Reply #16: Ohio Dems not ready to grab chance at Blackwell's job

[dzika]

Ohio Dems not ready to grab chance

After a decade and a half of Republican dominance of Ohio, even Republicans like U.S. Sens. George Voinovich and Mike De-Wine view the state's condition with alarm. And now the cash-strapped government is faced with difficult, unpopular choices. So conventional wisdom holds that in '06, the "it's-time-for-a-change" cry should be powerful.

The state government will be up for grabs. Gov. Bob Taft is term-limited. Attorney General Jim Petro, Auditor Betty Montgomery and Secretary of State Ken Blackwell plan to leave their jobs to run for governor. (Secretary Blackwell has to move because he, too, is term-limited.)

For more than a decade, Republicans have functioned as a team. Ambitious GOP politicians have meekly accepted election assignments. But now they all want to be governor. That's another reason the Democrats have a special opportunity. But do they have the candidates?
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Two of those jobs — secretary of state and auditor — are more important than they look. Their occupants serve on the board that draws new legislative districts. Republicans have sustained lopsided majorities for their party in the state legislature by controlling those jobs.

Democrats need to be searching for some candidates. Much in politics is luck. But a party has to be ready to take advantage. Otherwise, 2006 could be the year when the party that gets the breaks loses anyway.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/opinion/content/opinion/daily/0124ted.html