK? Now, Mandel has called Timken and Vance “squishy establishment Republicans” in the past. At yesterday’s forum in his opening statement, Mandel chose to tie his attacks on Timken to Vance as to why he’s running for the U.S. Senate in the first place. He said, “That Judeo-Christian bedrock is under attack by… some squishy establishment Republicans.” This follows Mandel’s attack last week in an interview with the Butler County Republican Party, where he said he is running to rid the Republican Party of RINOS like Jane Timken and J.D. Vance. He went on to call them both “squishy establishment RINOS” and said he wants them out of the GOP altogether.

WHO SUPPORTS THE BIG LIE THE MOST? In his closing statement, Josh Mandel said he was the only candidate who believes the 2020 presidential election was stolen and the only candidate calling for a 50 state audit in contrast to the rest of the GOP Senate field. Mandel repeated the Buckeye Big Lie, a new lie Mandel has made up that Trump won Ohio by more than 8 points. Mandel did the same last week and it’s clear he continues to drag the Republican Senate field down the Big Lie conspiracy rabbit hole. 

NO NEVER TRUMPERS AND PRO-IMPEACHMENT POLITICIANS. In his closing speech, Mandel went after Timken and Vance for their anti-Trump pasts. He said, “What we need in Washington is not these Never Trumpers, these pro-impeachment politicians…” Mandel continues to hammer Timken for saying Anthony Gonzalez had a “rational reason” to vote for the impeachment of Trump after the insurrection. Last week, in a Newsmax interview, Mandel said Vance “gets a lot of love from Never Trumpers.” This follows Mandel recently tweeting, “If the election were held today in Hollywood, Silicon Valley, Wall Street and DC, Never-Trumper JD Vance would run away with it. If the election were held today in Ohio he’d get crushed.” These attacks are here to stay, folks. 

Thanks for reading along – that’s all for the Buckeye Brawl this week. If you have questions, my email is [email protected]. Have a great weekend!