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Ohio: State Senate

February 13, 2009 - 07:28 pm
NEWS FEED: Glass City Jungle

Ray Miller - poster boy for how not to follow campaign finance laws…

The saga of the Senate Minority Leader Ray Miller’s campaign finance reports has been one covered here several times in the past, from media releases from Senator Teresa Fedor back in March of 2008 urging Miller to be audited to questions about hotel bills for me raised questions as to the judgment of the Democrats in Ohio’s Senate when they unanimously picked Miller to be the Minority Leader over Fedor knowing that Miller had previous campaign finance issues.

Now something is finally being done, with a nod to Modern Esquire comes this Columbus Dispatch article that in part states:

The secretary of state’s office and the Elections Commission have spent years trying to get Miller to file a complete report.

Read More at Glass City Jungle >
There have been 24 comments posted in response to this story.

February 13, 2009 - 04:02 pm
NEWS FEED: Buckeye State Blog

Senate Minority Whip Ray Miller about to be "whipped" by the Ohio Elections Commission

By modernesquire

Why is this clown still in the leadership of the Ohio Senate Democratic caucus?!?

From the Columbus Dispatch:

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner's office today filed a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission accusing the Columbus Democrat of violating three campaign finance laws: failing to file a full, true itemized statement; failing to keep a strict and accurate account; and failure to correct inaccurate reports.

... 

Among the evidence submitted Friday, the secretary of state's office says Miller has not verified almost 40 checks issued from his campaign to himself totaling $16,207. Several other checks also do not have appropriate documentation.

"Rather than submitting receipts for some of the expenses, the committee submitted handwritten notes describing Sen.

Read More at Buckeye State Blog >
There have been 22 comments posted in response to this story.

February 6, 2009 - 10:22 am
NEWS FEED: Buckeye State Blog

Husted's hypocrisy on injecting partisanship into the Secretary of State's office knows no limits (or public recognition)

By modernesquire

Now that the Republicans have very little faith that they'll retain the Apportionment Board or defeat Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, Brunner's confirmed likely Republican opponent, State Senator Jon Husted, wants to scrap not only the Apportionment Board, but essentially gut the entire role of the Secretary of State in Ohio's elections.  Two proposals very similar to the RON (Reform Ohio Now, in case you forgotten) amendments that Ohio voters resoundly rejected in 2005.

Why the change of heart, Johnny?  Well, according to the Columbus Dispatch:

The Kettering Republican said yesterday that he has begun crafting and seeking political support for a November ballot initiative that would remove the secretary of state's oversight of elections and implement a new system for drawing legislative boundaries every 10 years.

Read More at Buckeye State Blog >
There have been 25 comments posted in response to this story.

February 4, 2009 - 02:34 pm
NEWS FEED: Buckeye State Blog

Exclusive: Coughlin appears to be using taxpayer offices to conduct political activity

By modernesquire

CowTownGirl confirmed what I had initially suspected, but quickly dismissed (because who would be dumb enough to film a campaign announcement in their official, taxpayer provided government office?):  State Senator Kevin Coughlin filmed his Gubernatorial candidancy announcement in his official State Senate office.  I dismissed it because I wasn't sure if any State Senate office had a fireplace, but the woodworking and appearance of the office looks strikenly similar to that of the offices in the State Senate at Capitol Square.

On top of that, Coughlin's campaign website which states is paid for by Coughlin for Ohio, his Gubernatorial campaign organization, lists his State Senate phone number and address for contact information.

Read More at Buckeye State Blog >
There have been 21 comments posted in response to this story.

Thu, 12/11/2008 - 10:01

Poll: Economy trumps education as gov't priority

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

The economy is Ohio’s most important problem, voters say in a new poll, with Gov. Ted Strickland’s campaign promise to reform education a distant second.

Seventy-seven percent of voters say the economy is the state’s biggest problem according to a survey from Quinnipiac University’s Polling Institute released Thursday. Only five percent of respondents said education was the most important issue facing the state.

Read More >
There have been 38 comments posted in response to this story.
Thu, 12/11/2008 - 08:52

Voters on budget fix: Cut spending, don't raise taxes

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

Ohio voters want to cut spending and keep taxes at the same rate to balance the state's budget, according to a new poll released by the Quinnipiac University's Polling Institute on Thursday.

The state's budget faces a $640 million deficit for 2009 and at least $4 billion for the biennial budget covering 2010 and 2011.

Ohio voters said they agreed with Gov. Ted Strickland's promise not to raise taxes to balance the budget: 64 to 33 percent.

There have been 31 comments posted in response to this story.
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 16:14

Elections bill passes, but Dems say too soon

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

COLUMBUS – Democrats spoke out against the passage of a bill to end same-day voting and registration, saying it’s being rushed through the lame-duck session without giving enough time to fully debate a measure that impacts peoples’ voting rights.

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There have been 34 comments posted in response to this story.
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:31

GOP tries to make voting bill palatable for Dems

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

COLUMBUS -- A Republican-led bill to change Ohio's election law has been changed to make it more palatable to Democrats, but they haven't budged in their opposition to the bill.

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There have been 39 comments posted in response to this story.
Tue, 12/02/2008 - 10:34

Becker announces for state Senate 4 years early

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

John Becker has announced his candidacy for the state Senate almost four full years before Election Day.  

Becker, a Republican Party State Central Committeeman, announced his candidacy in his newsletter “The Becker Report” late Monday. The 14th state Senate seat will be vacant for the 2012 election because state Sen. Tom Niehaus (R-New Richmond) is term-limited.

Read More >
There have been 29 comments posted in response to this story.
Mon, 12/01/2008 - 13:44

Strickland: recession wrecking budget

By Justin Miller, PolitickerOH.com Reporter

COLUMBUS – The national economy’s collapse into recession has blown a $640 million-dollar hole in Ohio’s budget for 2009, Gov. Ted Strickland said Monday. The damage is expected to grow to a multibillion dollar deficit for the next biennial budget that will be drafted in early 2009.

While he didn’t announce more budget cuts during the press conference at the Statehouse, Strickland said his cabinet is preparing to consider cuts and that he will meet with legislative leaders to talk about what to cut and what to spare.

There have been 36 comments posted in response to this story.