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2018 was a big election year in Ohio. Republicans held onto all five statewide executive offices including governor and super majorities in both the Ohio House and Senate. But there were a few bright spots for Democrats, among them the reelection of U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown and the election of two Democrats to the Ohio Supreme Court.With election 2018 over, the focus now shifts to governing. Stay connected with the latest on politics, policies and people making the decisions at all levels affecting your lives.

Ohio Democratic Party Predicts Rough Road Ahead for DeWine's Gubernatorial Bid

photo of David Pepper
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU

The leader of Ohio’s Democrats says the announcement by Attorney General Mike DeWine that he’ll be a candidate for Governor in the Republican primary is good news for Democrats.

Ohio Democratic Party Chair David Pepper says 2018 is shaping up to be a year when voters are looking for change. And if that holds true, he says it isn’t good news for Attorney General Mike DeWine, a man who has held public office since 1977.

“I think Mike DeWine will be stuck basically as the status quo candidate. And, as we’ve all learned, in a year where voters want change, if you are the status quo candidate versus the change candidate, you don’t do very well,” Pepper said.

In the governor's race already there are three other Republicans, all currently holding elected office. Two of the four Democrats running are currently in office but none are well known statewide.

Jo Ingles is a professional journalist who covers politics and Ohio government for the Ohio Public Radio and Television for the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau. She reports on issues of importance to Ohioans including education, legislation, politics, and life and death issues such as capital punishment. Jo started her career in Louisville, Kentucky in the mid 80’s when she helped produce a televised presidential debate for ABC News, worked for a creative services company and served as a general assignment report for a commercial radio station. In 1989, she returned back to her native Ohio to work at the WOSU Stations in Columbus where she began a long resume in public radio.