Election Day in Cuyahoga County: What We're Watching

Here are some of the storylines we are following as Primary Election Day unfolds in Cuyahoga County; what happens today will go a long way towards setting the stage for even more decisive public choices in November. 

U.S. Senate

• Will turnout in the black community be so miniscule as to persuade the incumbent Sherrod Brown that he must find new ways to strengthen his connection to African Americans?

Governor 

• Will the relatively fresh face and true blue conservatism of Lt. Governor Mary Taylor appeal to enough GOP trumpettes to puncture the tired facade of Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine?

• Will lifelong populist and pretend progressive Dennis Kucinich upset the earnest but unexciting Rich Cordray, whose mild manner shades a true dedication to effective public service?

Ohio Attorney General

• How might the unfolding charter school scandal currently centered on the apparently-criminal-but-in-any-event appalling behavior of ECOT officials affect voter perceptions of State Auditor Dave Yost?

Ohio Treasurer 

• Cincinnati Attorney Rob Richardson is perhaps the most promising black candidate the Democrats have fielded statewide in a non judicial race in memory. How will he fare in northeast Ohio?

State Senate 

• The District 21 race is filled with familiar names. Is this the last time voters will see the names of Jeff Johnson (backed by Congresswoman Marcia Fudge) and Bill Patmon (supported by Mrs. Patmon) on the ballot? Will the quiet but competent Sandra Williams cruise to renomination with the endorsement of Cleveland mayor Frank Jackson?

• Will State Rep. Marty Sweeney get a twofer? The notorious backroom brawler is trying to defeat fellow state Rep. Nickie Antonio for the open 23rd District state senate seat while sliding his daughter, Bride Sweeney, into office as his successor. Two Sweeney successes would confirm that old boy politics remains dishearteningly alive on the westside. 

• State Rep. John Barnes seems to do enough behind the scenes to keep him in the good graces of local municipal officials such that he has their endorsement at election time, notwithstanding his thoroughly uninspiring record in Columbus. Will he win sufficient support in his District 25 primary challenge to Senate Minority Leader Kenny Yuko to convince him to hang around and try again in 2022, when Yuko will be term limited?

Was there an establishment bias in the PeeDee choice to advance the callow ahead of the competent?

Ohio House

• District 10 is an open seat with a boatload of candidates vying to succeed the term-limited Bill Patmon. Can community organizer Kyle Earley ride the support of his mentor Nina Turner and the Cuyahoga County Progressive Caucus to victory? Will former Cleveland city councilman T. J. Dow get his career back on track, abetted by councilpersons Kevin (city) and Yvonne (county) Conwell? Or will city councilman Anthony Hairston be able to install his protege Terence Upchurch?

• The most interesting candidate in this race is Ivy League-educated Aanand Mehta,  The Jones Day attorney is one of a growing cadre of second-generation Indian Americans entering the political scene. The Ohio Legislature already boasts one Indian American member [a Republican]. Hamilton County clerk of courts Aftab Pureval, now running for Congress, is one of Ohio Democrats' most promising stars. But in a diverse district that is predominantly African American, it is unclear that Mehta has made substantive connections with those he wishes to represent.

• District 12 is also an open seat. Juanita Brent is the endorsed Democrat and Dimitri McDaniel is a promising newcomer. But we hope voters support Yvonka Hall. We like candidates who educate themselves and the public on  important issues, who work outside politics to serve the community, and who thereby establish their community credentials before declaring their desire to "serve the people". As founder and tireless executive director of the Northeast Ohio Black Health Coalition, Hall checks all those boxes. She is not a go along to get along person and would take a new spirit to Columbus.

County Council

The Plain Dealer endorsement of Michael Houser for county council was concussive for thinking people. There simply is no way at this time that he measures up to the outstanding record of public service that Cheryl Stephens has compiled over three decades as an elected official (mayor and council member in Cleveland Heights), civil servant (economic development official for City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County) and in the private sector. She is knowledgeable on the issues, well respected in development circles, comes to the table prepared, and is strong willed yet collegial. She is just the sort of thoughtful representative that a mostly meek county council needs around the table.

One might be tempted to think there was an establishment bias in the PD choice to advance the callow ahead of the competent. We hope the voters of County District 10 choose the independent Democrat Stephens over the machine-oriented Houser.

Common Pleas Court

We have written extensively about the highly contested races for the four open seats on the county trial court bench. We have endorsed Michael Rendon and extolled Karrie Howard, who we formally endorse here and whose election to the bench we think is of fundamental importance, both to the community as a whole and the black community in particular. We think both William McGinty and Andrew Santoli are qualified; our choice will be made in the ballot box.

The one race we have not discussed is the most troubling. Andrea Nelson Moore has been raked over the coals for a minor campaign misstep she made in a prior judicial race. Her convoluted and tin-eared explanation for that misstep earned her a zero rating from local bar associations and the Plain Dealer’s scorn. But the fact is she broke no law and, though suspended pending an inquiry, she was never sanctioned. Our problem is that her opponent, blessed with only a modest record of her own but a popular ballot name and an ample war chest, has blasted Moore as if she were a felon. The attacks have been relentless, pervasive, and in the aggregate, offensive. We prefer Moore in this race. 

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Finally, there are some underlying storylines that we are keen to follow. The Democrats are electing precinct committee representatives today. (The Republicans do it in presidential primary years.) A number of insurgents are on the ballot, though likely not enough to affect the party hierarchy. But there is a battle underway for the soul of the county party, and the precinct committee results may offer some markers as to how that is progressing.

The second underlying storyline has to do with endorsements by Cleveland’s most prominent black officials, Congresswoman Fudge and Mayor Jackson. They have backed competing candidates in several races in this cycle. Fudge’s choices often seemed tactical, that is to say, political, while Jackson’s appear more personal, rooted in his appreciation of loyalty.  What will today’s results say about the relative value of their respective endorsements? What will they say for the future of local black politics, especially among increasing speculation that Cleveland's next mayor will be white?