State Rep. William Batchelder (R-Mediana) was voted into minority leadership of the Ohio House of Representatives Thursday by the Republican Party.

In an interview with PolitickerOH.com Thursday afternoon, Batchelder said he was thrilled to be selected as leader.

"It's good to be back to leadership," Batchelder said. "But we've got a big challenge facing the next session."

Batchelder said that it was important for Republicans to stay true to their political roots.

"We want to make sure that we have a Republican Party that has a feel on the basic issues that have animated the party since the days of Ronald Reagan," Batchelder said.

Batchelder said he was a member of Reagan's Ohio steering committee in 1976 and 1980, and called these years some of the best for the GOP. The longtime legislator said it was important for Republicans to continue to appeal to the people who work hard and play by the rules. He said government needs to be careful in a time of economic difficulty for the country.

"We need to make sure that taxation doesn't take away from people investing in the economy," Batchelder said. "We need to approach the issues that are going to face Ohio with those working people in mind."

When asked about how he felt about the suggestion that Republicans should focus less on social issues and more on economic issues, Batchelder said both were equally important.

"I don't think it's valid to indicate that it's going to be one or the other," Batchelder said. "At the end of the day we have to address both."

Still, Batchelder confessed that Republicans in Washington have ignored good economic values over the last eight to ten years, and that shortcoming certainly needs to be corrected. But he also pointed out the importance of social issues to a great many people.

As far as an agenda for Ohio House Republicans, Batchelder said he didn't have one yet.

"It would be presumptuous of me to indicate what our caucus should be doing," Batchelder said. "It's important that we work together. Working in the minority is sometimes difficult. But we want to make sure that everybody's on board on the issues."

Batchelder said that the caucus has a wonderful new class of young people.

"We're in a position where we can accomplish a lot if we do it in a deliberate manner," Batchelder said , adding that he was glad to have the leadership up and running right away and that it was important to him that everybody in his caucus understand they have a role to play.

He noted that many members of the caucus haven't been in the minority, but said that his own experience in this realm would help as a guide.

"We have to help those guys make a transition - not into accepting an idea that we'll have nothing to do with what's going on," Batchelder said. "We want them to understand the need for a different approach to how to do things. It's a big adjustment for these young people who've never done that."

Batchelder said that during his time in the state legislature, whether in the majority or minority, he's never had a personal problem with anybody in the leadership on either side, and as speaker pro-tempore had good personal relationships.

Batchelder said he had been surprised by the partisanship in the Statehouse when he returned. One specific issue facing the new legislature, which Batchelder said he had a little bit of a different view on, is education structure. He said he comes from Medina County, which approves school levies, and has all excellent schools, but noted the budget discrepancies between dollars spent per student in his county compared to others in Ohio.

"We have to examine whether spending a lot more money is advantageous," Batchelder said. " Education in general is a tough issue."

As far as the new budget goes, Batchelder said he hadn't talked to Gov. Ted Strickland's people about it.

"The budget sent last time had the smallest percentage increase since 1963," Batchelder said. "It was budget that would have made Jim Rhodes very pleased."

Batchelder said he would be waiting to see what was proposed next by the Strickland administration.