Help Take Back The Ohio House: Donate to a Targeted Race Candidate By April 4th

Now that the excitement and the distraction of the presidential primary in Ohio are well past, it's time to focus on the #1 strategic goal for the Ohio Democratic Party in 2008 -- retaking the Ohio House of Representatives. We are only down by four seats. Wherever you live in Ohio (or even outside of it), it is in your interest as a Democrat to support the candidates in key Ohio House races in order to enable Governor Strickland and the other statewide Democratic officeholders to control the agenda for Ohio government and paint Ohio a bluer shade of blue.

Between now and April 4th is a critical time to donate to these candidates. That is the cut-off for the Post Primary Election Campaign Finance Report. The candidates must make a strong showing in this report in order to attract additional donations and support later on. Early money, as they say, is like yeast.

If you do nothing else to support Ohio candidates this spring, I suggest that you give what you can to one or more key Ohio House candidates. In this post I'll identify the races that I regard as critical to the cause. First, here are nine open GOP-held seats, ranked according to my own subjective take on the Democratic candidate's likelihood of success:

OH House-92 SE Ohio (Athens, Meigs, Morgan, Washington Counties). City council member Debbie Phillips (D-Athens) fought term-limited incumbent Jimmy Stewart (R-Athens) to a recount last year and wound up losing by only 865 votes. Stewart is running for Ohio Senate and Phillips faces county auditor Jill Thompson (R-The Plains). The district leans Democratic (D+2.9.) Phillips is a smart and disciplined campaigner.

OH House-22 Central Ohio (Franklin County). This would be the top-ranked race except that the district leans strongly Republican (R+8.7). However, health law attorney John Carney (D-Columbus) outperformed the partisan voter index by more than 5 points in winning 46.91% of the vote in 2006 against term-limited incumbent Jim Hughes (R-Clintonville), now running for the Ohio Senate. Carney, an extremely articulate and personable campaigner, faces city councilman Michael Keenan (R-Dublin).

OH House-42 NE Ohio (Summit County). City council member Mike Moran (D-Hudson) is an excellent candidate with a background in law and business as well as local government. This is an open seat because State Rep. John Widowfield (R-Cuyahoga Falls), who lost his bid for Cuyahoga Falls Clerk of Municipal Courts in 2005, decided to run for the Summit County Council. Although the district leans Republican (R+4.2), I like Moran's chances very much against political novice Richard Nero (R-Hudson).
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OH House-50 NE Ohio (Stark County). Energetic attorney and township trustee Celeste M. DeHoff (D-Massillon), who has run for the General Assembly before, emerged victorious from a crowded primary and opposes attorney Todd Snitchler (R-Uniontown). The GOP lean in this district is not particularly strong (R+3.7) and it is located in blue-trending Stark County.

OH House-18 NE Ohio (Cuyahoga County). I would rate this contest higher except that GOP candidate State Sen. Bob Spada (R-North Royalton) is politically experienced and has good name recognition. (There has been some talk that the 61-year-old Spada might drop out of the race to take an appointed position or other employment, which could alter the race significantly.) Matt Patten (D) is a highly capable, smart, and politically savvy contender with a strong labor background, extremely important in this heavily blue collar district. I look for Patten to campaign very hard and effectively and make a competitive race out of this Republican-leaning district (R+4.0).

OH House-94 E-Central Ohio (Coshocton, Muskingum Counties). This is a tough district (R+7.7) but State Board of Education member Jennifer Stewart (D-Zanesville) did surprisingly well in the 18th Congressional District primary last year (she got 25.59% of the vote to finish behind Zack Space at 38.69% but ahead of Chillicothe Joe Sulzer at 24.04%), and she faces small businessman Troy Balderson (R-Muskingum County) who is running his first campaign.

OH House-38 SE Ohio (Montgomery County). Newcomer Carolyn Rice (D-Kettering), since appointed County Treasurer, worked exceptionally hard and won 44.36% against term-limited incumbent John White (R-Kettering) in this heavily Republican (PVI R+11.2) district last year. City council member Susan Lienesch (D-Centerville) recently lost a township trustee race by less than 100 votes to Terry Blair (R-Washington Township), and the two face off again in this race. Lienesch is described as a great campaigner and hard worker, so I expect a very competitive race.

