Attorney General Mike DeWine (R) has served in public office for decades and might now have the opportunity to serve from the Governor’s Mansion. He defeated current Lt. Governor Mary Taylor by 19 points in yesterday’s spirited Republican primary. The Attorney General always had the lead in public polling and receipts; the DeWine campaign had $10 million on hand in January 2018. DeWine also picked up the endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party State Central Committee, and maybe just as important, the endorsement of his running mate, Secretary of State Jon Husted (R). At first Husted was another primary challenger; however, DeWine convinced him to drop out, join the ticket, and share his substantial campaign war chest.
The DeWine-Husted camp will go on to face Richard Cordray (D) and former Congresswoman Betty Sutton (D), in November. This sets up a rematch between the two men. DeWine ousted the incumbent Cordray by 1.28% in the 2010 Attorney General race. Cordray – also former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – defeated five other challengers in the Democratic primary including main rival Dennis Kucinich. Cordray and Kucinich are both within the progressive wing of the Democratic Party; though they do differ on style and delivery of their messages. While Cordray was considered the front-runner for the Democrats, some analysts predicted a long night of returns as many polls showed a substantial percentage of undecided voters leading up to the election. There wasn’t much waiting as the race was called around 8:30PM – Cordray won with 62.3% of the vote.
Want to know additional information about the Ohio gubernatorial? Contact Meghan Holihan at msh@stateside.com.
Want to know more about year’s election cycle? Visit www.stateside.com/elections.