Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Was This Primary A Sign That There Won't Be A Blue Wave In Ohio?

Chairman, Ohio Democratic Party
Jo Ingles
David Pepper

Numbers from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office show the so-called blue wave, nicknamed for Democratic enthusiasm that’s been evident in recent races in other states, might not be real in Ohio. 

Only a fifth of Ohio’s registered voters cast ballots and of those, there were 20% more Republican ballots cast than Democratic ones. Republicans say that’s evidence there’s not a blue wave in Ohio. But Ohio Democratic Party Chair David Pepper says there was more Democratic participation this year than in the 2016 primary. Still, he says there are reasons why more Republicans voted.

“Because we maintained neutrality, we were not pushing the vote out. That was up to the individual candidates. There also was $8 million more spent in the Republican primary than our side,” Pepper says.

Democrats are already taking a page from the playbook from 2006, when they took nearly all statewide offices. They are using phrases like “culture of corruption” and “pay to play” when talking about controversies surrounding ECOT and payday loans.

Contact Jo Ingles at jingles@statehousenews.org.
Related Content