NRCC MEMO: OHIO PRIMARY RESULTS
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NRCC OHIO PRIMARY MEMO
NOTE: The following is a partial memo from the National Republican Congressional Committee. The memo will be sent out in its entirety once a winner in the 18th Congressional District has been determined. TO: INTERESTED PARTIES
Tonight’s primary results in Ohio have sent a resounding message from Republicans across the state: Stop the Obama-Pelosi agenda of endless spending and debt, government takeovers, and fewer jobs. With the support of local Republicans, the GOP is positioned to pick up as many as five seats in the state of Ohio. From Cincinnati to Cleveland, Ohioans are ready for responsible leadership on the issues of job creation, fiscal discipline and smaller government. Speaker Pelosi and her loyal allies like Steve Driehaus, Mary Jo Kilroy, Zack Space, John Boccieri and Betty Sutton have forced through healthcare legislation that cuts Medicare, enacted a budget with higher taxes and massive debt, and passed a stimulus bill that has not put people back to work. Tonight’s results further demonstrate that our Republican challengers and incumbents are well-positioned on the side of voters six months from Election Day.
OH-1 (Rep. Steve Driehaus, D)
Steve Chabot’s win today sets the table for a rematch that will be one of the most closely watched races in the country. As one of the NRCC’s top candidates, Chabot is in a strong position to put this seat back in the GOP column. Chabot has demonstrated a capacity to generate support, raise cash and put together a winning strategy, which is why he reached the top-tier of the NRCC Young Guns program so quickly.
By breaking campaign promises and caving to Speaker Pelosi, Driehaus has alienated himself from voters. Driehaus backed a health care bill that opens the door to taxpayer-funded abortions and proved to be one of the deciding votes to push Pelosi’s legislation across the finish line. As a result, it’s no surprise that Driehaus continues to trail by wide margins in poll after poll. Respected political handicapper Stu Rothenberg rates this seat as “lean Republican,” highlighting the fact that this is one of the GOP’s best pick up opportunities in the country.
History & Geography: This is a rematch from the 2008 election cycle. In defeating Steve Chabot by two points, Driehaus relied on heavy turnout boosted by then-candidate Barack Obama. However, Driehaus underperformed the president by four percent, while Chabot ran ahead of the GOP presidential ticket by five percent. For 14 years, Chabot held this southwestern Ohio congressional seat, which is based in Cincinnati and includes portions of Hamilton and Butler counties along the Kentucky and Indiana borders. This is an R+1 seat, according to Cook’s PVI.
Votes with Pelosi 94.7%: In Speaker Pelosi’s Democrat Caucus, the average party loyalty score is 92.3%. Driehaus not only votes with Pelosi at almost every turn, but he also votes with the Speaker more often than his colleagues.
OH-13 (Rep. Betty Sutton, D)
Businessman Tom Ganley is prepared to successfully capitalize on the voter frustration aimed at Washington in his match-up against Betty Sutton. Sutton’s record as a Pelosi loyalist shows how out of touch she is from Northeast Ohioans who want jobs, not partisanship and big-government spending. Ganley is a businessman who created more than one thousand jobs running Ohio’s largest automotive group. While Ganley plans to put his experience to work in helping to turn the economy around, Betty Sutton continues to vote in lock-step with Speaker Pelosi on issues like the failed stimulus, job-killing cap-and-trade legislation and a government takeover of healthcare. As a result of Sutton’s partisan record that has failed to put people back to work, a recent poll showed this race to be competitive with Ganley leading by three points. Demonstrating both Ganley’s ability to put this seat in play and Sutton’s lack of support amongst both voters and donors, Tom holds a 10 to 1 cash on hand advantage.
History & Geography: Sutton won this seat in 2006 when Sherrod Brown decided to run for United States Senate. Since then she’s held this D+5 seat in northeastern Ohio with little challenge. In Ganley, Sutton faces one of her toughest general election fights. The district includes portions of Lorain, Cuyahoga, Medina and Summit counties. On the outskirts of Cleveland, OH-13 runs narrowly north-to-south encompassing the towns of Akron, Brunswick, Strongsville and Lorain.
Votes with Pelosi 99.2%: In Speaker Pelosi’s Democrat Caucus, the average party loyalty score is 92.3%. Sutton not only votes with Pelosi at almost every turn, but she also votes with the Speaker more often than her colleagues.
