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Ohio Dems see hope, challenge in crowded governor primary

By Julie Carr Smyth

The Associated Press

COLUMBUS — The outcome of Ohio’s historic five-way Democratic primary for governor is anyone’s guess.

The strongest positioned contenders — former federal consumer watchdog Richard Cordray and former U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich — look at voters’ many choices and take nothing for granted.

Longer-shot candidates, like state Sen. Joe Schiavoni and former state lawmaker Connie Pillich, find hope in the math and geography of a crowded field.

Ohio Supreme Court Justice William O’Neill has an earlier surprise victory in his pocket and a name with ballot appeal.

Roughly 1 million votes will be up for grabs in the Democratic contest coming in May, meaning between 250,000 and 350,000 votes could carry the day.

A look at some of the factors to watch heading into the May 8 primary election:

GEOGRAPHY

About 40 percent of Ohio’s Democratic primary voters live in northeast Ohio.

Every campaign will argue it’s fighting to win votes across the state, but this is an area where candidates will clearly be competing for the attention of the electorate.

Both Kucinich and O’Neill are from Cuyahoga County and the running mates to Kucinich, O’Neill and Cordray are all from this region.

Cordray picked former U.S. Rep. Betty Sutton, a former gubernatorial rival with strong roots in the area, as his running mate.

Schiavoni is working to woo voters in his native Youngstown and blue-collar towns like it, including Toledo and Canton, which aren’t represented on any Democratic ticket. He picked a running mate who’s represented central and Appalachian Ohio counties on the state school board.

Pillich, of the Cincinnati area, is the lone southwest Ohioan in the race. Her running mate is from Marion, a Republican-heavy rural area otherwise unrepresented on Democratic tickets.

DIVERSITY

Democrats’ primary started out last year as a faceoff between three women, but it now features four white males and just one woman — Pillich.

The former representative and U.S. Air Force captain views this as a strong advantage with voters amid heavy attention to women’s issues, through both the Women’s March and the #MeToo anti-sexual harassment movement.

On Friday, Kucinich picked named Akron City Councilwoman Tara Samples, who is black, as his running mate. He said the choice demonstrates his commitment to diversity and inclusion as governor.

O’Neill’s running mate, Lorain County educator Chantelle E. Lewis, also is black.

In addition to landing Sutton as his running mate, Cordray also won the support Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, another of the women who had joined the race early.

Schiavoni’s running mate, state school board member Stephanie Dodd, also is female.

When it comes to age, if the current line-up remains unchanged, the 38-year-old Schiavoni will be the only Democratic candidate under age 57.

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