Democratic News

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Lisa Sobecki (D-Toledo) and members of the House Democratic Caucus today sent a letter to Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton asking his office and the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) to issue guidance for schools to allow districts to start planning for the upcoming school year.

COLUMBUS— State Rep. Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo) sent a letter to Secretary of State Frank LaRose today seeking assurances that voters will be permitted to vote if they show up on Tuesday, April 28 and that their ballots will be counted. Mail delays are reportedly leaving a lot of Ohio voters without a vote-by-mail ballot. The deadline to request a ballot is tomorrow, Saturday, April 25, at noon.

COLUMBUS— Minority Leader Emilia Strong Sykes (D-Akron), State Rep. David Leland (D-Columbus) and State Rep. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) today responded to inflammatory comments made by former colleague and current state Sen. Andrew Brenner (R-Powell) comparing Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton’s coronavirus response to that of Nazi Germany. The comments came Tuesday on Holocaust Remembrance Day. Acton is Jewish.

COLUMBUS- Today, State Rep. Janine Boyd (D-Cleveland Heights) sent Attorney General Dave Yost a letter questioning why Ohio did not sign on to a States Attorney Generals’ letter to George Ervin Perdue III, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), urging Secretary Perdue to immediately suspend the rulemaking process for the Proposed Rule entitled, Revision of Categorical Eligibility in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Ohio House Democratic Leader Emilia Strong Sykes (D-Akron) Monday was named to the Governor’s Minority Health Strike Force, which will bring together state and local officials, public health advocates and community leaders to address health disparities among Ohio minority communities that have been disproportionately affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

COLUMBUS- State Rep. Janine Boyd (D-Cleveland Heights) and House Democrats today sent a letter to Gov. Mike DeWine and Attorney General Dave Yost about the need to increase resources to domestic violence shelters during the COVID-19 pandemic.

House Democratic lawmakers today announced the state Controlling Board met today to approve $90 million in federal funds to support the Ohio Department of Health’s ongoing pandemic response efforts as well as funds to aid rural transportation systems across the state. 

COLUMBUS— State Representatives Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo), Michele Lepore-Hagan (D-Youngstown), and Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland) responded to a letter from over 60 advocacy groups containing election policy recommendations for best practices, particularly in emergency situations like the country is now facing. The three representatives make up the House Democratic Caucus’ Elections Working Group which has been monitoring election challenges and crafting policy proposals to ensure elections remain safe and accessible. The coalition’s letter focused on expanding mail voting and providing adequate in-person voting opportunities, two top priorities of the House Democratic Caucus and its Elections Working Group. 

COLUMBUS— Rep. Terrence Upchurch (D-Cleveland), vice chair of the OHIO 2020 Task Force, voiced frustration following yet another meeting where none of the presenters were minorities or women and the primary concern of all of the presenters seemed to be re-opening the state as soon as possible.

State Reps. Thomas West (D-Canton) and Tavia Galonski (D-Akron) today joined State Sen. Cecil Thomas (D-Cincinnati) in writing a letter to Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted, and Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton outlining steps to combat racial disparities in health outcomes amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The joint letter is part of an effort by the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus (OLBC) to address racial and ethnic disparities in the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.