OH-15 (Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy, D)
Steve Stivers is one of the most impressive candidates in the country. A proven fundraiser and a top-tier Young Guns candidate, Stivers’ victory today puts him on the path to retire one of Speaker Pelosi’s most loyal allies. This race is a rematch from last cycle when Kilroy hung on by the slimmest of margins, despite 2008 being a banner year for Democrats and this being a district that is rated D+1 by the Cook Political Report. This year, Kilroy has the added burden of defending her partisan record that has failed to put Ohioans back to work. This includes her role in passing a healthcare bill that cuts Medicare, raises taxes, hurts Ohio’s economy and amounts to a government-takeover.
Stivers was born and raised in Ohio, and served in the state Senate from 2003 to 2008. A Lieutenant Colonel in the Ohio National Guard, Stivers has served our nation proudly in Iraq and across the Middle East, and now he plans to extend his service to our country in the United States Congress fighting for job creation, lower taxes and responsible government. Rothenberg rates this seat as “lean Republican,” highlighting the fact that this is one of the GOP’s best pick up opportunities in the country.
History & Geography: With then-candidate Obama on the ticket in 2008, Kilroy was boosted by historic turnout in Central Ohio, yet she won by less than one percent. Kilroy underperformed Obama by 8 percent, a measure that demonstrates an under-enthusiastic voter base for the Democrat incumbent. The district includes a large portion of Franklin County, and all of Union and Madison counties. Before Kilroy’s win in 2008, this Columbus-area suburban seat was held by the GOP for decades.
Votes with Pelosi 98.5%: In Speaker Pelosi’s Democrat Caucus, the average party loyalty score is 92.3%. Kilroy not only votes with Pelosi at almost every turn, but she also votes with the Speaker more often than her colleagues.
OH-16 (Rep. John Boccieri, D)
Businessman Jim Renacci is poised to defeat freshman John Boccieri after the incumbent has defined himself as a reliable vote for the Democratic leadership. When Speaker Pelosi was desperate to pass healthcare, cap-and-trade, and the failed stimulus bill, she turned to Boccieri and he delivered. Boccieri is one the NRCC’s Flip-Flop-Five, a label slapped on him for supporting the healthcare bill after previously voting against it. Even though coal and mining are both important industries for workers in Northeast Ohio, Boccieri stands behind the Obama-Pelosi anti-coal agenda, which includes cap-and-trade legislation and job-killing EPA regulations.
Renacci has a record as a job creator for Ohio. He’s worked in the healthcare industry and served as mayor of Wadsworth, Ohio, from 2004 – 2008. While mayor, Renacci turned the city’s multi-million dollar deficit into a surplus by focusing on fiscal discipline and responsible government, both key values he plans to bring to Washington, D.C.
History & Geography: Boccieri won this northeastern Ohio seat in 2008 after Republicans held it for nearly sixty years. This R+4 district includes portions of Medina and Ashland counties, and all of Wayne and Stark counties. The towns of Canton, Medina, Wadsworth and Ashland spread across this seat. In 2008, McCain carried this district 50% to 48%.
Votes with Pelosi 93.8%: In Speaker Pelosi’s Democrat Caucus, the average party loyalty score is 92.3%. Boccieri not only votes with Pelosi at almost every turn, but he also votes with the Speaker more often than his colleagues.
OH-12 (Rep. Pat Tiberi, R)
Pat Tiberi continues to provide voters in Central Ohio with a strong, independent voice committed to job creation, lower taxes and fiscal responsibility, which is why non-partisan political analysts have moved this race out of competitive categories over the last year. Analysts such as Stu Rothenberg and Charlie Cook list this seat as “Republican favored” and “likely GOP,” which is why it provides a steep uphill climb for challengers like Paula Brooks who don’t live in the district and have a tax-and-spend record. About Tiberi, Cook noted that “in outraising his challenger $1.1 million to $392,000 last year, Tiberi proved that he is one of the hardest-working incumbents in the country and won’t be caught asleep at the wheel.”
History & Geography: This is an R+1 seat. In 2008, even though Obama carried this district, Tiberi outperformed him by two points carrying 55% of the vote. Columbus-area turnout for Obama was very high but, in what was a difficult year for Republicans, Tiberi won by 13 percent. This seat has been in the GOP column for nearly three decades. The district includes parts of Franklin and Licking counties, and all of Delaware County. With the environment favoring the GOP this cycle and Brooks’ candidacy stumbling out of the gates, Tiberi is on his way to another term in Congress.
The following are the unofficial results from Tuesday’s primary election in Ohio. These results are unofficial and incomplete. DISTRICT/NAME %__
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