Against my better judgment, yet keeping my promise, I offer below my predictions for the statewide races on Election Day Nov. 8. Don’t call your bookie on my advice.
I wrote down what my head told me the outcome would be and then I wrote down what my heart told me the outcome should be. I averaged the two. After each prediction, I offered some comments, the snarkier the better.
U.S. Senate: Tim Ryan 50.01%, J.D. Vance 49.99%
Ryan’s relentless campaign is pushed over the top by the votes of the Ohioans of Ukraine ancestry who block voted for Ryan, who supports the war, over Vance, who does not.
Governor: Mike DeWine 57%, Nan Whaley 43%
DeWine defined Whaley inaccurately as a bad mayor. She never answered. The rest was easy. Sadly.
Attorney General: Dave Yost 51%, Jeff Crossman 49%
Yost barely survives vigorous campaign by future Democratic star. Yost’s run for governor in 2026 is toast.
Secretary of State: Frank LaRose 58%, Chelsea Clark 42%
Trump-loving, double-talking, erstwhile election denier moves to the head of the list of aspirants to take on Sherrod Brown for the U.S. Senate seat in 2024. He still stinks.
Auditor: Keith Faber 64%, Taylor Sappington 36%
ODP recruits inexperienced underqualified nice guy from small town and he gets shellacked.
Treasurer: Robert Sprague 53%, Scott Schertzer 47%
Sprague’s TV ads made people dizzy and drove many into Schertzer’s camp. The dynamic mayor of Marion will be a strong statewide candidate in the future.
Chief Justice of Ohio Supreme Court: Jennifer Brunner 52%, Sharon Kennedy 48%
Voters reward Brunner for a lifetime of distinguished public service while punishing Kennedy for trading all these years on a hallowed Democratic name. Voting to put the party affiliation next to judicial candidates’ names backfires on Republicans.
Justice of Ohio Supreme Court: Pat Fischer 51%, Terri Jamison 49%
The Pat whose last name is not DeWine survives on name recognition and basic decency.
Jamison is the real deal and likely will be elected to the court in 2024.
Justice of Ohio Supreme Court: Marilyn Zayas 54%, Pat DeWine 46%
Governor’s son’s personal shortcomings cost Dad some votes and cost sonny boy lots of votes. Zayas is class all the way and will make a superior justice. Her win plus Brunner’s gives Democrats a 4-3 majority.
If you forgot your political scorecard, the only three Democratic winners are Ryan, Brunner and Zayas. The rest are Republicans.
More predictions: Ryan emerges as the titular leader of the Ohio Democratic Party and tries to rebuild it after its “leadership” resigns. Whaley heads back to Dayton to rebuild her political career. The contenders for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 2026 will be former Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley and current Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval. You read it here first.
(Please send your comments and suggestions for future columns to John K. Hartman, ColumbusMediaInsider@gmail.com)
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