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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 Statewide Races are Getting National Attention

photo of Kyle Kondik
THE STATE OF OHIO

History suggests that the party not represented in the White House does well in midterm Congressional elections – and this year Ohio’s five executive offices, including governor, are also on the ballot, along with U.S. Senate. It's likely these races will get a lot of national attention.

Republicans control Congress and the White House, and President Trump’s popularity is at a historic low. There are no incumbents running for governor, attorney general, auditor, secretary of state or treasurer. And the entire Ohio House is on the ballot. Kyle Kondik is from Ohio and is the editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a political newsletter out of the University of Virginia. He says this is a huge test for Democrats in Ohio.

“If Democrats can’t perform well in Ohio in this kind of environment, I think it does lead one to question whether the state’s kind of perpetual swing state status might be sort of going away.”

The newsletter forecasts Ohio as leaning Republican in the governor’s race, and leaning Democratic in the US Senate race.

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.