OH House-19 Central Ohio (Franklin County). Long-time activist Marian Harris (D-Columbus) won 45.06% of the vote against popular term-limited incumbent Larry Flowers (R-Canal Winchester) in 2006. It is a strongly Republican-leaning district (PVI R+11.5) but Harris will build on her experience and name recognition in her race against county coroner Bradley Lewis (R).

OH House-84 SW-Central Ohio (Madison, Clark, Greene Counties). I like this race because returning candidate Connie Crockett (D-Yellow Springs) is an appealing person with tremendous energy. She about matched the partisan voter index against incumbent Chris Widener (R-Springfield) in 2006 with 39.15% of the vote, but he is running for the Ohio Senate and Crockett (D) faces Madison County Commissioner Bob Hackett (R-London).

Here are five very promising races against GOP incumbents:

OH House-20 Central Ohio (Franklin County). Bev Campbell (D-Gahanna) nearly defeated State Rep. Ross McGregor (R-Gahanna) in this swing district (R+1.9) in 2006. Nancy Garland (D-New Albany), the director of the Ohio Physical Therapists Assocation, defeated Campbell in a hard-fought primary and seems poised to run a very strong race. She is well-versed in policy and fund-raising, very capable and disciplined, and has an engaging personality.

OH House-46 NW Ohio (Lucas County). This lightly Republican-leaning district (R+2.8) ought to be considered an open seat because State Rep. Barbara Sears (R-Sylvania) was only recently appointed to replace Mark Wagoner (R-Ottawa Hills), who was appointed to the Ohio Senate. Attorney Darlene Dunn (D-Sylvania Twp) is an appealing candidate who ran for the General Assembly about twenty years ago.

OH House-85 SW-Central (Fayette, Pickaway, Ross Counties). Military veteran Ray Pryor (D-Chillicothe) won 48.59% of the vote against John Schlichter (R-Washington Court House) in 2006 and returns to build on his strong showing in this Repubican-leaning district (R+5.3).

OH House-63 NE Ohio (Lake County). Rep. Tim Cassell (D) only lost this seat last year because of a horrible hit-and-run DUI arrest, and Cassell still won 48.07% of the vote against accountant and first-time candidate Carol-Ann Schindel (R-Painesville) in this Republican-leaning district (R+5.5). Assistant prosecutor Mark Schneider (D-Mentor) is getting strong local party backing in this race.

OH House-28 SE Ohio (Hamilton County). USAF veteran Connie Pillich (D) ran an energetic campaign against incumbent Jim Raussen (R-Springdale) in 2006 and nearly won, getting 48.04% of the vote in a district that leans strongly Republican (PVI R+7.8). She returns to challenge Raussen again, with the benefit of campaign experience and better name recognition.

Finally, here are three important races in which first-term Democrats are defending their seats in significantly GOP-leaning districts:

OH House-16 NE Ohio (Cuyahoga County). ORP Chair Bob Bennett has called this race the GOP's number one target. State Rep. Jennifer Brady (D-Westlake) is personable and a hard worker and has strong grassroots support, but she still needs all the help she can get in fending off city council member Nan Baker (R-Rocky River) in this Republican-leaning suburban district (R+7.9).

OH House-58 Northern Ohio (Seneca, Huron, Lorain Counties). State Rep. Matthew Barrett (D-Amherst) faces former Huron County Commissioner Terry Boose (R-Norwalk) in a strongly Republican-tilting district (R+6.3). An attorney, Barrett is smart and capable and his pro-life stance helps him in this district, but the GOP may attack him based on an unfortunate accident in which he unwittingly displayed a pornographic image to a high school class during a presentation.

OH House-91 SE-Central Ohio (Pickway, Hocking, Perry, Licking Counties). State Rep. Dan Dodd (D-Hebron) once again faces attorney Bill Hayes (R-Pataskala. In 2006 the GOP ran an attack ad featuring the scary image of an African American death row inmate that was so gruesomely outrageous it sparked a huge media backlash. The district leans Republican (R+4.1) and was previously represented by extreme social conservative Ron Hood (R-Ashville). [NOTE: I've edited this paragraph somewhat to correct an error.]